Organisational Behaviour

Groups
What are the characteristics of a group?
A group is basically a collection of individuals contributing to some common aim under the
direction of a leader, and who shares a sense of common identity. Groups also provide Stimulus,
Protection & other Psychological requirements to its members.
The characteristics of a Group are as follows
! "embers engaged in frequent interaction#
! Those involved define themselves as group members#
! $thers define members as belonging to a particular group#
! They share common norms and mutual interests#
! They identify with one another and share values#
! They feel a sense of collective responsibility#
! They act in a unified way towards the organisation.
What are formal task groups?
Those groups set up by the management of an organi%ation to underta&e duties in the pursuit of
organi%ational goals.
! They are created to fulfill specific goals or underta&e specific tas&s.
! They have a formal status and role conferred by the organisation.
! They have definite structures with prescribed leadership and established rules, processes and roles.
! They tend to be permanent.
What are informal groups?
Informal groups
Those grouping which the employees themselves have developed in accordance with their own
needs. 'very organi%ation has these &ind of groups (esearches say these are very important to
organisation)s effectiveness.
! They are created by the individual members for the purpose of sharing a common interest or
meeting a shared need.
! They emerge from organisational interactions and may be contained within formal tas&
groups.
! They e*ist for as long as they serve a common interest or fulfill a common need.
! +ommunication tends to be fle*ible and rapid and within and between groups is &nown
as the grapevine. , G$SS-P
Prepared by Nishan Wimalachandra Please refer a relevant study material Groups
www.nishanw.org page1
! An e*ample would be A.' students who meet at $*ford +ollege socially.
! 'lton "ayo in the /awthorne studies demonstrated the potential power of the informal
wor&group.
What are group task roles?
! -nitiating tas&s and defining group problems#
! -nformation0opinion see&ing#
! -nformation0opinion giving, e.g. beliefs, ideas or facts relevant to the group
problem#
! +larifying, e.g. identifying issues and alternatives arising and interpreting
contributions#
! Summarising, e.g. bringing group ideas together and offering conclusions
and potential decisions#
! +onsensus testing involving 1trial balloons) to test agreement.
What are group maintenance roles?
Group maintenance roles are focused on promoting and maintaining group relationships by
Encouraging, i.e. being friendly and responsive to others and accepting their
contributions#
Expressing group feelings#
Harmonising, i.e. reconciling disagreements and encouraging members to
e*plore differences#
Compromising, i.e. being prepared to give ground to maintain group cohesion#
Gatekeeping, i.e. facilitating the participation of others#
Setting standards for the group to achieve and applying them in assessing
group performance.
What are the group functions?
"ay be divided into two types and a balance of both is required
Task functions 2 required to achieve the group)s purpose and ob3ectives and include
4ormulating ob3ectives and setting targets
See&ing opinions and e*changing information to facilitate tas& achievement
(einforcing, confirming and clarifying information
Assessing brainstormed ideas and selecting ideal solutions
Maintenance functions 2 of the viability of the group by establishing norms, and a sense of
Purpose
+onflict resolution and ensuring harmonious relationships
+reating opportunities for participation and member contribution
Assessing group effectiveness and initiating any required remedial
action

