The Individual and Group - Promoting Critical Thinking and Nurturing Teamwork Flashcards
What does studies show about individuals high on general cognitive ability?
- tend to achieve better results on measures of the job knowledge, skills and techniques required
- better at processing information (Ree and Earles, 1996)
What is mental flexibility according to Majaro 1992, and costa & McCrae, 1992?
- a creative mind must be able to break from habitual constraints if s/he is to stay open and unblocked.
- people who are more open to experience tend to be more imaginative and open to varied perspectives.
What does the ability to link remote associations signify?
- employees try to recognise similarities and connections as well as modify or combine existing ideas into novel solutions relevant to their respective industries
- main problem faced is the natural tendency to see what we are taught to see (James, 1983)
What is the cognitive process, suspense of judgement?
The rational state of mind in which one withholds judgments, particularly on the drawing of moral or ethical conclusions.
- creative individuals can tolerate uncertainty and hold back from accepting the first possible solution that comes to mind (major, 1992)
- the more individuals become aware of these barriers, the ore likely they are to move forward in their creative thinking
What are the typical personality traits of creative individuals?
- sensitive
- independent
- unconcerned with social
- norms and social acceptance
- risk takers
- self-confidence
- tolerance of ambiguity
- need for achievement
- autonomy and non-conformity
What does Taggar (2002) argue about knowledge as a key stone in creativity?
He argues that one cannot be really creative unless one possesses an adequate amount of knowledge in the particular area
Define Knowledge according to Davenport and Prusak, 1998?
A fluid mix of framed experiences, values, contextual information, and expert insight that provides framework for evaluating and incorporating new experiences and information.
Distinguish between informal and formal knowledge?
formal knowledge: based on factual information, such as theories, articles and frameworks.
informal knowledge: derives from the subconsciousness and is therefore harder to share and is rarely taught and often not documented (Polanyi 1958)
What is Hargadon and Sutton (2000) knowledge brokering cycle?
- old ideas can be central to new ones
- through the collection of non-physical and physical knowledge and ideas. can be reused as inspiration in the future to spark creativity and innovation.
demonstrate an example of how knowledge can be useful for creativity?
- bill gates
- 1970s
- launched first product at company traf-o-data, software that analysed traffic data
- when launched software did not function properly - disaster
- learnt from mistakes, years later has through new ideas rebuilt software by being creative and innovative in his thinking
- product: microsoft, huge success
is knowledge also conducive to creativity and innovation?
- according to Andriopoulos (2003) knowledge can be a double edged sword
- hidden danger of conditioning. previous patterns of thought o knowledge providing the individual or team with an easy solution to current problems
demonstrate an example of where knowledge has acted as an inhibitor to creativity?
- Blackberry leader in 2000, with its BBM communications and business like phones
- 2007 apple launched iPhone with one the features being touch screen.
- instead of adapting to new change, blackberry looked back to old ideas and previous success to create something better.
led to great failure - today hold 0.8% of market share
Define motivation according to Amiable, 1990
Motivation is the distinguishing factor between what a creative individual can do and what they actually do (Amabile, 1990)
what are the motives which mobilise individual creativity according to Ford, 1995?
- Achieving personal goals
- expectations regarding personal capabilities
- emotions that directly influence motivation
What are the two types of motivation according to Amiable, 1997?
- Extrinsic motivation: comes from outside a person, it is tangible (such as receiving monetary rewards or punishments)
- Intrinsic motivation refers to ones internal desire to do something, driven by deep interest and enjoyment
what does Hackman et al 1975 and amiable 1996 argue about motivation in promoting creativity?
- employees who have more complex jobs tend to be more motivated, satisfied and productive than those engaged in simple routine tasks.
- creativity is fostered when individuals and teams have relatively high autonomy in the day-to-day conduct of their work and a sense of ownership and control over their own ideas.
Why is collaboration important?
- our society is complex and technologically sophisticated
- timely information is the most important commodity
What is a group?
