Working in Groups: Communication Principles and Strategies, 8th edition
Published by Pearson (January 2, 2025) © 2026
- Isa N. Engleberg Prince George's Community College
- Dianna R. Wynn Prince George's Community College
- Kay Kyungah Yoon
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For courses in Small Group Communication.
A practical approach that details how to work in groups
Working in Groups: Communication Principles and Strategies provides practical guidance on how to work effectively in groups. Isa Engleberg, Dianna Wynn and new co-author Kay Yoon employ the concept of balance as a unifying metaphor for successful group communication. Offering specific recommendations and real-world examples, the authors help students become more valuable group members.
The 8th Edition has been thoroughly updated to reflect the latest in the field. In addition to the fresh contributions of Dr. Kay Yoon, the text offers updated data, contemporary examples and up-to-date theory.
Hallmark features of this title
- A focus on “how to” strategies guides students on the ways to apply theory and research findings to achieve success in group communication.
- The text is organized around a central theme of balance. The authors emphasize this theme through Balance features as well as discussions of how to manage key dialectical group tensions.
- UPDATED: Virtual Teams features in every chapter help students apply group theory and methods to the work of virtual groups. Updated topics include virtual team development, listening in videoconferences, AI challenges and more.
- UPDATED: Case studies in each chapter are accompanied by case-related questions based on chapter content. The 8th Edition’s case studies have been updated to explore relevant, engaging subjects.
New and updated features of this title
- NEW: For the 8th Edition, authors Isa Engleberg and Dianna Wynn are joined by new co-author Dr. Kay Yoon, of Colorado State University in Colorado Springs. A well-known and respected scholar in group communication, Dr. Yoon has made significant contributions to the text.
- UPDATED: Chapter 4: Diversity in Groups has been thoroughly revised to better promote understanding, respect and adaptation to group members of all orientations and backgrounds. In addition, relevant content throughout the text has been updated via a diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) lens.
- The inclusion of extensive new and revised content makes the text more timely as well as more applicable to today’s students. Highlights include:
- NEW: Coverage of developing and applying ground rules as norms to enhance group productivity and civility in Chapter 2
- NEW: Material on contemporary approaches to high-quality listening distinguished by undivided attention, comprehension checking and positive intentions in Chapter 7
- NEW: Content that emphasizes the value of fact checking and additional strategies for evaluating evidence in Chapter 10
- Introduction to Group Communication
- Group Development
- Participation in Groups
- Diversity in Groups
- Leadership in Groups
- Verbal and Nonverbal Communication in Groups
- Listening and Responding in Groups
- Conflict and Cohesion in Groups
- Decision Making and Problem Solving in Groups
- Critical Thinking and Argumentation in Groups
- Group Meetings
- Group Presentations
About our authors
Isa Engleberg is professor emerita in the Department of Communication at Prince George’s Community College in Maryland where she also served as Director of Debate and Forensics, Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Assistant Dean of Instruction, and Vice President of Advancement and Planning. Her adjunct teaching includes 4-year colleges, universities and graduate schools, including a year at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. She is the author or co-author of 10 college textbooks, has published dozens of articles in academic journals as well as book chapters, and made hundreds of professional conference presentations focusing on advancing communication education.
Isa has held numerous leadership positions in professional associations including serving as president of the National Communication Association and Director of the NCA Research Board. She was presented with NCA’s Outstanding Community College Educator award and received the President’s Medal, the highest honor at Prince George’s Community College for outstanding teaching, scholarship and service.
She has a B.A. with Honors from George Washington University and an M.A. from the University of Maryland in Communication Studies as well as an Ed.D. from Boston University. She loves traveling in both the US and abroad as well as enjoying theatre, music and art.
Dianna Wynn was a full-time faculty member in the Department of Communication at Nash Community College in North Carolina, Midland College in Texas, and Prince George’s Community College in Maryland. At Prince George’s she was the Director of Forensics, the Honors Program Director, and received the Outstanding Teacher of the Year award. She has provided instruction in various formats and contexts including traditional classrooms, virtual courses and courses for the incarcerated. She is the co-author of several communication textbooks and has made numerous presentations at professional conferences.
As a communication consultant, she trained and facilitated groups in businesses, nonprofit organizations and government agencies. For almost a decade, she worked with attorneys to develop effective courtroom communication strategies for jury trials.
Dianna has served on local, state and national nonprofit boards of directors, including as president of the ACLU of North Carolina and most recently on the national board of the nonpartisan League of Women Voters (LWVUS). She has an M.S. in Communication and Public Address from the University of North Texas and a B.A. in Speech Communication from California State University Fullerton. In her spare time, Dianna enjoys visiting art exhibitions and collecting contemporary art.
Kay Yoon is a professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. Previously she was a faculty member at DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois. She is an award-winning teacher and recipient of a Fulbright Specialist Fellowship and has served as the Director of Graduate Studies in both institutions. Kay teaches courses related to team communication, leadership and virtual teams for both domestic and international student audiences. Prior to her career in academia, Kay worked in the management consulting industry.
Kay’s work has been published in prominent books and peer-reviewed journals including The Emerald Handbook of Group and Team Communication Research, Sage Handbook of Organizational Communication, Management Communication Quarterly and the Western Journal of Communication. Her research examines communicative, technological and sociocultural factors that influence knowledge-sharing behaviors and performance in work teams, which has earned her Top Paper Awards in the Group Communication Division of the National Communication Association.
She has an M.A. and a Ph.D. in Organizational Communication from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign and a B.A. in Spanish from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Seoul, South Korea. She is an avid yoga practitioner and enjoys hiking and playing the cello.
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