Individual and group contingencies in cooperative learning at the collegiate level.

Abstract

Six sections of an undergraduate human development course (N = 317) taught across two semesters were exposed to one of three cooperative learning arrangements awarding bonus credit for individual and/or group improvement in exam performance: (1) individual improvement first required to earn group bonus credit, (2) group improvement first required to earn individual bonus credit, and (3) individual and group bonus credit earned separately. Based on exam scores in a previous unit of the course, students were categorized as high, average, and low performers. The high performers fared least well when individual improvement was primary in the cooperative contingency but had a much higher success rate under the other two contingencies. Low performers generally had the highest rate of success of all performance groups under all contingencies. Keywords: cooperative learning, group contingencies, individual contingencies, college students. ********** Cooperative learning has been widely used for enhancing academic performance and social outcomes (Slavin, 1989-90). Although much research has focused on cooperative learning at the elementary and high-school levels, cooperative learning may also be a viable strategy for promoting achievement among college students. Johnson, Johnson, and Smith's (1998) meta-analysis of cooperative, competitive, and individualistic learning approaches among college students and adults found that cooperative approaches promoted more individual achievement than competitive (effect size = 0.49) or individualistic approaches (effect size = 0.53). A primary factor to consider when using cooperative learning procedures is the role of credit or reward contingencies. Specifically, do cooperative learning procedures affect student performance differently when differential weights are given to individual and group performance? Group performance contingencies commonly used in classroom settings can generally be classified as independent, interdependent, and dependent (Litow & Pumroy, 1975). Independent group-oriented contingencies are perhaps most commonly used in working with relative large groups. Criteria and consequences are the same for all students, but each individual student receives access to the consequence based on his or her own behavior. Grades are typically used as consequences in independent group-oriented contingencies. An interdependent group-oriented contingency allows every member of a group to receive the same consequence based on some aspect of the group's performance. Providing students with a reward based on a collective increase in a test score is an example of an interdependent contingency. In a dependent group-oriented contingency, access to a group consequence is based on the behavior of an individual student or sub-group of students within a group. For example, a dependent group-oriented contingency would consist of offering a reward to the entire class if two specific students arrived on time to class. In order to be maximally effective, Slavin (1991) emphasized that cooperative learning procedures must incorporate both individual accountability and group rewards. Similarly, Johnson, Johnson, and Smith (2007) included positive interdependence and individual accountability in their basic elements of cooperation. Positive interdependence consists of group members working together to learn from one another and share in joint success. Individual accountability is crucial because it ensures that each student is held accountable for his or her individual performance. Therefore, cooperative learning procedures often incorporate both interdependent and independent group-oriented contingencies. Applying an independent group-oriented contingency to students in a cooperative learning experience ensures that each student has access to rewards based on his or her own performance (individual accountability). Applying an interdependent group-oriented contingency ensures that students have a stake in other students' performing well, which increases the likelihood of everyone's benefiting from group success. …