Analyzes the measurement characteristics of sociometric ratings and provides an empirical comparison of the use of ratings and nominations in sociometric classification. Focuses on unlimited nominations as the way to include the perceiver perspective, arguing that rating scales enable researchers to collect refined information that reflects…

A company designs and delivers treasure and scavenger hunts for corporate and institutional clients. Groups are divided into teams that must solve puzzles for directions or clues. The hunts build creativity, teamwork, communication skills, and an appreciation of others' strengths. An insert includes a four-puzzle mini-treasure hunt. (TD)

Study surveys the selection practices of group leaders. Explores methods of selection, variables used to make selection decisions, and the types of selection errors that leaders have experienced. Results suggest that group leaders use clinical judgment to make selection decisions and endorse using some specific variables in selection. (Contains 22…

Examines the effect of collaborative writing on cohesion in poetry therapy groups with 33 graduate students. Finds that post test scores on the Group Environment Scale indicated a significant difference in cohesion for those groups using collaborative writing compared to those without collaborative writing. (SR)

Suggests that out-of-class asynchronous computer conferencing can provide both teacher and students within literature classes with student responses to course materials, transforming courses concerned with developing critical and analytical thinking by heightening student interaction. Outlines the basic methods for establishing such an…

A case study of a business school in which a working group addressed the need for innovation in teaching, learning, and assessment showed that success factors included the use of learning sets, module documentation, and support from most of the faculty. (SK)

Examines the vitality perceptions of the Dutch and the Germans in the context of the progressive European unification with special emphasis on the relationship between subjective vitality perceptions and group identification. Results are discussed with reference to recent findings and developments in vitality theory as well as with regard to…

Comparison of two graduate courses revealed the complex ways in which power relations based on race, class, gender, disability, and sexual orientation interact with theories of mastery, voice, authority, and positionality. Teacher and learner power relations particularly influenced classroom dynamics. (SK)

Uses grounded theory procedures to explore the experiences of six group counselors-in-training throughout a 15-week supervision group. Results illuminate a theoretical foundation that highlights participation anxiety as a condition that affects the interrelated and interactive processes of how and what supervisees learn in group supervision.…

Discusses the role of theory in each article of this special issue, showing how the authors make the case that there is real need to integrate theories and integrate findings related to questions of collaborative reasoning. Shows how a cohesive, integrated theory of group processes can be adopted. (SLD)

Discussion of computer-mediated group problem solving focuses on a study of undergraduates that compared the perceptions of participants, the nature of the comments made, and the patterns of communication in face-to-face and computer conferencing groups in terms of problem-solving activities while solving well-structured and ill-structured…

Reviews selective research on collaborative writing and then shows how group dynamics and peer review techniques can be integrated into classroom group writing projects. (TB)

Illustrates major concepts of empowerment through their application in a Group Dynamics and Leadership course. Finds that an empowering educational philosophy promotes trust, collaborative learning, and tolerance for ambiguity. States that empowerment in the classroom is a growth intensive process that occurs at varying levels and alternate rates…

Identifies, describes, and categorizes events occurring between members of different learning groups in three ninth-grade physical science classrooms. Explains how concepts, ideas, tools, tool-related practices, and materials diffused throughout the classroom environment were appropriated by learners in various ways to contribute to the…

Describes the facilitation of group ice-breakers and orientation activities that emphasize the individual's influence on group rhythms and the group's freedom to create its own "climate controls." Comments on the creation of the "Being"--a metaphor for the group as a living organism. (SAS)