OVERVIEW READINGS

OVERVIEW FOR EDP 5285 GROUP PROCESSES GUIDE 1:  INTRODUCTION GUIDE 2: METHODS FOR STUDYING GROUPS GUIDE 3: GROUP STRUCTURE GUIDE 4: ASPECTS OF GROUP STRUCTURE II GUIDE 5: ATTRACTION TO GROUPS GUIDE 6: COHESIVENESS II GUIDE 7: INFLUENCE PROCESSES GUIDE 8: PERFORMANCE & DECISION-MAKING GUIDE 9: LEADERSHIP GUIDE 10: GROUP COOPERATION & CONFLICT

COURSE PROJECT PRESENTATION

PLEASE LET ME KNOW IMMEDIATELY IF YOU REQUIRE ANY ASSISTANCE WITH DISABILITIES.
 

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Susan Carol Losh 3204 Stone Building (EPLS Suite) 850-644-4592 (EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY & LEARNING SYSTEMS) 850-644-8776 FAX slosh@fsu.edu

Spring 2018 Office Hours In Stone: To be announced & by appointment PLUS email!

This graduate course examines group dynamics in education, industry, sports, the military, religious congregations, family life, peer groups, and other formal and informal organizations. We study processes of interaction among peers and between leaders and members, the role of social structure (e.g., types of organizational roles), and intra- and inter-group relations. Topics include group structure, Social Identity Theory, cohesion and teamwork, "Groupthink," group decision-making, conformity and persuasion, leadership, communication, how groups influence achievement, and the role of groups in organizational and social change. I also include a section on methods of studying groups and the role of groups in assessments and evaluations (e.g., focus groups, "brainstorming").

Thus the major objective of this course is to make you conversant with the basic professional group processes literature, its vocabulary and its applications in many different settings. Group dynamics has applications to many fields. Each student will conduct a presentation related to their paper/project about group processes to demonstrate applying the material to a field of their interest. Past examples include:

• Cooperative learning
• Campus organizations, including fraternities, sororities, political action groups, and religious groups
• "Fandom" with sports, reality stars, and more
• Focus groups with USA and international students
• Implementing group processes in the business world, including the adoption of new technology and making work groups more effective
• Making workgroups more effective in other organizations including the military and education
• Increasing volunteer group effectiveness
• The role of groups in violence, family violence, school violence, bullying

My roles as Instructor are to facilitate and to coordinate the "big picture." For each major course section, I will discuss basic perspectives, postulated major processes, and particularly noteworthy empirical findings. I'll be calling on you, too, to discuss your experience, your readings and observations.

I recommend reading my online lectures or "course guides" at the beginning of each unit. That's because I try to explicate some of the major themes that you will encounter in your readings, sometimes bring in some cutting edge materials (e.g., dog jealousy!), some of the concepts I feel are less fruitful (whole hearted support of group cohesion), and some of the conflicts in the discipline.

In addition, we have a recorded Blackboard introductory video (about 1 hour) that gives you a tour of our Blackboard (Bb) site and the course overall. There will also be short recorded introductions for each of our ten major units.
 

FORSYTH: Donelson Forsyth (2014) Group Dynamics (SIXTH edition). Cengage Learning); hardcover; ISBN = 978-1-285-05146-8

JOHNSON: David W. Johnson and Frank P. Johnson (2014). Joining Together: Group Theory and Group Skills (ELEVENTH Edition). Pearson; paperback; ISBN = 978-0-13-267813-1.

Be sure you have "the right" Johnsons; there are several brothers, all with doctorates, and very active scholars in the behavioral and social sciences.

Please be sure to check for the correct edition number. Look for possible deals on Amazon and elsewhere online.

• Check with the publisher for an e-edition.
• Bill's Bookstore also rents textbooks.
• Barnes and Noble (as well as Amazon) carries many used copies.
• Another way to cut costs is to split the cost of the books with a buddy.

Here’s how I can be reached:
 

The best way to reach me is through email (but by appointment if you are in Tallahassee I can also meet you at the Stone Building): slosh@fsu.edu

I can be reached by email 24/7 and usually get back with you within 24 hours.

WE'RE ALL-ONLINE!

This semester Group Processes is totally online. Materials are accessible through Canvas or on the myweb.fsu.edu server.

My integrative course guides are also linked in on the Overview and Readings pages, below and also under COURSE DOCUMENTS in Blackboard
This makes it easy and very quick to navigate many of our Internet resources on the "myweb" server.

For example, if you accessed our Course Calendar and Syllabus through Canvas, you can instead access it HERE as well.

Through the links you can access the online Guides and information about the Course Project and Presentation too.

