TRANSPORTATION - WORK GROUP DISCUSSION

Agribusiness,

Parent Study/Discussion Group Facilitator's Manual

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TRANSPORTATION - WORK GROUP DISCUSSION

Agribusiness,

Qualitative analysis of academic group and discussion forum on Facebook

In the present study, data was triangulated and two methods of data analysis were used. Qualitative analysis was undertaken of free-text data from students’ reflective essaysto extract socially-related themes. Heuristic evaluation was conducted by expert evaluators, who investigated forum contributions and discourse in line with contemporary learning theory and considered the social\ud culture of participation. Findings of the qualitative analysis of students’ perceptions and results of the\ud heuristic evaluation of forum participation confirmed each other, indicating a warm social climate and a conducive, well-facilitated environment that supported individual styles of participation. It fostered interpersonal relationships between distance learners, as well as study-related benefits enhanced by peer teaching and insights acquired in a culture of social negotiation. The environment was effectively moderated, while supporting student-initiative.\u

The Evaluation and Assessment of Online Skills Through Online Group Discussion

Increasingly much of a psychology student’s learning occurs within electronic environments, however rarely are the new skills they develop in these contexts identified, improved or assessed. Over the past 5 years, I have addressed this important need (Taylor, 2012) and examples from assessed online student discussions will be presented in this poster to demonstrate an innovative way to develop and assess online skills. These skills were formally assessed using two methods and examples will be provided on the poster. The first method involved tutor marking of online transcripts for evidence of critical thinking, online leadership and effective academic communication. The second method involved students reflecting on their experiences and perceived understanding of the psychology topic as a result of participating in the online discussions. Also, I will present findings from a separate empirical study to evaluate the impacts of shared online reflection on meta-cognitive awareness which employs both quantitative and qualitative methods. The final section of the poster will highlight examples where these new skills can be used to enhance psychology graduate employability in new technological environments. I will be interested to interact with attendees viewing my poster to discuss my techniques and findings and to explore future collaboration

An Interactive Tablecloth for Facilitating Discussion in a Culturally Diverse Group

Group discussions are a useful tool in a number of environments: from working towards a common goal in a business setting, to gathering feedback on an exhibit in a museum for example. One issue in such sessions is that some group members can talk more loudly and confidently than others, making some group members change their mind or keep quiet, this can result in interesting differences of opinion being lost. In this paper we present a tool for facilitating such group discussions. The tool is an interactive tablecloth that is controlled with tangible interfaces, and provides a method for each group member’s voice to be heard prior to discussion, thus preserving the diversity of responses. When tested after an immersive theatre performance, the tool effectively allowed each group member to answer questions individually prior to beginning group discussion. This also allowed the facilitator to effectively coordinate the discussion in an efficient manner

The Impact of Intra-group Interaction on Identity and Action

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.Economic and Social Research Counci

Explorations in feminist participant-led research: Conducting focus group discussion with polyamorous women

This paper addresses the methodology used in research centring on a group of polyamorous women. It outlines the methodological processes of participant led research and highlights some key ethical and epistemological considerations. The research centred on a focus group discussion. Participants were involved in every stage of the research and the researcher / researched relationship was understood as one of collaboration. Participants had ownership of the research process in terms of generating discussion questions, facilitating the focus group discussion, and analysing the transcript. Their reflections on this process are also incorporated in this article. The paper focuses in particular on issues of accountability in participant led research and on reflexivity when researchers are part of the group they are researchin