Stages of Group Development: An Empirical Test of Tuckman's Hypothesis

Abstract

The stages of group development have often been discussed and frequently hypothesized-but seldom observed in the classroom. During winter term, 1968, at the University of Oregon, a study was made of small workgroups, each of which was assigned to complete an empirical investigation. The task-oriented groups, composed mostly of strangers, had to form themselves from larger sections into workgroups of four or more individuals, choose a task, pursue the research, and present the work in written form at the completion of the project. These workgroups were observed by students who had been through this social psychology course the previous year. The basic framework for the observations presented as outcomes in this paper was Bruce Tuckman's (1965) proposed model of group development. He stated that there are two aspects to group development: task activity and group structure; within each, he listed four developmental phases. The chief goal of the research was to test the fit of Tuckman's model of group development to the actual development of the workgroups observed in the classroom setting. The fit was very good.