Effective Group Discussion: Theory and Practice

Gloria J. Galanes is professor emerita, former departmenthead of Communication, and former dean, College of Arts and Letters, MissouriState University. Her various administrative roles22 years spent in universityadministrationhave fueled her long-standing interest in small groups. Inaddition to small group courses, she has taught organizational communication,leadership, communication and aging, intercultural communication, quantitativeresearch methods, and applied communication research. Dr. Galanes was thefounding director of the Citizenship and Service Learning program at MissouriState.  Her classes have investigated such topics as the needs of youth inthe community, the needs of older adults, and the perceptions of SpringfieldPublic Schools on behalf of numerous community organizations in Springfield.She is the co-author of two small group communication textbooks and co-edited atext on social constructionism. Her Ph.D. is from The Ohio State University. Katherine L. Adams is Professor of Speech Communication at California State University, Fresno, where she received a Meritorious Promise and Performance award in 1989. She has served as their Graduate Coordinator since 1989. She received her Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Utah under the direction of B. Aubrey Fisher. She has authored four instructors manuals in interpersonal and small group communication and most recently, this group communication book with Gloria Galanes. She has published articles in the areas of conversational analysis and interpersonal communication. Currently she is an associate editor for Communication Reports and The Western Journal of Communication. She participates, at all levels, in the Western States Communication Association and Speech Communication Association and teaches in the areas of interpersonal communication, communication theory, small group communication, and research methods.

PrefacePart I: The Foundations of Communicating in Groups Chapter 1. The Small Groups in Everyone's Life Chapter 2. Human Communication Processes in the Small Group ContextChapter 3. The Small Group as a SystemPart II: Developing the GroupChapter 4. Diversity and the Effects of CultureChapter 5. The Members and Their RolesPart III: Small Group Throughput ProcessesChapter 6. Communication and Group Culture: Tensions, Fantasy, Socialization, Norms, and ClimateChapter 7. Leading Small Groups: Theoretical PerspectivesChapter 8. Leading Small Groups: Practical TipsPart IV: Improving Group OutputsChapter 9. Problem Solving and Decision Making in Groups: Theoretical PerspectivesChapter 10. Problem Solving and Decision Making in Groups: Practical Tips and TechniquesChapter 11. Managing Conflict in the Small GroupPart V: Group Observation and Evaluation ToolsChapter 12. Tools for Assessing and Evaluating GroupsAppendix A: Preparing for Problem-Solving Discussions: Informational Resources for the GroupAppendix B: Making Public Presentations of the Group's OutputAppendix C: Using Technology to Help Your GroupGlossaryCreditsName IndexSubject Index