Groups and Teamwork Flashcards
How are groups involved in organisations?
- Group membership is essential to human behaviour and almost unavoidable
- Working in groups/teams is central to organisational life, structure and design
- Functioning group is more than the sum of its parts
Why do we care about teams?
- Team conflict and cohesion relate to team effectiveness
- Team effectiveness is an important predictor for team performance, satisfaction and productivity
- Spillover effects of team performance to individual level and organisational level success
What is the definition of a group?
Any number of people who interact with one another, are psychologically aware of one another and perceive themselves to be a group (Schein, 1988)
What is the definition of a team?
Can be two or more people psychologically contracted together to achieve a goal
How can teams be distinguished from groups?
Team goals: groups don’t need to have goals
Shared leadership
Shared accountability
Self developed mission
Continuous problem solving
What is the difference between a formal and informal team?
Established by organisations vs emerging naturally e.g working on a project vs play on a sport team
Which types of work teams exist?
- Problem solving
- Functional
- Virtual
- Self managed
- Cross functional
What is Tuckman’s (1977) Five Stage Theory of Group Development?
Shows how teams form:
- Forming
- Storming
- Norming
- Performing
What are the individual and group issues associated with forming?
“How do I fit in?”
“Why are we here?”
What are the individual and group issues associated with storming?
“What’s my role here?”
“Why are we fighting over who’s in charge and who does what?”
What are the individual and group issues associated with the norming stage?
“What do the others expect me to do?”
“Can we agree on roles and work as a team?”
What are the individual and group issues associated with performing?
“How can I best perform my role?”
“Can we do the job properly?”
What is the definition of forming from Five Stage Theory?
- Defines leadership, roles and responsibilities
- Some levels of anxiety, impression management
What is the definition for storming from the Five Stage Theory?
- More openness leads to potential disagreements
What is the definition of norming from Five Stage Theory?
- Resolution of conflict
- Establish co-operation in order to achieve group purpose
What is the definition of performing from the Five Stage Theory?
- Cohesiveness established
- Effective performance vis a vis goal
What is the definition of adjourning from the Five Stage Theory?
- Dissolving of group and return to individual tasks
- Experiences of sadness and sense of loss
What implications does forming have for managers?
- Purposefully pick teams
- Establish team identity
- Develop shared mental models
What implications does storming have for managers?
- Act as a resource to the team
- Develop mutual trust
- Calm the work environment
What implications does norming have for managers?
- Get constant feedback
- Transfer leadership
What implications does performing have for managers?
- Allow for flexibility in team roles
- Assist in timing and selection of new members
What is the extended Tuckman model?
Includes de-norming, de-storming and de-forming
What is de norming from the extended Tuckman Model?
A natural erosion of group standards of conduct. Group members drift in different directions.
What is de storming from the extended Tuckman Model?
An undercurrent of discontent slowly comes to the surface. Individual resistance increases and cohesiveness declines.
What is de forming from the extended Tuckman model?
Work group literally falls apart as subgroups battle for control
What is the punctuated equilibrium model?
How teams with deadlines are affected by first meetings and crucial midpoint transitions.
What is phase 1 of the punctuated equilibrium model?
First meeting to midpoint of existence, little progress is made
What is the midpoint transaction of the punctuated equilibrium model?
Need to move forward is apparent
What is phase 2 of the punctuated equilibrium model?
Decisions and approaches are played out
What makes an effective team?
- Commitment to group
- Shared aims and objectives
- Participation and consensual decision making
- Openness, honesty, free flow of information
- Resolution of conflict
- Accepting group values and norms
What are team norms?
Acceptable standards of behaviour within a team, they are agreed upon by members and relate to:
- Performance
- Appearance
- Social interaction
- Allocation of resources
What is group cohesiveness?
Norming is often described as the cohesion stage which can create a team.
Cohesion = the degree to which a group is especially attractive to its members
Closeness or commonness of attitude, behaviour and performance
What are the benefits of cohesiveness?
Co-operation and coordination, positive influence on motivation and morale, source for creativity and energy
What do groups with high cohesiveness demonstrate?
- Lower tension and anxiety
- Less variation in productivity
- Better member satisfaction, commitment, and communication
What are the factors that affect group cohesiveness?
Group size: larger groups struggle to remain cohesive
Managed diversity: diverse groups often come up with better solutions
Group identity and healthy competition: external threat to survival helps cohesiveness
Success: more cohesive when they successfully accomplish goals
What are the consequences of cohesiveness?
- More participation in group activities
- More conformity
- More success
