Group Discussion as Interactive Dialogue or as Serial Monologue: The Influence of Group Size

Current models draw a broad distinction between communication as dialogue and communication as monologue. The two kinds of models have different implications for who influences whom in a group discussion. If the discussion is like interactive dialogue, group members should be influenced most by those with whom they interact in the discussion; if it is like serial monologue, they should be influenced most by the dominant speaker. The experiments reported here show that in small, 5-person groups, the communication is like dialogue and members are influenced most by those with whom they interact in the discussion. However, in large, 10-person groups, the communication is like monologue and members are influenced most by the dominant speaker. The difference in mode of communication is explained in terms of how speakers in the two sizes of groups design their utterances for different audiences.

[1]  Michael A. Becker.  Social Psychology: Handbook of Basic Principles , 1998 .

[2]  H. H. Clark,et al.  Book Reviews: Using Language , 1997, CL.

[3]  Susan R. Fussell,et al.  Social psychological models of interpersonal communication , 1996 .

[4]  K. Dunbar.  HOW SCIENTISTS REALLY REASON: SCIENTIFIC REASONING IN REAL-WORLD LABORATORIES , 1995 .

[5]  S. Garrod,et al.  Conversation, co-ordination and convention: an empirical investigation of how groups establish linguistic conventions , 1994, Cognition.

[6]  Garold Stasser,et al.  Speaking turns in face-to-face discussions. , 1991 .

[7]  H. H. Clark,et al.  Understanding by addressees and overhearers , 1989, Cognitive Psychology.

[8]  K. Parker,et al.  Speaking turns in small group interaction: A context-sensitive event sequence model. , 1988 .

[9]  S. Garrod,et al.  Saying what you mean in dialogue: A study in conceptual and semantic co-ordination , 1987, Cognition.

[10]  J. M. Dabbs,et al.  Dimensions of Group Process: Amount and Structure of Vocal Interaction , 1987 .

[11]  W. Kintsch,et al.  Language and comprehension , 1982 .

[12]  H. H. Clark,et al.  Audience Design in Meaning and Reference , 1982 .

[13]  A. Hare,et al.  Group Size , 1981 .

[14]  E. Schegloff,et al.  A simplest systematics for the organization of turn-taking for conversation , 1974 .

[15]  A. Hare,et al.  Handbook of small group research , 1962 .

[16]  Frederick F. Stephan,et al.  The Distribution of Participation in Small Groups: An Exponential Approximation , 1952 .

[17]  R. Bales,et al.  Channels of communication in small groups. , 1951 .

[18]  R. Fisher.  014: On the "Probable Error" of a Coefficient of Correlation Deduced from a Small Sample. , 1921 .