Groups and Teams Chapter 6 Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Chapter Overview The Nature of Groups The Nature of Teams Building Effective Groups & Teams Communication in Groups & Teams Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

What is a Group? “An organized system of two or more individuals who are interrelated so that the system performs some function, has a standard set of role relationships among its members, and has a set of norms that regulate the function of the group and each of its members.” (McDavid & Harari, 1968) Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Why Join Groups? Groups can be an important means to accomplishing desired outcomes. Group interactions can be desirable outcomes (or ends) in and of themselves. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Sources of Group Rules Rule s Formal Rules explicitly agreed upon Formal Rules explicitly agreed upon Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright Informal Rules norms, unstated rules Informal Rules norms, unstated rules

Roles in Groups Define the set of behaviors appropriate to particular positions occupied by specific individuals Can be formal (job descriptions) or informal (evolve as groups develop) Status - the position of a role in a social hierarchy Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Stages of Group Development: The Five-Stages Perspective Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright Forming Storming Norming Performing Adjourning

Stages of Group Development: Punctuated Equilibrium Tone for a project team set at first meeting At midpoint of project a “revolution occurs” New agreements/arrangements followed until project completion Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright Applies to project teams that have a fixed time frame to accomplish a task

Differences Between Groups and Teams Teams Shared authority and responsibility All members share leadership Individual and team accountability Shared results and rewards High degree of self-direction Members work together to produce results Groups Limited sharing of authority and responsibility Leadership rests with one or a few individuals Individual accountability Modest sharing of results and rewards Limited self-direction Results are produced by individual effort Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Types of Teams Work Teams Work Teams Parallel Teams Parallel Teams Project Teams Project Teams Management Teams Management Teams Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Styles Among Team Players Contributor - responsible, authoritative, reliable, proficient, and organized Collaborator - goal directed, forward-looking, accommodating, flexible, and imaginative Communicator - supportive, considerate, relaxed, enthusiastic, and tactful Challenger - honest, outspoken, principled, ethical, and adventurous Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Characteristics of Successful Groups and Teams Group Objectives Role Differentiation Rule Clarity Membership Communication Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Team Composition Homogeneous - members having similar experiences, values, norms, or expertise Heterogeneous - members having differences in experiences, values, norms, or expertise Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Team Development “an inward look by the team at its own performance, behavior, and culture for the purposes of deleting dysfunctional behaviors and strengthening functional ones” (French & Bell, 1978) DiagnosisChange 6.14 Development Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright 2002

Communication The transmitting of information and understanding by one group member to another through the use of symbols Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright (Ivancevich & Matteson, 1987)

Basic Communication Processes EncodingDecoding Feedback Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright

Nonverbal Communication Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright Any form of interpersonal communication other than formal verbal language. ex: facial cues, hand or arm gestures, and body positioning

Communication Styles: The Johari Window Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright Unknown Known to Self Known Unknown to Self Known Unknown Known to Others Unknown to Others High Low ExposureExposure High Feedback

Barriers to Communication Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright 2002 Attention and Information Overload Interpretation and Decoding 6.19

Improving Communicator Effectiveness Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publisher, Copyright Sender Empathy Active Listening Media Selection