Social Interdependence Theory

Elizabeth Willoughby

Introduction to Social Interdependence Theory

Social Interdependence Theory is a theory that learning outcomes depend not just on the learner’s work but also on the work of others in their group. The result could be positive or negative, depending on the work of the individuals in the group.  A positive environment can encourage others to help when one group member is struggling or not completing the work. In a negative outcome, the group is unsuccessful and does not complete the task.  This theory was created by Morton Deutsch, David Johnson, and Robert Johnson. Johnson and Johnson’s studies focused on how cooperative learning supports the Social Interdependence Theory.  Deutsch created the Social Interdependence Theory and used it to say that cooperation and competition and two separate ideas. Social Interdependence provides a theoretical foundation for cooperative learning, which is a pedagogical approach. This chapter will mainly focus on the cooperative learning approach and touch on the Social Interdependence Theory.

Cooperative learning is a carefully structured type of collaborative learning. In both of these social learning theories, the instructor’s role is that of facilitator, and the tasks for the groups should be open-ended and complex. Cooperative learning is rooted in social interdependence theories (Deutsch, 1949; Lewin, 1935). Johnson and Johnson (1989) conducted extensive research on defining the parameters of cooperative learning, which requires these five components: interaction, positive interdependence, group processing, individual accountability, and social skills. In other words, groups need to interact, depend on one another, monitor their progress, be responsible for their work, and be able to work together. For example, a team research project could require each team member to find several resources, and an annotated bibliography of those resources could be submitted individually (individual accountability). The team could then co-write and edit the research paper with all of the resources (interaction, social skills, and positive interdependence). The group could use a cloud-based text editor to ensure all team members are contributing in a timely fashion (group processing). Cooperative learning requires intentional planning by the instructor or the designer to ensure all five components are present.

This theory is important for students, companies, and in other areas of life because most people are always working in groups in some aspect of their lives.  In the field of education, it is important for several reasons.  Students learn to make sure that the group is on task and develop leadership skills.

Origins of Social Interdependence Theory and Cooperative Learning

Social Interdependence Theory has ties to Deutsch’s 1949 works (Johnson and Johnson, 2008).  This is based on Lewin’s work that states “a person’s behavior is motivated by states of tension that arise as desired goals are perceived and that it is this tension that motivates actions aimed at achieving the desired goals.” (Johnson and Johnson, 2008).  Deutsch, as one of his students, took this and studied how this affects groups of two or more.   This created the Social Interdependence Theory.

Cooperative Learning started out as the theory with no name; it was just called “small group work” until the 1980s, yet has been used since the 1960s. The theory has ties to the early developers of education; however, the primary contributors are: David W. Johnson, Roger T. Johnson, and Neil Davidson. Their work in the 1980s and 1990s gave cooperative learning a name and a spot in education.  It is now used at all grade and educational levels and has been since the 1990s. There were no written theories about cooperative learning prior to the 1980s, yet it was being used in classrooms, mostly called small group work.  As there was and is more research on cooperative learning, the methodology and use of this theory increased.

The invention of the Jigsaw Method by Aronson (Castillo-Rodriguez, 2022)  also helped with this theory.  This method has students start in a home group. Each is assigned a topic to become an expert on.  They then go to subgroups to learn together and become experts in their assigned topic.  After a set amount of time, they go back to their home group and educate them about the topic they are an expert in.

As education has evolved and the use of technology has increased, educators and researchers are working to find ways to use cooperative learning and technology together.  When working cooperatively on a technological device, it was discovered that the learner needs to understand the 5 core parts of cooperative learning.  The use of meeting rooms in a social media environment has helped with this as the teacher can join the groups to check in, and the students can complete the task at hand. The development of “Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning” has taken these considerations into account.  This theory allows students to work together all over the world, similar to an international work environment.  This theory is still being studied and developed.  There is a discussion on the best way to utilize this theory.  However, during COVID, this was used in numerous classrooms to help students have time with their peers and also complete work as a group.  By using this theory, students naturally utilize higher-order thinking to learn.

Cooperative learning theory is very similar to collaborative learning; there are areas where they overlap.   It complements computer-supported cooperative learning, as stated above has close ties.  In addition, this theory has ties to the social interdependence theory.  This theory “distinguishes 3 types of interaction: promotive interaction (cooperation)” (Yang, 2023).  The two other social interactions are: interdependence and competitive ties.

Fundamental Tenets of Cooperative Learning

Some key events that influenced this theory were the research where Johnson and Johnson discovered there are 5 core parts of cooperative learning.  They are:

1. Positive dependency on the group.  Students achieve shared goals, materials, and work.
2. Each student is accountable for their own work and personally responsible for their assignment and reporting to the group
3. They learn how to have skills for social environments and improve the skills they already have.
4. The groups naturally promote interaction among peers and teachers.
5. The groups learn how to process information.

This theory’s main principles are the flipped classroom, where students take control of their learning and the teacher is there to facilitate the class and ensure all groups are successful in their tasks, especially in elementary school.  The learners all participate in the cooperative learning environment; the teachers can become learners.  Students and teachers are respected in this classroom.  The assignments are challenging and interesting to the students.  Most importantly, every contribution to the group is valued. When doing a cooperative learning assignment, students develop leadership skills, improve their weaknesses, and also help others improve their weaknesses.  The classroom is student-run and filled with lively conversations about the topic at hand.

