Seminar 8 - Team Building & Group Dynamics Flashcards
What is a team? (Carron & Eys, 2012, p. 14)
“a collection of two or more individuals who possess a common identity, have common goals & objectives, share a common fate, exhibit structured patterns of interaction & modes of communication, hold common perceptions about group structure, are personally & instrumentally interdependent, reciprocate interpersonal attraction, & consider themselves to be a group”
What is group cohesion? (Carron, Brawley, & Widmeyer, 1998, p. 213)
“a dynamic process which is reflected in the tendency for a group to stick together & remain united in the pursuit of its instrumental objectives &/or for the satisfaction of member affective needs”
What are the types of group cohesion?
Group integration (individual perceptions about the closeness, similarities, bonding within the group - consists of we/us evaluations) - task & social
Group attractiveness (individual motivations that act to retain them to a group - consists of I/me evaluations) - task & social
Task - reflects the degree to which members of a group work together to achieve common goals.
Social - reflects the degree to which members of a team like each other and enjoy one another’s company (interpersonal attraction)
How can cohesion be measured?
- Group Environment Questionnaire (GEQ, Widmeyer, Brawley, & Carron, 1985)
Distinguishes between the individual and the group and between task and social concerns. - Has been successfully used in both sport and fitness settings, demonstrating reliability and validity.
What are the correlates of cohesion in sport teams?
Environmental factors
Team factors
Leadership factors
Personal factors
(Carron & Eys, 2012)
Correlates of cohesion in sport teams
What are the environmental factors?
- Proximity — being in close physical contact increases opportunity for interaction and communication.
- Size — follows inverted U relationship
Correlates of cohesion in sport teams
What are the personal factors?
Satisfaction — can be derived from several sources, e.g., opportunities to feel valued and competent, social relation to others, recognition from others.
Competitive state anxiety — Athletes who perceive their teams to be higher in task cohesion experience less cognitive anxiety and are more likely to view their symptoms of both cognitive and somatic anxiety as facilitative.
* Wolf, Sadler, Eys, and Kleinert (2012) proposed that athletes feel like they have more resources at their disposal, and feel less pressure, when they are members of cohesive teams. Appraisal of situation is challenge instead of threat.
Social loafing - the tendency for individuals to decrease the amount of effort they expend when completing a group task compared to the amount of effort expended when alone.
Personal factors
When does social loafing occur?
Occurs across a range of tasks, including physical, cognitive, perceptual, and
evaluative
* Generalises across culture and both sexes
Social loafing increases when:
* The individual’s output cannot be independently evaluated.
* The task is perceived to be low on meaningfulness.
* The individual’s personal involvement in the task is low.
* A comparison against group standards is not possible.
* The individuals contributing to the collective effort are strangers.
* The individual’s teammates or coworkers are seen as high in ability.
* The individual perceives that his contribution to the outcome is redundant.
* The individual is competing against what she believes to be a weaker opponent.
Correlates of cohesion in sport teams
What are the leadership factors?
Interrelationships— complex relationship between coach, athletes, cohesiveness and performance
E.g., mutiny
* Some times coach does not play a role in team cohesion (Widmeyer & Williams, 1991)
Coach’s decision styles — can have impact upon team cohesion, e.g., providing autonomy
Transformational coaching — has positive association with cohesion based on 4 influential behaviours:
* Idealized influence
* Inspirational motivation
* Intellectual stimulation
* Individualised consideration
Correlates of cohesion in sport teams
What are the team factors?
Roles
Norms
Group processes
Performance outcomes
What are the two types of roles in sport teams?
Formal - Dictated by nature and structure of organisation
Informal - Evolved from interactions among group members
What are the important elements of formal roles in sport teams?
Role Ambiguity
Role Acceptance
Role Conflict
What is role ambiguity?
- Scope of responsibility - information about the extent of an individual’s responsibilities
- Behavioral responsibilities - information about which behaviors are necessary to fulfill an individual’s role responsibilities
- Evaluation of performance - information about how an individual’s performance of required role responsibilities will be evaluated
- Consequences of not fulfilling responsibilities - information about the consequences of failing to fulfill requisite role responsibilities
What is role acceptance?
based on 4 conditions:
* opportunity to use specialized skills or competencies
* feedback and role recognition
* role significance
* autonomy (the opportunity to work independently)
What is role conflict?
- exists when the role occupant doesn’t have sufficient ability, motivation, time, or understanding to achieve that goal despite the presence of consensus on a desired goal or outcome.