Enter your FSU username and password to enter Canvas. For example, I would enter "slosh" ONLY and omit the "@fsu.edu" part.

If you are brand new and DON'T have an FSU ID account, you need one immediately. Access the FSU Guide to Computing Resources website (address below). Follow the links to register online for your MyFSU account.

• All lectures will be available online in Canvas 24/7 or through myweb.fsu.edu.  Objectives will be posted for each section of the course as the semester progresses.
• The Canvas site will include links to resources.
• Class presentations will be posted to our Canvas site. Examples from prior years are online nowl.
• Announcements on the Canvas main page will alert you to any changes in the syllabus, course deadlines, or class meetings.
• In addition, Canvas announcements will be sent to you via email (see below).
• More detail will be posted on each course assignment. Information will be updated throughout the semester.
• IMPORTANT:regardless of any other email account you may have, you MUST use your FSU id email for any communication related to this course!!

We meet for about one hour approximately every other week in cyberspace. This time will be used for the Discussion Board, explanations, and short "in-class" assignments (see the Course Calendar in the Readings folder). We will determine this time early in the semester.

You must use your FSU email to communicate in this course, whether with me or other students. (If you want to set up your FSU email to forward to a different server, that's OK with me as long as our communication is complete, but communication coming to me or to the university must come from your FSU email address.)

Generally I will respond to email from you within 24 hours.

Please check our class Canvas site AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK for:

ANNOUNCEMENTS, such as: Any schedule changes Any changes to assignments or topics Weekly study guides to download

More details on an assignment  Links  On-line questions and discussion AND MORE TO BE ADDED

By starting with this site (where you are now):

you can link to the Readings and Assignments website, updates on the project and presentation.

However, our class presentations will only be available through the Blackboard system.
 

DATE	TOPIC AND OBJECTIVES
Week of January 8	WEB site navigation and course outline What defines a group?  How do groups differ from aggregates and cohorts?
Weeks of January 16-22 (FSU closed for Martin Luther King Day on 1-15)	Methods: Experiments, observations, surveys, archives, simulations, focus groups. How can we use these to study groups? Distinguish among Methods most commonly used in studying Groups Describe general methodological advantages and disadvantages
Weeks of January 22-29	Group Composition and Group Structure I: Ascribed versus achieved groups  Formal versus informal groups  Status hierarchies
Weeks of January 29 - February 5	Group Composition and Group Structure II: Reference groups  Social Roles in groups  Role conflict  Social Identity Theory
February 8 by 11:59 pm	Course project prospectus due  (milestone 1) This is submitted through the Discussion Board
Weeks of February 12-19	Attraction to Groups:  Who joins groups?  What makes groups attractive?  What are different types of exchange theories? Group Boundaries
Weeks of February 19-26	Group Cohesion I: What is it?  How is it measured?  What are bases and outcomes of group cohesion?
March 8 by 11:59 pm	Course project update due  (milestone 2) This is submitted through the Discussion Board
Weeks of February 26-March 5	Group Cohesion II:  An advanced look at the most widely used construct in group processes
March 12-16	Spring Break!
Weeks of March 19-26	Group Influence and Conformity: Culture and  conformity  Conformity versus compliance  Which factors increase group influence?  How do groups exert influence? INCLUDES MILGRIM DOCUMENTARY
Weeks of March 26-April 2	Group Performance and Group Decision-Making:  Do groups enhance individual performance?  What kinds of situational factors influence group performance?  Which factors motivate groups to "better" performance?  How do groups make decisions?  Groupthink.
March 22 by 11:59 pm	First draft of project due This is submitted through turnitin OPTIONAL: BUT YOU CAN REWRITE FOR A HIGHER GRADE
Weeks of April 2-9	Leadership:  What is leadership?  Are leaders born or made?  Generic" types of leaders  Leadership processes Presentations begin (week of April 10th)
Weeks of  April 9-16	Intra- and Inter-Group Cooperation and Conflict: What conditions increase cooperation and conflict?  Which conditions decrease it?  How can cooperation across and within groups be promoted?  PRESENTATIONS CONTINUE
Week of April 23	Last week of class  PRESENTATIONS CONTINUE
May 2 (Wednesday) BY NOON	Final Course Project due (including any rewrites)  This is submitted through turnitin

This course has two major and five smaller required assignments. Updates during the semester provide more detail and format specifications for each one. Please complete readings according to the timetable in this syllabus and be prepared with assignments by their due date.
 
