Group Role Play Research Articles

Auditor Negotiations: An Examination of the Efficacy of Intervention Methods

Negotiations are a pervasive feature of the audit process (e.g., the resolution of proposed audit adjustments and disclosures). The results of such negotiations are of great importance to the capital markets, the client, and the auditor. The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of three promising, pragmatic intervention methods for enhancing auditor negotiation performance: a role-playing intervention—assuming the client's position in a mock negotiation; a passive intervention—explicitly considering the client's interests and options; and a practice intervention—engaging in a mock negotiation prior to the client negotiation. We posit that the role-playing intervention will improve negotiation results, because this approach requires direct experience in considering and arguing the client's position and more cognitive effort in obtaining an understanding of the counterpart's position, a critical factor identified in the negotiation literature for successful performance.Forty-five audit managers and partners were provided a realistic case based on an actual scenario involving the potential writedown of inventory due to obsolescence. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups (role-playing, passive, or practice) and asked to negotiate the issue with a confederate playing the role of the CFO. Auditor conservatism and a large actual subsequent writedown suggest that a significant adjustment is warranted. The results indicate that the role-playing intervention method led to an enhanced negotiation outcome (greater writedown) compared to the passive and practice groups. Process improvements on a number of dimensions were also found, particularly for the role-playing group compared to the practice group.

Involving medical students in staff development activities

Staff development is seen as a key aspect of medical education and many teachers/tutors are now required to attend some formal development activity. However, most workshops do not involve the student. In Manchester, the philosophy is to actively involve students in all aspects of the undergraduate course including delivery and evaluation. The authors have also worked with students in staff development. This predominantly descriptive article sets out some of the ways in which students have been involved in staff development, including co-facilitating sessions, role-play and discussion groups. Feedback from 10 workshops was analysed, which showed that 76% of the staff found the student involvement to be the most useful aspect of the workshops, particularly as it allowed staff to engage students in discussion about the course. Both these results and informal feedback from participants suggest that involvement of students is highly valued. Feedback from student volunteers also suggests that they gain from the experience.

Controlling competitive anger among male soccer players

This study examined the effectiveness of anger awareness training (i.e., self-monitoring) and role-playing (i.e., modeling and behavioral rehearsal) in reducing participants’ angry behavior and angry feelings. Male participants (N = 57) from intact soccer teams were randomly assigned to a role-playing, an anger awareness, or a control group. Pretreatment anger scores indicated that all three groups exhibited similar anger dispositions before the study began. Following pretreatment assessment, angry behavior and self-reported anger were observed and measured during a 15-game round-robin soccer season. Analyses revealed that although angry feelings remained consistent across the duration of the study, the role-playing group was more effective than both the anger awareness and control groups in controlling angry behavior. Findings indicate that although the use of anger awareness and role-playing interventions can reduce angry behavior, the role-playing intervention was a more effective method.

Facilitating Facilitators' Facilitation: Experience with a Model for Teaching Leaders of Hypnosis Practice Groups

We developed a 6 hour training seminar for leaders of small group practice sessions integral to introductory hypnosis workshops. It has been offered annually for 3 years to prepare new faculty for our Introductory Workshop. Applicants met specific experience criteria. Participation was limited to 8 to match and model 8 learners/small group in workshops. Learners reviewed principles of adult education, group dynamics, and guidelines for leaders. Each had the opportunity to role-play small group participant and small group leader in two 3 hour evening periods a week apart. Twenty-four learners participated. Some had taught before. Most were new to teaching small groups and desired specific training. Extensive evaluation of the training was integral to the process. Training was evaluated by examining ratings of leaders by participants in our Annual Introductory Workshop. Ratings used the same parameters taught and evaluated during the training seminar. The training curriculum is presented with the results of evaluations of group leaders' performances in the Annual Workshop. Ratings of “experienced” leaders who did not participate in the training are compared to those of newly trained teachers. Leaders with training plus experience were more effective then leaders with many years of experience.

Simulated group counseling: An experiential training model for group work

An experiential group training model designed for prepracticum-level counseling graduate students is described. Simulated Group Counseling (SGC) offers students an opportunity to experience being group members, facilitating a group, and processing the group with peers and an advanced graduate student observer as well as the instructor during the course of an academic term. SGC reduces dual-relationship ethical issues because students role-play group members during the SGC. Procedures such as group formation, roles of observers and instructor; and group processing are discussed as are the strengths and limitations of the model.

Managers' conflict management style and leadership effectiveness: The moderating effects of gender

In this study we examined gender differences in (1) global self-reported conflict management styles, (2) the behaviors displayed and outcomes attained by group leaders during a simulated conflict episode, and (3) the evaluation of leaders' behavior by their subordinates. We investigated conflict management using 43 role-play groups involving leaders with actual managerial experience. We assessed behavior through subordinate and leader evaluations as well as transcript codings of the discussion. There were no gender differences in self-reported conflict management style among experienced managers. However, among participants without managerial experience, women rated themselves as more integrating, obliging, and compromising than did men. There were no gender differences in the styles used by supervisors during the role play nor in the outcomes they attained. Yet there were differences in the way that subordinates evaluated male and female supervisors who used similar styles. Dominating was more negatively related, and obliging more positively related, to subordinates' perceptions of effectiveness for women than for men.

