Greg,
When I went to university, BOTH bending deflection AND shear deflection were functions of the cross-section geometry AND the span. As far as I know, this is still true today.
However, shear deflection is only one component of non-linearity in beam deflection. Non-linear behaviour due to span shortening or generation of catenary (membrane) stresses are other significant sources of non-linearity. I would not be prepared to offer a rule of thumb as to when non-linear behaviour generally becomes an issue, because there are just too many factors involved. (Are there any in-plane stresses such as axial tension or compression; are the ends of the span anchored, such that catenary stresses can be generated; etc.)
With respect to shear deflection only, some classic cases include:
Simply supported beam, total uniformly distributed load W:
Bending Deflection = 5.W.L^3/(384.E.I)
Shear Deflection = F.W.L/(8.A.G)
(F is a modifier for the shape of the cross section; equal to 6/5 for a rectangular section)
Simply supported beam, central point load P
Bending Deflection = P.L^3/(48.E.I)
Shear Deflection = F.P.L/(4.A.G)
Cantilver, end load P:
Bending Deflection = P.L^3/(3.E.I)
Shear Deflection = F.P.L/(A.G)
In each case:
Total Deflection = Bending Deflection + Shear Deflection
It is common practice to ignore shear deflection, except for "short" spans. As a rule of thumb, you need to get a Span-to-Depth Ratio of less than about 10:1 for simply supported beams, or about 5:1 for cantilevers, before the error in ignoring shear deflection effects is greater than about 3%. The error is typically less than 1% if your span-to-depth ratio is greater than about 20:1 for simply supported spans, or about 10:1 for cantilevers.
To see whether shear deflections are significant in your case, try calculating both deflection components (using approximate loads and geometry, if necessary), and compare the relative magnitudes of the bending and shear deflections. If the error is excessive, you will need to allow for shear deflection behaviour.
Hope this helps.