Reciprocal relationships, causal influences, and group efficacy - A reply

In his comments on our article ''The Impact of Group Efficacy and Group Goals on Group Task Performance,'' Kaplan (1997 [this is sue]) raises the important point that ''in the absence of experimental manipulation and control, a correlation between two variables does not prove that one causes the other'' (p. 557-558). We agree wholeheartedly with this caution but take issue with his interpretation that our study results provide ''stronger evidence against the influence of group efficacy and goals on performance than in favor of such influence'' (p. 558). In the following pages, we discuss the nature of reciprocal relationships and causal influences among social cognitive variables and reexamine the interpretations of our study results.