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Thesis (Ed. D.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1991. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 219-233). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (M.A.)--Trinity International University, Deerfield, Ill., 1999. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 66-71, 85-87).

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Ο πολυπολιτισμικός χαρακτήρας των κοινωνιών αντανακλάται έντονα και στον εκπαιδευτικό χώρο. Συγκεκριμένα, στα ελληνικά σχολεία η συνύπαρξη των ντόπιων μαθητών με μαθητές που προέρχονται από διαφορετικές, πολιτισμικά, χώρες αποτελεί πλέον μια συνηθισμένη εικόνα της νέας σχολικής πραγματικότητας. Λαμβάνοντας, λοιπόν, υπόψη την εκπαιδευτική πραγματικότητα, όπου η πολιτισμική ετερότητα αποτελεί βασικό της στοιχείο και αφορμή για την εκδήλωση ποικίλων φαινομένων, στην παρούσα εργασία θα επιχειρήσουμε να περιγράψουμε τις ενδοομαδικές και διομαδικές σχέσεις που δημιουργούνται σε ομάδες πολιτισμικά διαφορετικές, υπό συγκεκριμένες πειραματικές συνθήκες. Ο πληθυσμός της έρευνας αποτελείτο από τριάντα έξι (36) Έλληνες και αλλοδαπούς μαθητές, οι οποίοι φοιτούσαν σε τρία (3) Ολοήμερα Δημοτικά Σχολεία της Αρκαδίας. Σε κάθε σχολείο δημιουργήθηκε ένα δείγμα δώδεκα (12) μαθητών, εκ των οποίων οι έξι (6) ήταν ελληνικής καταγωγής και οι υπόλοιποι έξι αλλοεθνείς. Για τη συλλογή των δεδομένων χρησιμοποιήθηκε ως ερευνητικό εργαλείο η μη-συμμετοχική παρατήρηση, η οποία διενεργήθηκε με τη βοήθεια ειδικών εντύπων, των ονομαζόμενων « Σχεδίων Παρατήρησης και Καταγραφής της Συμπεριφοράς». Τα αποτελέσματα της έρευνάς μου μπορούν να συνοψιστούν στα εξής κύρια σημεία : 1. Σε συνθήκες ανταγωνισμού, τα μέλη της ομάδας των Ελλήνων μαθητών συνεργάστηκαν μεταξύ τους, με στόχο την καλύτερη επίδοση από την ομάδα των αλλοδαπών μαθητών. Η εκδήλωση ενδοομαδικών συνεργατικών τάσεων και η αύξηση της συνοχής δεν μπορεί να θεωρηθεί ανεξάρτητη από την αντίληψη της κοινής καταγωγής και γλώσσας των μελών. 2. Σε συνθήκες ανταγωνισμού, τα μέλη της ομάδας των αλλοδαπών μαθητών, σε μικρό ποσοστό, εκδήλωσαν τάσεις ενδοομαδικής συμμετοχής και συνεργασίας με τα υπόλοιπα μέλη. Το γεγονός ότι προτίμησαν να εργαστούν ατομικά ο καθένας, ίσως οφείλεται στο ότι δεν έχουν εξοικειωθεί με τον ομαδικό τρόπο εργασίας. Η δεύτερη πιθανότητα ίσως είχε σχέση με τη διαφορετικότητα των μαθητών, η οποία αφορούσε πολιτισμικά και εθνικά χαρακτηριστικά τους. 3. Όσον αφορά τη διομαδική διάσταση, δηλαδή τις σχέσεις μεταξύ των δυο ομάδων παρατηρήθηκε ότι αυτές επηρεάστηκαν από την ύπαρξη ανταγωνιστικών στόχων, οι οποίοι είχαν ως αποτέλεσμα την εκδήλωση αρνητικών διομαδικών συμπεριφορών. 4. Τέλος, παρατηρήθηκε ότι η ύπαρξη ενός κοινού στόχου δεν ήταν ικανός παράγοντας για να οδηγηθούν οι δυο διαφορετικές ομάδες, όσον αφορά την εθνική προέλευση των μελών τους, σε συνεργασία και στην ανάπτυξη θετικών σχέσεων. Οι προϋπάρχουσες αρνητικές στάσεις και στερεοτυπικές πεποιθήσεις της μιας ομάδας για την άλλη, σίγουρα αποτέλεσαν ανασταλτικό παράγοντα στην υιοθέτηση ενός ομαδικού τρόπου σκέψης και δράσης από τα μέλη των δυο ομάδων. / The multicultural character of societies reflects in the educational field. Specific, in Greek schools the coexistence of native students with students who come from different cultural societies portrays the new educational reality. Consider the educational reality, in which multiculturalism is a major element and the main reason for the manifestation of various phenomena, in the present research I will attempt to describe the in group and between group relations that form cultural different perspectives, under certain experimental conditions. The sample of the research consisted of thirty-six Greek and foreign students who attend three all-day elementary schools located in Arcadia, Greece. In each school a sample of twelve students was formed in which six of them were Greek students and the six were foreign students. For the collection of the data I used observational note-taking techniques with a checklist that contained various behavioral features (Behavioral checklist). The results of the research can be summarized on the following main points: 1. In competitive conditions the members of the Greek group cooperated and performed on a higher level than the foreign group. The demonstration of in-group cooperative tendency and the increase of cohesion can’t be considered independent from the perception of common origin and language of the members of the group. 2. In competitive conditions, the members of the group of foreign students demonstrate low level in-group cooperative tendencies with the rest of the members. The fact that they prefer to work individually, maybe so because the students were not familiar with working in groups. A second possibility that the students of the foreign group may not have progressed as the Greek student group maybe because of cultural and ethnic differences. 3. According to the relationship between the two groups, it was observed that the relationship between the students was affected because of the existence of competitive goals that resulted in the demonstration of negative between-group behavior. 4. Finally, it was observed that the existence of common goals was not the major factor that guided the two cultural diverse groups of students to cooperate and to create a positive relationship among the two groups of students. The preconceived and stereotypical notions of each group affected their ability to develop a common way of thinking, to interchange ideas and to focus on a common goal.

