exam 1

Question 1

perspective

Answer 1

the way in which our shared meanings and practices are constituted through language and symbol, the construction of messages, and their dissemination through media, organizations, and society.

Question 2

aggregates

Answer 2

a whole formed by combining several (typically disparate) elements.

Question 3

small group

Answer 3

interaction that takes place with three or more people

Question 4

team

Answer 4

clear focused, and defined task
→is a coordinated group of individuals organized to work together to achieve a specific, common goal.

Question 5

transactional

Answer 5

Meaning that when we communicate, we send and receive messages simultaneously.

Question 6

dyad

Answer 6

communication between two people

Question 7

distributed teams

Answer 7

team where all members are physically located away from each other, operating within different time zones

Question 8

social facilitation

Answer 8

the tendency for people to work harder simply because others are present

Question 9

social loafing

Answer 9

expect others to pull weight for you, tend to slug off, don’t put forth the effort

Question 10

distribution of responsibility

Answer 10

occurs when people who need to make a decision wait for someone else to act instead. The more people involved, the more likely it is that each person will do nothing, believing someone else from the group will probably respond.

Question 11

coordination deficits

Answer 11

a failure of the acquisition of skills in both gross and fine movements

Question 12

individualism

Answer 12

individual autonomy and initiative are valued;

Question 13

collectivism

Answer 13

collective well-being takes precedence over individual achievement

Question 14

primary group

Answer 14

group whose purpose is to give people a way to fulfill their need to associate with others. Ex. family and friends

Question 15

secondary group

Answer 15

accomplish a task/goal
-problem-solving -decision making
-study groups -therapy groups

Question 16

study groups

Answer 16

The main goal of these groups is to gather information and learn new ideas.

Question 17

therapy group

Answer 17

seeing psychologists and taking medication helps group members work on personal problems or provides encouragement and support to help manage stress.

Question 18

t-group

Answer 18

tavirstalk group, not psych problem but self-help. Ex. AA and weight loss camp

Question 19

problem solving group

Answer 19

exists to overcome some unsatisfactory situation or obstacles to achieving a goal.

Question 20

decision-making group

Answer 20

To choose among several alternatives. The group must identify the possible choices, dis- cuss the consequences, and then select the alternative that best meets a need or achieves the goal of the group or parent organization.

Question 21

committee

Answer 21

a group of people elected or appointed for a specific task.

Question 22

standing committee

Answer 22

which remains active for an extended time period,

Question 23

ad hoc committee

Answer 23

which disbands when its special task has been completed

Question 24

quality circle

Answer 24

a group of workers who do the same or similar work, who meet regularly to identify, analyze and solve work-related problems

Question 25

focus group

Answer 25

a small group of people who are asked to focus on a particular topic or issue so that others can better understand the group’s responses to the topic or issue presented.

Question 26

virtual small group communication

Answer 26

Three or more people collaborate from different physical locations, perform interdependent tasks, have shared responsibility for the outcome of the work, and rely on some form of technology to communicate with one another.

Question 27

sychronous communication

Answer 27

occur instantly and simultaneously, with no time delay between sending and receiving a message.

Question 28

asynchronous communication

Answer 28

is not read, heard, or seen at the same time you send the message; there is a time delay between sending and receiving a message.

Question 29

electronic meeting systems

Answer 29

a type of computer software that facilitates creative problem solving and decision-making of groups within or across organizations.

Question 30

group decision support system

Answer 30

is an interactive computer-based system used to facilitate the solution of unstructured problems by a set of decision-makers working together as a group

Question 31

social presence

Answer 31

the subjective experience of being present with a “real” person and having access to his or her thoughts and emotions

Question 32

competent communicator

Answer 32

able to assess what is going to be appropriate and effective in a given context and then modify their behaviors accordingly

Question 33

eureka tasks

Answer 33

easily understandable tasks → truth wins → most easy

Question 34

provable tasks

Answer 34

prove what the answer is; not easy to explain → truth supported

Question 35

expert judgment

Answer 35

correct answer is what experts arrive at → make claims contradictory to one another → best member

Question 36

truth wins

Answer 36

social decision scheme, Eureka → at least one person with the correct answer, then group will lead itself to correct answer (before discussion)

