1. Cohesion and Development
Chapter 5

2. Group Cohesion
The concept of cohesion has been an important factor in the study of group behavior and its significance is often a source of motivation for group leaders.
Cliches such as "Together We Stand, Divided We Fall", "There is No I in Team", or "Players Play, Teams Win" are often used to show individuals the importance of team cohesion.

3. Definitions of Group Cohesion
Carron, Brawley, and Widmeyer (1998) defined cohesion as “a dynamic process that is reflected in the tendency of a group to stick together and remain united in the pursuit of its instrumental objectives and/or for the satisfaction of member needs”
Mudrack (1989) stated that cohesion "seems intuitively easy to understand and describe …this ease of description has failed to translate into an ease of definition"

4. What is Group Cohesion?
Group cohesion has been conceptualized in many ways
Cohesion = Attraction: Festinger and his colleagues considered cohesion to be a form of attraction
Members of cohesive groups tend to like their fellow members
Hogg: social attraction (depersonalized liking for others in our group) vs. personal attraction (liking for specific individuals)

5. Cohesion = Attraction, Liking
between
members
to the
group-as-a-whole
Cohesion

6. Cohesion
Carron’s general conceptual model of cohesion offered four general antecedents of cohesion
Environmental
Personal
Leadership
Team Factors

7. Cohesion = Unity
Cohesive groups stick together as members “cohere” to one another &the group
The group is unified; solidarity is high in the group.
Members report feeling a sense of belonging to the group

8. Cohesion = Unity Group Unity Unity Cohesion
Belonging (part of the group)
Unity
Cohesion

9. Cohesion = Teamwork
The combined activities of two of more individuals who coordinate their efforts to achieve goals
Collective efficacy: a high level of confidence about success at the tasks the group accepts
Esprit de corps: feeling of unity commitment, confidence, and enthusiasm for the group shared by most of all of the members

10. Cohesion = Teamwork Collective Efficacy Teamwork Cohesion
Task
Teamwork
Cohesion
Group morale, esprit de corps
Moti-
vation

11. Does Cohesion Develop Over Time?
Cohesion develops over time in a relatively predictable pattern
Tuckman's five-stage model of group development
Orientation (forming) stage
Conflict (storming) stage
Structure development (norming) stage
Work (performing) stage
Dissolution (adjourning) stage (planned and unplanned)

12. Forming
Storming
Norming
Adjourning
Task
Performing

13. Does Cohesion Develop Over Time?
Types of group development models
Successive-stage theories: Tuckman
Cyclical models: Bales's equilibrium model
Punctuated equilibrium models: periods of accelerated change

14. Forming First moments of a newly formed group’s life
Often marked by tension, guarded interchanges, and low levels of interaction
People monitor their behaviour and are tentative when expression opinions

15. Storming
Tension increases in the storming phase – over goals, procedures, authority etc.
Conflict often causes fight or flight responses
Conflict is a required element for creating team cohesion

16. Norming Group becomes more unified and organized
Mutual trust and support increases
Rules, roles, and goals are established
Communication increases

17. Performing
Productivity is usually not instantaneous, thus productivity must wait until the group matures
Many groups get sidetracked by the storming or norming phases
More mature groups spend less time socializing, less time in conflict and need less guidance than less mature teams

18. Adjourning Either planned or spontaneous
Can be stressful for team members
If dissolution is unplanned, the final group sessions may be filled with animosity and apathy

19. What are the Consequences of Cohesion?
Cohesion tends to lead to:
Increased member satisfaction
Decreased employee turnover and stress
Cohesive groups can intensify emotional and social processes. Such groups can:
Be more emotionally demanding (e.g, the old sergeant syndrome)
Exert more conformity pressure on members
Suffer from groupthink
Respond with more hostility

20. Positive & Negative Consequences (cont’d)
The cohesion-performance relationship is bi-directional:
success increases a group’s cohesion and cohesive
groups tend to outperform less cohesive groups.
The cohesion-performance relationship is strongest
when members are committed to the group's tasks.

21. Norms are also critically
Cohesion Performance Relationship
Cohesion
Attraction
Unity
(Group Pride)
Task Focus (teamwork)
Performance
.51
.25
.23
.18
.03
Norms are also critically
important

22. Groups with norms that stress productivity
Groups with norms that stress low productivity
P r o d u c t i v i t y
The cohesion-performance relationship is weakest if group norms do not encourage high productivity

23. Does Cohesion Develop Over Time?
Types of group development models
Successive-stage theories: Tuckman
Cyclical models: Bales's equilibrium model
Punctuated equilibrium models: periods of accelerated change

24. Should Organizations Rely on Teams to Enhance Productivity?
What is a team?
A specialized, relatively organized, task focused group
Features (same as any group):
Interaction
Interdependence
Structure
Goals
Cohesion
Types of teams…..

25. Function Examples Type & Subtypes Executive Plan, direct
Management
Executive
Plan, direct
Board of directors, city council
Command
Integrate, coordinate
Control tower, combat center
Project
Negotiation
Deal, persuade
Labor-management, international treaty
Commission
Choose, investigate
Search committee, jury
Design
Create, develop
Research and development team, marketing group
Advisory
Diagnose, suggest
Quality circle, steering committee
Service
Provide, repair
Fast food, auto service team
Production
Build, assemble
Home construction, automotive assembly
Action
Medical
Treat, heal
Surgery, ER
Response
Protect, rescue
Fire station, paramedics
Military
Neutralize, protect
Infantry squad, tank crew
Transportation
Convey, haul
Airline cockpit, train crew
Sports
Compete, win
Baseball, soccer

26. Should Organizations Rely on Teams to Enhance Productivity?
Setting and clarifying goals and roles
Designing teams: size, communication features, authority, organization, duration, composition
Practicing (training): orienting, distributing resources, pacing, coordinating responses, and motivating members
Process consultation
Building cohesion by increasing communal perspective, efficacy
Team approaches are reliably associated with increases in effectiveness and satisfaction.

27. Goal Setting
In order for any athlete to achieve their true potential they must set themselves targets
These targets are called “goals”
Setting goals can help an athlete achieve: % of studies show an increase in performance when effective goals are set

28. SMARTER GOALS… S – specific to the event or the skill
M – measurable targets to aid comparison
A – attainable
R – realistic, challenging but possible
T – timed
E – exciting to ensure interest in the target
R - recorded “ink it, don’t just think it”

29. Hazing
Hazing – new member is subjected to mental or physical discomfort, harassment, embarrassment, ridicule, or humiliation.
can increase members’ commitment to the group
Festinger, Schachter’s and Back’s classic study of the “Seekers” suggested initiations create dissonance
Aronson and Mill’s study of severe initiations
Alternative interpretations and the dangers of hazing