The Touch Discrimination Component of Sexual Abuse Prevention Training

The potential negative impact of sexual abuse prevention programs on children remains a central concern in the field of sexual abuse prevention. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of two prevention programs in improving children's abilities to discriminate between appropriate and inappropriate types of touching. Two hundred sixty-four kindergarten through third-grade children from three public schools in San Diego were randomly assigned by classroom to one of three treatments: (1) a role-play-based sexual abuse prevention program, (2) a multimedia child abuse prevention program, or (3) a control group receiving fire prevention training. The results indicated greater pre- to posttest improvement for the role-play group than for the control group on total correct touch discriminations. Although there is concern that sexual abuse prevention programs may make children suspicious of appropriate touch, the present study found children in the role-play group better able to discriminate appropriate touch after training than before. The results are discussed in light of current findings in the child sexual abuse prevention literature.

Simple Games for Teaching Sociological Perspectives: Four Examples of the Do-It-Yourself Approach

The task of communicating basic sociological perspectives to today's introductory students can be greatly facilitated by integrating experiential methods with the traditional lecture and discussion format. Toward this end, we can use simple learning games which anticipate and/or reinforce themes and concepts discussed in texts and lectures. Instructors are urged to develop their own teaching games, which can be structured or improvisational, utilize either a role-playing or small groups approach. Instructions, design considerations and evaluation of student responses to four games devised and piloted by the author for use within the one-hour class period are presented as examples: the Humor Game, the Gender Change Game, the Stratification Game and the World System Game.

The Effects of Two Models of Staff Development on Self-Awareness and Attitudes of Teachers with Internal vs. External Locus of Control

This study investigated the effects of two staff development models–role playing and open instruction–on the self-awareness and attitudes of teachers with internal vs. external locus of control. In a 2 x 2 design for analysis of variance, 27 composition teachers were randomly assigned, and subsequently stratified by locus of control scores, to two parallel but contrasting summer workshop programs to test the following hypotheses: teachers in the role-playing group would be more self-aware and have more positive attitudes toward inservice education than would teachers in the open instruction group; teachers of internal locus of control would be more self-aware and have more positive attitudes toward inservice education than would teachers of external locus of control. Significant correlations were found between the instructor in the roleplaying group but not in the open instruction group with regard to self-awareness. No significant differences were found between treatment groups with regard to attitudes toward inservice education; however, significant differences were found with respect to locus of control on all three scales, specifically teachers of internal locus of control showed significantly more positive attitudes toward inservice education than teachers with external locus of control. In addition there was a significant treatment x locus of control interaction.

A comparison of role-played and natural responses to identical circumstances

Fifty-eight female college students participated in a study that compared the similarity of role-played and naturalistic behaviors in the context of a standard lab-based situation involving conversational interaction and requests to borrow class notes. Subjects were assigned to one of three groups: informed role-play, uninformed role-play, and actual (in vivo) behavior. Both role-play groups, but not actual behavior subjects, understood that the interaction was contrived, that their male protagonist was an experimental confederate, and that they should respond as they would if the situation were “real.” Informed role-play subjects also understood that the focus of the interaction was their assertiveness. Both role-play groups responded more assertively to the requests than did actual behavior subjects, with the difference being greater for informed role-play subjects.

Comparing the effectiveness of the mini‐lecture technique to role‐playing in a dental psychology course

The array of instructional methods utilized in teaching behavioral sciences to dental students has included both teacher-centered and student-centered approaches. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of two small-group treatments, mini-lecture and role-playing, in teaching dental psychology. Freshman dental students were randomly assigned to 12 groups. Groups were then assigned to one of six dentist-pyschologist teaching teams so that each team taught one mini-lecture and one role-playing group. Teaching teams taught seven sessions in which each mini-lecture/role-playing pair of groups received parallel subject matter. Following instruction, two outcome measures were administered: (1) an achievement post-test measuring factual recall, and (2) a measure of facilitative communication. Results indicated that mini-lectures were more effective than role-playing in effecting student mastery of factual information. There were no significant differences between the instructional treatments in teaching facilitative communication skills.

Peer counseling in an urban high school setting

Peer counseling, an educational strategy in which students counsel and help facilitate the growth and development of other students, was implemented in an urban high school. Auniors and seniors, selected for their high leadership and character traits, participated in the 32-session training program. The training program focused on five areas: team building and the development of group cohesion; development of understanding and awareness of self and others; development of more effective communication skills; development of effective feedback procedures; and development of leadership, problem solving, and intervention skills. Lectures, task exercises, simulated problem situations, role-playing group discussions, expressive and creative activities, and audio-visual aids were employed for the dissemination of information. Peer counselors were assigned between five and 10 students for counseling for approximately nine weeks. In general, the counseless gained an ability to relate more effectively with both peers and adults and in problem solving and communication skills.

