Researching small groups

Matthew Taylor of RSA (not Returned Services Assn) and social entrepreneur Tessy Britton [pictured at right] are planning on researching small groups.

Now while this has nothing to do specifically with the small groups that are part of many Christian congregations, already their five points and the subsequent comments to the blog post give an idea as to why some small groups flourish and others don't.

Taylor and Britton have set out five areas that are the structure of their research; they're looking for people to write to them to give examples of small groups that have gone right and ones that have gone wrong. It looks already as though there are more examples of their second point - most small groups fail to fulfil their potential and here are the main reasons people give for groups under-performing - than of their first: small groups of volunteers can change the world, and here are some examples

If you've found that small groups in your church have flourished, you might be interested to let Taylor and Britton know why; equally if you've found that small groups have burnt out for various reasons, the research that these two are going to do may be of help in encouraging small groups in the future.