 

SOME IMPORTANT NOTES Attendance and “In-Class” Participation Since this is an online course that is both synchronous and asynchronous in nature, attendance expectations are a bit different from what you might experience in a face-to-face course: University-wide policy requires all students to attend the first class meeting of all classes for which they are registered. Students who do not attend the first class meeting of a course for which they are registered will be dropped from the course by the academic department that offers the course. To remain enrolled in this course you must complete the "First Day Attendance" assignment by 11:59pm (EST) as shown on the Canvas Discussion Board and Announcement page. Attendance in an online class is noted via active participation in course activities. Participation is necessary so that course activities will be successful. Students are counting on you each other to log in and interact. Thus, student attendance will be directly tied to the discussion grade in the course. Student participation counts as an indicator of attendance and student participation on our five “In-class” assignments counts 20% of your final grade.  Attendance is taken and participation in class discussion is noted for in-class assignments (see the Course Calendar in the Readings Blackboard folder).  You will find your participation noted in the Gradebook as a . These assignments can thus influence up to one-half of a final grade, e.g., from a B+ to an A- (or vice versa).  I DO NOT take attachments in my email. Assignments go through the Discussion Board or turnitin (check for specific directions.) Here are some alternatives if Canvas is down or you experience technical problems when assignments are due: My office mailbox in 3210 Stone Building (Spring 2018 only) FAX to the EPLS Office (850) 644-8776. Be sure to put my name and EDP 5285 on the Cover Sheet and include the total number of pages Mail (USE FIVE DAYS ADVANCE NOTICE!)  to Dr. Susan Carol Losh, Educational Psychology and Learning Systems, FSU, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4453 In all these alternatives, I must receive your assignment by the stated due  dates.

\

COURSE PROJECT (about 15 pages)

Wide latitude exists for your project. You may review existing literature in an area of interest to you. You may use existing research to design a future study. Or, you can conduct a small original study or analyze data that were previously collected.* You will find many examples in Blackboard in the Presentations and Papers folders.

*Although it is possible to conduct and write up a study in a fraction of the semester, it is unlikely. That's OK. Even reviewing the literature and possibly designing a study comprise a good beginning.

We operate in milestones:

1. Preliminary prospectus: February 8
2. Updated prospectus: March 8
3. First draft: March 22 (allows for revisions if received by the due date)
4. Final draft: May 2 BY NOON

EXAMPLES: The Course Project can take many forms. We enroll everyone from first year master’s students to advanced doctoral candidates. We have students from criminal justice, public administration, business, and communication as well as from the College of Education. Newer students often write library research papers with topics such as coach-player interaction, bullying, and cross-cultural differences in social cognition. Others (sometimes—but not always—more advanced graduate students) have conducted a short survey, small experiment or observational design. Examples here include observing parent-child interaction at supermarket checkouts or during games, observing conformity in the "upward gaze" experiment replication, nonverbal communication in counseling sessions and perceived counselor competence. Some have been developed into thesis or dissertation topics and/or professional presentations.

Our website “The Good Paper” in the ASSIGNMENTS folder (and HERE) in Blackboard outlines some of the rubrics for an excellent paper. Because students do so many different projects on so many different group processes topics, I can provide generics but relatively few specifics. However, I am available for discussion!

Please run your first draft (and/or your final draft if you don't do a first draft) through turnitin (available in Canvas) to submit your Project.

Don't be surprised if your first draft is a bit rocky. It absolutely happens to everyone. And the rewrites typically are spectacular!
The draft option (Milestone 3) allows you to rewrite your paper for a higher grade. ONLY the higher grade counts toward your final grade.

There is no grace period for the final assignment, Milestone 4. The university docks our department $10 per late grade per day so assignments must be turned in on the due date. Please proofread all materials and double check attachments to make sure that the final submission to Blackboard is the best representation of your work and the one you wish to be graded.

Students often produce especially good work when they work in teams (and we are a course on Group Processes, after all). This is particularly true for the Course Project. It is easier for teams to plan and execute a small experiment, survey, or observation in a semester's time than it is for an individual to do so, and the project can be more ambitious. You may choose to work in teams for the Course Project, and we may coordinate teams for the Presentations. I will need to know the names of all team members on the Course Project by March 8.  Using the project prospectus, I also will alert you to possible teammates (but the choice is yours). Any team members must also be registered students in this course.
 

I use plus and minus grading, throughout and for final grades.

• Participation in class discussion and class attendance are an intangible, but real, consideration, especially when a student is "between grades."
• Adherence to principles of essay organization, and the conventions of spelling and grammar is expected and understood.
• The course project MUST relate to groups course material in some way.

l

SCHEDULE OF EDP 5285 READINGS AND ASSIGNMENT DUE DATES: CLICK HERE

This page was created with Netscape Composer
Susan Carol Losh December 30 2017
 

    HAPPY NEW YEAR 2018!