Role-played and hypnotically induced simulation of psychopathology on the MMPI.

The differential effects of role-played vs. hypnotically induced simulation of a paranoid syndrome on diagnostic and validity scales of the MMPI were tested with 30 female undergraduate Ss. Hypnotized Ss given the paranoid syndrome suggestion simulated the MMPI more accurately than did role-playing Ss. The F scale and Gough F-K index of dissimulation identified the role-playing group, but not the hypnosis with simulation suggestion group. It was concluded that further refinement of the validity scales of the MMPI is needed to improve their effectiveness in detecting deception on this test.

Group Methods for Reducing Racial Prejudice and Discrimination

To compare the efficacy of various group methods in reducing racial prejudice, black and white high school students were assigned to a no-treatment control group and to four experimental groups ( n = 5 per group): game-playing, school-issues discussion, racial discussion, and racial role-playing. After six sessions, all experimental groups reduced their verbal prejudice on the factor Respect of the Behavioral Differential, the game-playing group increased their interracial behavioral interactions, and the racial discussion and racial role-playing groups increased their interracial choices of project partners. The implications of these results, although in need of cross-validation, for various theories of the origin and treatment of prejudice were discussed.

Leadership style and group decision effectiveness: Correlational and behavioral tests of Fiedler's contingency model

Experimental tests of Fiedler's “contingency model” of leadership effectiveness generally leave unanswered questions of precise criterion validity, due to limits on statistical significance of correlations based on small Ns. Seventy-five role-play groups were used in tests of one of the nine possible situations to which the model predicts. In this case, leaders with low LPC (Least-Preferred Co-Worker) scores (“task-oriented”) should be superior to high LPC (“relationship-oriented”) leaders. Two experiments ( N = 53 N = 22) yielded r = −.29 and −.19, respectively, between leaders' LPC and a group decision effectiveness score. Overall, r ave = −.26 ( P < .05). The obtained confidence level closely approximates that which could be reasonably expected for the N used if the predicted correlation (−.33) were, in fact, the true population value. This, and the consistency of results between the two independent experiments, justifies the conclusion that a small but significant relationship exists between leadership style and group effectiveness for the situation investigated. The practical utility of this relationship was discussed. Some behavioral differences between high and low LPC leaders were also examined and discussed.

Orientation and job stability: The impact of supervisory and employee role-playing groups on turnover of potentially unemployable blacks

One hundred and seventy potentially hard-core black employees and their supervisors were divided into a 2 × 2 field design. Role-playing group-problem-solving orientation was provided for part of the supervisor sample and part of the employees. To test the impact of orientation, turnover data were compared across the four cells. For the entire group, treated as a whole, there were no significant effects. Dividing the sample in terms of job placement, significant results were found which suggested that orientation can be detrimental in work groups characterized by tight-knit social structures, and insignificant in impact in depersonalized, pressureful job environments. It was concluded that the nature of the job and the job environment certainly were among the significant factors determining the effectiveness of an intervention, although many other factors, including the nature of the total support system, also probably are important.

THE USE OF ROLE PLAYING AND INDUCTION IN CHILDREN'S LEARNING OF HELPING AND SHARING BEHAVIOR

STAUB, ERVIN. The Use of Role Playing and Induction in Children's Learning of Helping and Sharing Behavior. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1971, 42, 805-816. 2 procedures were employed to develop a disposition to help others in distress. Kindergarten children enacted situations in which one child needed help and another provided help (role playing) and/or the positive consequences of help for the recipient were pointed out to children (induction). In comparison to same-sex controls, in the role-playing group girls attempted to help more in response to sounds of distress from another room, while boys shared more candy, showing generalization of the treatment experience. Both effects persisted over a 1-week interval. Induction had little effect on helping or sharing but decreased help for an adult on a task. Helping was related to a measure of learning during role playing (boys) and to family size and birth order (girls).

Desensitization, behavior rehearsal, then reality: A preliminary report on a new procedure

A combination of systematic desensitization and group role playing (behavior rehearsal) is presented as applied to a young male veteran with a severe anxiety reaction who responded poorly to conventional, insight-oriented group and individual psychotherapy. Unusual resistance to role playing as preparation to meet difficult encounters at home was eliminated by progressive relaxation training and working through a hierarchy of fantasy scenes. It was then possible to bridge a wide gap between imaginative anxiety-arousing interpersonal situations and real life encounters by the reinforcement furnished in a role-playing group. This combination of two mutually reinforcing therapeutic methods may prove effective in situations where either treatment modality employed alone fails.

POST-HYPNOTIC AMNESIA AND POST-HYPNOTIC EFFECT.

The purpose of this investigation was to obtain data on the influence of the subject's conscious knowledge of the content of a posthypnotic suggestion on obedience to that suggestion. Little information is available on this problem, which is one having obvious bearing on hypnotherapy. So that results could throw some light on the hypothesis that hypnosis can be explained as role-playing (Sarbin, 1950), a role-playing control group was employed.