U2 Stages in Group Development

Question 1

Group Dynamics

Answer 1

• phenomenon that occurs in groups based upon the interactions and relationships of the people in the groups
• implies that individual behaviours may differ from their behaviour in a group, depending on the individual’s connection to the group.

Question 2

Stages of Group Development

Answer 2

1. forming
2. storming
3. norming
4. performing
5. adjourning

Question 3

Forming Stage

Answer 3

• first entry of individual members into a team.
  As individuals join the group, they internally asked themselves several questions, such as:
• What can or does this team offer me?
• What will I be asked to contribute?
• Can my needs be met?
• In the forming stage, people begin to identify with other members and may also align with members who seem “powerful” or influential.

Question 4

Storming Stage

Answer 4

• high emotion stage
• Tensions often emerge among members over tasks and interpersonal concerns.
• There may be periods of outright hostility and infighting.
• Coalitions or cliques may form around personalities, views or interests.
• Important changes occur during the Storming stage as task agendas become clarified, and the focus begins to shift from obstacles to task accomplishment.

Question 5

Norming Stage

Answer 5

• Cooperation becomes more important in this stage.
• At this point, members of the team begin to become coordinated as a working unit and tend to operate with shared rules of conduct.
• Harmony is emphasized
• Members are likely to develop initial feelings of closeness, a division of labour, and a sense of shared expectations.
• This helps protect the team from disintegration.
• Holding the team together may be more important than successful task accomplishment in this stage

Question 6

Performing Stage

Answer 6

• Show time.
• This is a stage of total integration in which team members are able to deal in creative ways with both complex tasks and interpersonal conflicts.
• The team operates in a clear and stable structure, and members are motivated by team goals.
• The primary challenge in this stage is the need to refine the operations to meet objectives.

Question 7

Adjourning Stage

Answer 7

• In this final stage, team members prepare to achieve closure and disband from each other.
• Ideally, teams disband with a sense that important goals have been accomplished.
• Members are acknowledged for their contributions and the group’s overall success.
• In all cases, teams like to disband with members feeling they would work with one another again at some point in the future, although this does not always happen…