[1] In 1965, he published a theory generally known as "Tuckman's stages of group development".
According to his theory, there are four phases of group development, they are: Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing.
In 1977, he and co-author Mary Ann Jensen added a fifth stage, named Adjourning.
He served as professor of educational psychology at Ohio State University, where he founded and directed the Walter E. Dennis Learning Center with the mission of providing students of all backgrounds with strategies for college success that enabled them to enter, excel in, and complete programs of post-secondary education.
[1] To teach students strategies for succeeding in college, he co-authored the textbook, Learning and Motivation Strategies: Your Guide to Success, with Dennis A. Abry and Dennis R. Smith.