The aim of the thesis is to provide a social identity account of the politics of mobilisation: based on hatred mostly, in contrast with accounts of solidarity. The bulk of the thesis concentrates on exploring how and why is prejudice in the form of hatred mobilised in inter-group relations. Three studies parse the structure of hate discourse of Hindu right-wing groups in India. Study 1 and study 2 are qualitative studies that analyse the production of hate in two mediums of communication, while study 3 is an experimental study demonstrating the reception of hate. The studies analyse the structure of hate discourse with the theoretical lens of a social identity framework to explicate a context of categories and category-relations, while colouring in the contents of the categories with data from India. The first contention is, if a virtuous in-group can be construed as under threat from an out-group, then, the annihilation of the other can be justified as the defence of virtue. In the other words, violence becomes virtuous. The second contention is, the process that motivates out-group hate discourse derives from struggles over intra-group authority. That is, out-group threats are invoked in order to condemn political rivals for in-group power as not representing the group and not defending group interests. This sets up the foil for the leader to position ‘self' as the ideal leader who protects and represents the in-group, while undermining the credibility of the political rival. Study 4 is a qualitative study analysing counter-hegemonic discourse on mobilisations against the rhetoric of hatred. Taken together, the first 3 studies argue that hatred is not an inherent feature of individuals or a natural fall-out of inter-group processes, it is mobilised for specific political aims. The fourth study looks at the dimensions with which other leaders counteract the politics of hate; when hatred can be mobilised, so can solidarity. The theoretical implications and limitations have been discussed.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2003. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Facilitation is considered one of the core leadership skills needed for young managers today. In order to master the principles of facilitation, it is necessary for potential facilitators to have a thorough understanding of the four main elements of facilitation namely, The Task at hand, the personal characteristics, skills and techniques required of facilitators, the group dynamics that come into play in the facilitation process and the facilitation process itself. In the continuously changing environment of business, it is important that managers lead their organisations and teams through change with a facilitation management style. In order to cope with change, it is necessary to understand what change is and how it will affect the organisation and the people working for the organisation. This study intends to give young, talented managers the skills to be effective facilitators in their organisations. It is intended to give talented managers a working document to help them manage in a constantly changing environment where much is expected of them regarding management styles and social interaction. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Fasilitering word beskou as een van die kern leierskapsvaardighede wat van vandag se jong bestuurders verwag word. Ten einde die beginsels van fasilitering baas te raak, is dit belangrik dat voornemende fasiliteerders 'n deeglike begrip moet hê van die vier basiese beginsels van fasilitering naamlik, Die Taak wat afgehandel moet word, die eienskappe waaroor fasiliteerders moet beskik, die groepsdinamika betrokke in fasilitering en die proses van fasilitering self. In die voortdurend veranderende besigheidsomgewing is dit belangrik dat bestuurders hul organisasies en spanne lei aan die hand van 'n fasiliterende bestuurstyl. Ten einde verandering te kan hanteer, is dit nodig om te verstaan wat verandering behels en hoe dit die organisasie en die mense wat vir die organisasie werk beïnvloed. Dit is die doelwit van hierdie studie om jong, talentvolle fasiliteerders die vaardigheid te gee om effektiewe fasiliteerders in hul organisasies te wees. Dit is die bedoeling om talentvolle bestuurders 'n werksdokument te gee om hulle te help om te bestuur in 'n konstante veranderende omgewing waar baie van hulle verwag word rakende bestuurstyle en die interaksie met mense.

