ABSTRACT
A study of the principles of group communication, together with guided practice, will help you to develop the knowledge and skill necessary for effective participation. Many instructors employ a lecture– discussion format, and group discussion is often used in classes to promote learning. The six basic types of discussion are the roundtable, the panel, the symposium, the lecture forum, the dialogue, and the interview. Social discussion usually occurs spontaneously and is temporary, unstructured, and informal. A typical example of social discussion would be a group of students sitting around a table in the student union, discussing the federal government's focus on only funding colleges that keep tuition increases to a minimum. Examples of therapeutic groups include alcohol and drug rehabilitation groups, marriage counseling groups, religious encounter groups, and weight-watching groups. Group problem solving is superior to individual problem solving for a number of reasons.