Question 37

truth supported wins

Answer 37

provable tasks → at least two people in the group must have the right answer before the discussion for the group to get the right answer

Question 38

best member strategy

Answer 38

social decision scheme, exp judge → answer of best member, group will perform at this level

Question 39

staticized groups

Answer 39

groups we analyze statistically but don’t interact or comm with

Question 40

freely interacting groups

Answer 40

communication taking place, common goal

Question 41

assembly effect bonus

Answer 41

process gain →performed stronger than what was predicted

Question 42

synergy

Answer 42

whole is greater than the sum of its parts

Question 43

process loss

Answer 43

performs less than what we would have predicted due to faulty communication processes

Question 44

symbolic signs

Answer 44

no resemblance to that which they represent. No natural connection between the sign and what it represents. Made up a relationship. People make up those relationships. Ex. the word tree does not resemble what it represents.

Question 45

signs

Answer 45

is anything used to represent something other than what it is. Never can be used to represent itself

Question 46

iconic signs

Answer 46

resemblance to that of which they represent. Ex. drawings

Question 47

indexical signs

Answer 47

cause or sequential relationship between the sign and that it represents. The sign is caused by something or causes something to occur. Ex. smoke=fire

Question 48

intentionality

Answer 48

a way of communicating that deliberately fosters social and emotional skill development

Question 49

verbal communication

Answer 49

the use of words, common signs, and sounds to encode a message to the receiver

Question 50

nonverbal communication

Answer 50

the transfer of information through body language, facial expressions, gestures, created space and more

Question 51

systems theory

Answer 51

open system composed of interdependent elements

Question 52

open systems

Answer 52

a system that has external interactions. Such interactions can take the form of information, energy, or material transfers into or out of the system boundary, depending on the discipline which defines the concept.

Question 53

closed systems

Answer 53

operate on their own with little or no influence from the outside world

Question 54

process theories

Answer 54

explain group and team phenomena

Question 55

method theories

Answer 55

take a prescriptive approach to small group communication. These how-to theories are particularly useful in establishing formats for solving problems and resolving conflicts in a group.

Question 56

input

Answer 56

brought into a system from outside its boundaries

Question 57

output

Answer 57

outcomes of a group process

Question 58

process

Answer 58

a series of actions or steps taken in order to successfully communicate

Question 59

system

Answer 59

set of interrelated parts that come together to form a coherent, unified whole

Question 60

interdependance

Answer 60

parts of a system, interconnected with one another in such a way that a change in one will result in a change in all

Question 61

explicit rules

Answer 61

the specific information conveyed in written or spoken words;clear, direct, straightforward, and intentional

Question 62

implicit rules

Answer 62

the "unwritten," and generally understood and agreed upon, rules that play a significant role in the lives of group members

Question 63

rules

Answer 63

determine how the group structures itself and performs tasks, and how group members talk to one another. →a prescription for acceptable behavior.

Question 64

profit

Answer 64

equals rewards minus costs; as long as rewards exceed costs, a relationship remains attractive.

Question 65

rewards

Answer 65

pleasurable outcomes associated with particular behaviors

Question 66

costs

Answer 66

include such things as mental effort, anxiety, or even embarrassment.

Question 67

fantasy themes

Answer 67

consists of the common or related content of the stories the group tells.

Question 68

fantasy chain

Answer 68

a string of connected stories that revolve around a common theme.

Question 69

fantasy

Answer 69

the creative and imaginative shared interpretation of events that fulfills a group’s need to make sense of its experience and to anticipate its future.

Question 70

structuration

Answer 70

provides a general framework that explains how people structure their groups by making active use of rules and resources

Question 71

duality of structure

Answer 71

refers to the fact that social structures are simultaneously produced and modified by human agents and are used as resources; structures are dual in the sense that they are both the medium and outcome of the interactions and institutions they recursively organize.

Question 72

resources

Answer 72

a physical or logical device that provides a single bidirectional, asynchronous data stream

Question 73

body synchrony

Answer 73

rhythmic synchronization between the body movements of interacting partners

Question 74

perception checking

Answer 74

being able to describe what is happening in a given situation, provide multiple interpretations of events or behaviors, and ask yourself and others questions for clarification

Question 75

hidden agendas

Answer 75

a situation in which someone secretly tries to achieve a particular thing while they appear to be doing something else