Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the verbal interactional process in the small group training and to explore the effect of the small group training process on the training effect. The training effect was measured by the change in the scores on the self-concept test, which was performed before, immediately after, and 15weeks after the training. The participants were distributed into the treament group(n=14) or the waiting list group(n=14). The treatment group experienced the residential intensive process which consisted of 25 sessions, and were encouraged to actively participate in the self-disclosure and feedback process in the nonstructured situation. In contrast, the waiting list gruop were not given any training during the same period. ANOVAs, based on the degree of change in the self-concept, indicated that in the immediate training effect the total score on self-affirmance and the scores on six subscales changed signifi­cantly, and in the follow up test self-affirmance and four subscales kept the training effect. About 90 percent of the verbal responses in the group process was self-disclosure and feedback, which implied that self-disclosure and feedback were important factors in the small group training process. The participants, though they experienced the same group process, differed in their verbal response patterns. Individual verbal response patterns divided the whole participants into three groups and one of these groups was congruent with the Tuckman & Jensen(1977)'s development model. This group indicated higher mean change score than the other two groups in the immediate self-concept test. These three groups were analyzed in terms of the training effect, but were not statisti­cally significant.