A group is defined as two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who work together to achieve particular objectives
What is a team according to Katzenbach and Smith (1999)?
a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable
Why do people Join teams?
- security
- self-esteem
- power
- goal achievement
what is the team development process according to Tuckman and Jense, 1977?
forming storming norming performing adjourning
Why do teams fail?
Hidden Agendas Lack of understanding Lack of leadership Wrong mix of team members Unhealthy team environment Treat a team like a group
What is Blind Conformity?
People tend to even engage in illogical or bizarre behaviour in order to guarantee acceptance by a group.
What is Groupthink according to Janis (1972)? and how do you prevent it?
‘the psychological drive for consensus at any cost that suppresses dissent and appraisal of alternatives in cohesive decision-making groups’.
Voice their opinions or express their concerns
Prepare and anticipate criticism
Get recommendations from different groups
Periodically divide the group
Invite outsiders.
Play the ‘devil’s advocate’ role.
Reconsider the action plan.
What is social loafing according to Thompson (2003)? causes?
the tendency for people in a group to slack off
Equity of effort
Loss of personal accountability
Motivational loss due to the sharing of rewards
Co-ordination loss as more people perform the task
What are the effects of teams on creativity?
Team size:
- as the size of team increases the level of creative ideas decreases.
Team longevity:
- The longer groups have been in existence, the less innovative they become, tends to be staffed by older employees and members interact less amongst themselves.
how does task and resources affect creativity?
Creative work can occur at any occupation, where the task at hand involves complex, ill-defined problems, where the result requires the generation of novel and useful ideas
- requires teamwork and integration of special capabilities
- individuals must possess the necessary KSA’s (without input no ouput)
- The lack of project resources can constrain employees’ creativity
What is the problem of team composition for creativity? what are two types of diversity?
Most teams struggle to pull together the right skills, attitudes, behaviours, and problem-solving styles to achieve adequate team diversity and cohesiveness
Milliken and Martins (1996) distinguish between two types of diversity:
1) observable or readily detectable attributes
2) Less visible or underlying attributes
what is the problem with team composition for creativity?
Diversity can either enhance or hinder creativity
Homogeneity among group members is not particularly facilitative for creative group outcomes
what are some different techniques that can trigger creativity?
problem solving in the group
brainstorming (abolish criticism, welcome free-wheeling, large quantities of ideas and combine)
what are some advantages and disadvantages of brainstorming?
advantages: The generation of hundreds of ideas Supports the organizational memory Improved morale Gain better understanding of each other Personal growth Relatively inexpensive Impressing clients.
disadvantages:
The generation of ideas without screening them
It may not always be the answer to problems
what is electronic brain storming?
A new form of computer technology called a Group Support System (GSS) has emerged in the 1990s
The principle behind it is that participants contribute their ideas anonymously to a general pool.
Generating ideas. Editing ideas. Evaluating ideas. Implementing ideas. Action
Advantages and disadvantages of electronic brainstorming?
Advantages:
Simultaneous entry of ideas, Anonymity, Better ideas are generated, It can be effective to large teams, It records the ideas for future sessions.
Disadvantages:
It is not a panacea for all problems, Communication speed, Overload of ideas, It is relatively expensive
What is nominal group techniques?
Participants within this type of team never interact
Process:
It starts with a session of brainwriting where team members write down their ideas.
Individuals’ written lists are then shared by the team and are recorded somewhere where all participants can view them.
The team discusses the generated set of ideas for clarification and evaluation.
Finally, each person is asked to vote in order to identify the highest priority ideas or concepts
what are the advantages and disadvantages of NGT?
Advantages:
It addresses some of the deficiencies of brainstorming (e.g. evaluation apprehension)
It may also be a time-saving technique
NGT is also very effective in situations when judgement is important
Disadvantages:
It focuses on one issue at a time
NGT is a structured team problem solving technique
NGT is not a spontaneous process