The unifying theme of the chapters presented in this thesis is that intra-group interaction impacts on in-group identity content, and this content provides a foundation for social action and social behaviour. The primary goals of this thesis are first, to demonstrate that social realities can be established and transformed through interaction; and second, to investigate why the process of intra-group interaction can spark and exacerbate social conflict. In Chapter 1, I review and attempt to theoretically integrate the disparate literatures on group discussion, identity and action. In Chapter 2, I investigate the effect of interaction on the positive-negative asymmetry effect (PNAE). In Study 2.1, participants were more likely to discriminate on rewards than fines, and find allocating rewards to be a more legitimate and pleasant act than allocating fines. Conversely, participants thought allocating fines would have a more negative effect on recipients and felt more negative about allocating fines than rewards. In Study 2.2, when in-group advancement was obstructed, no PNAE was found: obstruction was sufficient justification for out-group punishment in its own right. When in-group advancement was not obstructed, the PNAE reversed after group discussion, such that more hostility occurred when participants administered fines than when they awarded rewards. This reversal was mediated by processes of norm formation. In Chapter 3, I describe three studies which show that consensual intra-group discussions about a negatively regarded out-group increased inter-group hostility. Study 3.1 compared group discussion about immigrants with individual reflection. Results showed that group discussion informed the content of stereotypes, which led to support for anti-immigrant policies. In Study 3.2, participants discussed either an irrelevant topic, the out-group stereotype, or the out-group stereotype plus what concrete actions should be taken towards that group. Only discussion of the stereotype significantly increased hostility, suggesting that the psychological products of discussion per se (cohesion, identification, etc.) are not solely responsible for hostility. Rather, social validation of the stereotype explained why its discussion increased hostility. Study 3.3 replicated these results with a behavioural measure. In Chapter 4, I present two studies which controlled for the content of interaction by showing participants short films of similar others having a group discussion. Study 4.1 investigated the paradoxical finding that when groups discuss potential courses of action against an out-group, they are less likely to act than when they discuss simply the out-group stereotype (Chapter 3). Results suggested that when group discussions imply that there is social consensus about a course of action, even the advocacy of extreme actions can increase support for (more moderate) social action. Study 4.2 manipulated whether or not the discussants consensualised on the out-group stereotype, whilst controlling for discussion content. Only when the discussion ended in consensus did participants identify with the discussants and perceive norms for social action. In Chapter 5, I address how social identities and their associated (self-) stereotypes can disadvantage members of low status groups, but how they can also promote social change. The data demonstrates that consensualisation in small groups can transform (or reconfirm) such stereotypes, thereby eliminating (or bolstering) stereotype threat effects. In Study 5.1, female participants were asked why men are (or are not) better at maths. They generated their answers individually or through group discussion. Stereotype threat was undermined only when they collectively challenged the stereotype. Content analyses suggest that discussions redefined in-group and out-group stereotypes, providing the basis for stigma reversal or confirmation. In Study 5.2, male and female participants confirmed or challenged the stereotype in same-gender discussion groups or no discussion, baseline conditions. After a discussion that confirmed the stereotype, women displayed signs of stereotype threat and men’s performance was “lifted”. When they challenged the stereotype, the difference between men and women on the maths test was eliminated. Overall, the results reported in this thesis suggest that intra-group interaction enables group members to develop an understanding of their common ideology, which may establish the consensual basis of their identity content. If such consensualisation occurs, this provides them with a sense that their perceptions of reality are socially valid, and gives rise to (implicit or explicit) in-group norms. This provides individuals with a solid foundation upon which they may act. The implications of these conclusions are discussed in Chapter 6.

The effectiveness of a social skills training workshop was assessed by comparing the rated competence of participants in an Interpersonal Skills Training Program (a 2-session, 12-hour workshop) to the rated competence of nonparticipants. This comparison was operationalized through a study design of the pre- and posttesting of 12 experimental and 22 control subjects. The assessment instruments used were Spitzberg's Conversational Skills Rating Scale (CSRS) and Curran's Simulated Social Interaction Test (SSIT). Two rating judges were utilized. Results, although modest, are in the expected direction. Measured competence on the CSRS failed to show significant improvement in the rated competence of the experimental group as compared to the rated competence of the control group. However, the SSIT did reveal significant improvement of the rated skill and anxiety of experimental subjects while the control group showed no significant improvement. In addition to assessing the effectiveness of the workshop, this study sought to find a positive correlation of the CSRS instrument to the SSIT instrument. As expected, the CSRS showed a positive correlation to the SSIT.