The Influential Role of Relational Messages in Group Interaction

Keyton, Joann
Beck, Stephenson J.

¹Department of Communication, North Carolina State University
²Department of Communication, North Dakota State University

This article is based on a manuscript presented at the conference of the Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research (INGRoup), East Lansing, MI, July 2007.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Joann Keyton, Department of Communication, North Carolina State University, 201 Winston Hall, Campus Box 8104, Raleigh, NC 27695-8104. E-mail: [email protected]

Received July 24, 2007; Revision received July 8, 2008; Accepted July 11, 2008

Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice 13(1):p 14-30, March 2009. | DOI: 10.1037/a0013495

Relational communication is often neglected in group interaction research; this study argues for a need to refocus our efforts on the relational dimension of group communication. Specifically, this article uses the Interaction Process Analysis (IPA) coding scheme to investigate implications of the relational communication model. Using sequences of talk in breast cancer support group interaction, the authors examine how task messages preceding and following relational messages in conjunction with the relational messages accomplish different relational (and task) goals. Results confirm earlier claims that relational influence stems from both task and relational messages. An examination of the overlapping nature of task and relational dimensions of communication, as well as the multidimensional nature of relational messages, is likewise explored.