Cooperative learning theory has students working in small groups, with each member of the group having a specific task to complete in order for the group to be successful and achieve their learning goals.  Each member of these groups becomes accountable for their own assigned task.  They must complete it in order for the group to succeed.  Each activity given is structured and has specific goals for the group and each individual member of the group.  In these groups, the students can use their strengths to help the group succeed.  They are also able to improve their weakest skills.   Students also learn how to solve problems, disagreements, work with peers they might not normally work with, and create a positive learning environment.  This allows the classroom and job to work together with minimal conflicts.

Students learn that in order for the group to be successful, they must complete their assigned task; if they do not, it not only affects their grade, but also the grades of the members of the group. Students learn in a natural environment how to work with others, whether the group is assigned or self-selected. Students will develop internal motivation to learn and actively engage in the classwork.  Student behavior improves as the students check each other for understanding and completing the task.  Most importantly, this theory improves students’ self-esteem.

This theory utilizes positive interactions, student leadership, working in groups, and an intrinsic motivation to achieve the goal of their group.  This is a real-world issue because many jobs involve working in groups, naturally teaching them how to work in groups.  They develop leadership skills and learn how to motivate others to be successful.  The students who use this know how to work together, divide tasks, and work with others to achieve a common goal.  Most work environments use this on a daily basis to troubleshoot problems, implement a new idea, or create a new product.

This theory and approach are adaptable to every age level.  For elementary school and middle school students, they are becoming independent learners with their task at hand, yet have a group that will help them continue to learn and assist them when they struggle with a part of the assignment.  Each individual is held accountable to complete a goal in order to best support the group’s outcome.  At the high school and college level, this helps students learn large amounts of information without being overwhelmed. The students will also hone and continue to develop their leadership skills.  Those students also get feedback from their group so they can improve their knowledge and work. Students in all grade levels and adults improve their achievement.  Cooperative groups encourage critical thinking.  When students develop confidence in sharing their opinions and feelings, they create a positive opinion on the subject they are learning about, develop skills for working with others, and feel more confident about their knowledge and successes.

Strengths and Limitations of Cooperative Learning

Cooperative learning has many strengths.  Students have a say in their learning and through this, they develop the motivation to succeed and achieve their goals or the teacher’s goal.  Students learn how to be leaders and motivate their classmates to be successful. Students are more successful in a work environment because they already know how to work together, divide the work, and achieve their common goals. When you place the responsibility for learning completely on the student with assistance from the teacher, as needed, students are able to develop leadership skills, positive self-esteem, improve the skills they struggle with, and perfect stronger skills.  In addition, students learn how to help others who might be struggling and also assist differently abled students, so they learn how to work with a variety of people.

There are some gaps in this theory. For any new concept, the class would require assistance and modeling of the different parts of the cooperative learning environment.  If you are a teacher of students with dyslexia, this will be a struggle as they need to work one-on-one with the teacher at times, especially if they are taking dictation of words. This learning theory might be a struggle for them, especially if a lot of students are talking at once, or they need to take notes for their classmates. Special education students, especially non-verbal learners, would not be able to be successful in this environment as they communicate differently, some of them are reading several grades lower, so the material would have to be adapted for their unique needs.  Some students with autism might struggle in a class where there is a lot of noise and active learning.  It would distract them. The groups that you want to divide into must be carefully considered and reflected upon so you have the best possible group for each and every student.  This way they are successful and enjoy learning and achieving their goals.

Instructional Design Implications

Cooperative learning theory allows the teachers to have students take the lead in class after they are taught a basic concept; it can be successful in every topic, including math.  The instructors have to carefully consider the groups and what the assignments will be for each group member; the group can then select who is doing what task.  In addition, the instructional design should ensure there are enough jobs for each member of the group.  The instructional design should have pre-lessons where they are taught how to complete cooperative learning and be successful in their groups. Once it is taught, the students can reflect and model what they have learned in their own small groups. Expectations need to be reviewed for every cooperative learning group; for elementary students, it would be prior to every lesson involving cooperative learning. Some specific strategies that are aligned with cooperative learning are: the jigsaw method, working in small groups to achieve the goal, the flipped classroom, each student is assigned a specific task, and the teacher also becomes a learner.

This theory has been used in the classroom since the 1960s, while it was used under a different name, the principle is still the same.  Teachers can utilize breakout rooms in online learning where small groups are given a goal and they must achieve it in a set amount of time. Teachers can pop into each room to see how the students are working.  In corporate training, having the participants work in small groups to achieve a goal makes them more involved in the process, as they are responsible for not only their work but also ensuring that the group achieves the goal assigned.

Conclusion

Cooperative learning allows the students to be in charge of their learning and feel ownership of what they create with their group.  Teachers who teach in this type of environment have learned that at first, this is a lot of work, but a flipped classroom is a classroom where students are learning and happy.  Students are successful and in charge of their own learning successes and failures. The one exception to this is part of our special needs population.  They need to be in the least restrictive environment and be included in the class with reasonable modifications.  Some of our differently abled students would not succeed with working in groups and a loud classroom.  The groups might want to pre-assign tasks to everyone who comes to the online meeting prepared and ready to discuss what they learned. Overall, Social Interdependence Theory applied through cooperative learning is a successful theory that creates leaders, gives students high self-esteem, helps them succeed, and strengthens their weaknesses.  It can be used in any environment with success, provided the teacher or leader has planned for this with much consideration of the group that is doing the assignment.

License and Attribution: 

Cooperative Education Workbook. (n.d.). Retrieved March 19, 2025, from https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/app/uploads/sites/2007/2023/09/Cooperative-Education-Workbook-September-2023.pdf  CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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