Verbal behavior by Black and White leaders of biracial groups in two different environments

Investigated whether or not Black and White leaders of racially mixed groups use different comment patterns when supervising their groups. 96 Southern college students and 288 US Navy recruits, each divided equally among male Blacks and Whites, worked on 2 laboratory tasks in 3-person groups and were rated on R. F. Bales's (1950) Interaction Process Analysis categories by 2 trained observers. It is concluded that the leaders in the 2 settings did not employ significantly different patterns of positive social-emotional, directive, nondirective, and negative social-emotional comments. Leaders did not differentially distribute these comments to themselves, all group members, or individuals within the groups. When leader behaviors, irrespective of race, were compared between settings, some differences were found.