Investigates the extent to which actor-partner points of view influence the outcomes of conflict messages on perceptions of communicator appropriateness, effectiveness, and global competence. Finds support for the attributional approach used to explain actor-observer judgments of actors' communicative competence. (MG)

Examines a sample of roommate conflicts in terms of a theoretical approach to communication in interpersonal conflict, which emphasizes the role of attributional processes. Associations between the conflict strategies reported, their attributions for conflicts, and conflict outcomes were in the expected direction. (JMF)

Discusses hypotheses that connect assessments of competence to an actor's goal achievement and sensitivity to the partner's goal. Analyzes both actor and partner assessments of the actor sensitivity and conflict strategies. Concludes that sensitivity to the partner's goals was a strong predictor of competence assessments and that actor goal…

Indicates that males were more likely than females to use (1) violence against a noncompliant male persuasive target in a noninterpersonal relational context, and (2) direct coercion against persistently noncompliant and noninterpersonal persuasive targets in relational contexts with short-term consequences. (JD)

Examines the groupthink phenomenon under controlled, laboratory conditions. Results indicate that the presence or absence of disagreement (conflict, hostility) among members may be the best discriminator between groupthink and nongroupthink groups. (JMF)

Reveals that individuals personally cope with spoiled relationships and socially manage relationship dissolution principally through verbal accounts. Indicates that the structural and affective enmeshment of marital couples lend to their disengagement accounts a characteristic complexity not paralleled in the accounts of unmarried couples. (JD)

Develops a model of negotiation rule use that incorporates both content and relational dimensions and focuses upon interaction as the dependent variable. Assesses how winners and losers in mock negotiations differ in their use of communication rules. (PD)

Examines metacommunicational statements within stepfamily reorganization. Finds two relational tasks employed by couples: (1) to create marital solidarity by direct communication between mates and clear statements to the children regarding the priority of the marriage; and (2) to establish the stepparent's credibility as an authority in…

Examines how a warehouse manager and three subordinates display social structure through their use of power and social distance language forms. Shows how some conversational resources distinguish "in,""middle" and "out-group" relationships, whereas others neutralize group membership. (MM)

Examines the role of reciprocity in bargaining interaction. Focuses on labor/management differences in communication structure; their impact on bargaining outcomes; and the effect of sex-role composition on bargaining communication. Results, among other findings, demonstrated that management relied on defensive tactics while labor specialized in…