Task-Focused Self-Disclosure

A total of 144 college undergraduates were randomly assigned to groups offour and received either a self-disclosure or a placebo treatment. All groups completed a simple puzzle task as a measure of productivcty and questionnaires assessing cohesiveness and commitment to task. Results indicate that the self-disclosure intervention resulted in significantly higher group cohesiveness, commitment to task, and productivity. Additionally, it was shown that females demonstratedgreater cohesiveness and commitment to task than did males. Possible benefits and implications of incorporating task-focused self-disclosure into participatory decision-making procedures among management and workers are presented.