Prepared by Nishan Wimalachandra Please refer a relevant study material Groups
www.nishanw.org page
What are group norms?
Group norms are the set of rules governing appropriate behaviour, opinions and attitudes.
'*ert considerable influence over group members 2 indeed continued group membership
may depend on their observance.
They drive e*pected behaviour, maintain group identity and regulate social interaction
5orms can cover such matters as dress code, social behaviours and output limits
Tas& norms will govern wor& performance and acceptable quality standards and may diverge
from those e*pected by the formal organi%ation
"aintenance norms promote group cohesion and identity.
They include group rituals as means of defining the group. (elationship norms establish common
ways of responding to outsiders i.e set attitudes and behaviour.
The process of acquiring norms is &nown as socialisation while the strong pressure to abide
by the e*pected norms is termed conformity
Groups develop both positive and negative sanctions to ensure conformity
What is Group cohesion? !Togetherness"
Also &nown as team spirit or esprit de corps.
The longer a group is together the stronger the cohesiveness. Strong norms and beliefs
develop causing the group to 1close ran&s) in time of trouble or outside interference
The degree of group cohesiveness is determined by factors such as The si%e of the group 2
small is more cohesive
The degree of mutual dependency 2 e.g. wor&ers from close &nit communities
-ncentives attaching to successful tas& completion +ommonality through gender, faith,
s&ills, e*perience
The strength of the leader
+ohesive groups will only be effective if their goals are complementary to the organisation)s
+ohesive groups provide mutual support and social satisfactions and so may be positive in
impact
+ohesive groups are protective and pursue their own interests 2 they may be closed to new
entrants
Prepared by Nishan Wimalachandra Please refer a relevant study material Groups
www.nishanw.org page#
What is group development?
5ew groups must go through a formative process before they can gel and become fully effective.
uckman identified ! stages to the process" forming# storming# norming# performing $
%d&ourning'
$orming concerns finding the situation the group faces and the types of behaviour and
interaction that will be appropriate "embers test out attitudes and behaviour to establish
acceptability and agreed ground rules. A powerful leadership personality can assist this
an*ious process
%torming is the stage where different opinions and styles emerge, creating possibilities for
competing sub,groups, leadership challenges and resistance to meeting tas& requirements
-ssues must be resolved at this stage in order to move on and develop.
Norming occurs when resistance is overcome and conflicts are resolved "utually
acceptable tas& and maintenance norms are established and members begin to internalise
them so building up cohesion Group roles are clarified and the leader established.
"embers begin to feel included (ecognition of the value of different contributions grows
and real performance begins.
Performing is the final stage when the group)s energy is available for effective tas&
completion.
&d'ourning is when group disperses on completion of tas&s.
What are the elements affecting group (ehaviour?
Prepared by Nishan Wimalachandra Please refer a relevant study material Groups
www.nishanw.org page(
(esearch indicates that the most important factors are
! Si%e of the group
! The group leader
! The nature of group members and their motivation
! Group norms
! -ndividual roles
! The environment
! The tas& itself.
As mentioned above, a group is a collection of individuals, sharing a common identity and
contributing to a common aim under the direction of a leader. "ost organisational tas&s are
underta&en by groups or teams which in turn provide stimulus# protection and assistance to the
individuals that compose it. 6istinction should be made between formal and informal groups.
/owever, in practice many groups are so driven by pressure to meet deadlines that the relevance of
process and relationship issues is often overloo&ed. 7et for groups to be effective, sufficient time
needs to be set aside to allow issues to be aired and relationships to be built. $nce group norms are
established there are strong pressures to conform.
These might conflict with management norms. e.g. output controls. 'ffectiveness is achieved when
the needs and e*pectations of the organi%ation are at one with those of the group and individuals.
'ffective groups tend to be informal and rela*ed with a high degree of participation. +onflict is
brought into the open and decisions are reached by consensus.
eams and eam Building
Students tend to confuse both Teams and Groups. Their questions are, whether groups and teams are
same8
-n both teams and groups, there are ma3or differences as well as similarities which can be seen. .ut
there are some unique qualities which can be seen in teams.
According to 9ohn Adair :;<=>?
A team is more than 3ust a group with a common aim.
-n a team all members are seen as complementary.
There is strong collaboration & strong togetherness
There is a strong commitment from its member & genuine support for each other.
The Specialty is an Ability to wor& as a team even if the individual members are apart.
:operating from various places?
)esearchers have sho*n that follo*ing attri(utes +things, are ver- much visi(le in a team'

+lear ob3ectives
Good leadership
$penness and confrontation
Support and trust
+o,operation and conflict
Sound procedures
(egular monitoring :review?
-ndividual development
Group inter,group relations
Prepared by Nishan Wimalachandra Please refer a relevant study material Groups
www.nishanw.org page)
.n another stud- carried out (- /eredith Bel(in and his team identified that a leader or
manager ma- (e pla-ing one or more of the follo*ing roles'
+hairman)s role 2 A person who coordinates and controls other team members
Shaper 2 @ho shapes others thin&ing and decisions.
-nnovator 2 @ho provides creative thin&ing in a team
"onitor0'valuator 2 @ho monitors and analyses
+ompany wor&er 2 @ho translates ideas into practice.
Team wor&er 2 @ho maintains team spirit and wor& with others.
(esource -nvestigator 2 @ho loo&s for resources and for ideas out side the team and helps
the team with those.
+ompleter 2 @ho loo&s forward to complete the given 3ob on time
%ame as above
What are the 0e- functions re1uired in an ideal team?
"eredith .elbin observed team,wor&ing in practice and discovered certain combinations of
personality types performed more effectively than others. The ideal team embraced a number of
functions
! +oordination 2 clarifies goals0facilitates decisions
! Shaper 2 dynamic and challenging
! Teamwor&er 2 builds relationships0resolves conflict
! +ompleter 2 painsta&ing0delivers to deadline
! -mplementer , turns ideas to action
! -nvestigator 2 e*plores opportunities
! Specialist 2 contribute scarce s&ills0&nowledge
! "onitor0evaluator
2uestion 3 4 5ecem(er 6778
2!
:a? @hat are the characteristics of a group8 :A mar&s?
:b? 6istinguish between the following
:i? formal tas& groups
:ii? informal groups :> mar&s?
:c? Bse e*amples to e*plain the difference between group tas& roles and group maintenance roles.
:;C mar&s?
:Total CD mar&s?
Prepared by Nishan Wimalachandra Please refer a relevant study material Groups
www.nishanw.org page*