Groups

Work Groups
 It is two or more individuals who interact
and influence each other in the pursuit of
a common goal.
Group Dynamics
The "field of inquiry dedicated to
advancing knowledge about the nature of
groups"

(Cartwright & Zander, 1968)

Situations in which groups are superior to
individuals
 When there is no clear expert in a particular
problem or task.
 When problem solving can be handled by a
division of labor and the sharing of information.
 When creativity and innovation are needed.
How groups help
organizations

 Groups can improve creativity.

 Groups can make better decisions.
 Groups can increase commitments to action.
 Groups help control their members.
A Model of Group Formation and
Development
•Stages of
Type of Group Reasons for Group Some Group End Results
Group Development Characteristics
Formal:
Formation
1. Forming •Status
1. Command Performance
Security need
2. Storming •Roles
2. Task satisfaction
3. Norming •Size
Informal: Social need Satisfaction
satisfaction 4. Performing •Norms
1. Interest
Esteem need 5. Adjourning •Composition
2. Friendship Development
satisfaction
•Punctuated •Leadership
Power Equilibrium
•Cohesiveness
Model
Achievement
•Conflicts

FEEDBACK
TWO TYPES OF GROUPS
 FORMAL GROUPS (TASK ORIENTED)
 INFORMAL GROUPS (SOCIAL ORIENTED)
 Types of Work Groups

Work Group

Formal Informal
Work Group Work Group

Interest Friendship
Command Task
Group Group
Group Group
Formal Work Groups
 Established by management to carry out
specific tasks
 May exist for a short or long period of time
Functions of formal
groups:
 Perform tasks requiring the collective skills of
more than one person
 Good for idea generation
 Good for exchange of ideas
Types of Formal Work
Groups
 Command Group - a formal work group
consisting of subordinates who report to the
same supervisor.

 Task Force - a formal work group consisting

of people who come together to accomplish a
specific goal.
Informal Work Groups

Informal work groups are formed voluntarily by

members of an organization
Types of Informal Work
Groups
 Friendship Group - consisting of people
who enjoy each other’s company and
socialize with each other on and off the
job.

 Interest Group - consisting of people

who come together because they have a
common goal or objective related to their
organizational membership.
Benefits of informal groups
 Can speed up work flow by supplementing formal
lines of authority.
 Can satisfy needs that are thwarted or unmet by
the formal group.
 Can provide members with social satisfaction,
security, and a sense of belonging.
FORMAL & INFORMAL GROUP
CHARACTERISTICS
FORMAL GROUPS
 Objective: Profit, Efficiency, Service
 Planned by the Organization
 Influenced by Authority, Monetary
Rewards
 Communication is Top Down, Formal
Channels
 Leader is Appointed by Organization
 Relationships Established by Job &
Work-Flow Patterns
 Control: Coercive, Monetary
Rewards
INFORMAL GROUPS
 Objective: Member
Satisfaction & Security
 Origin: Spontaneous
 Influenced by Personality,
Expertise
 Communication is the
Grapevine
 Leadership is Emergent
 Relationships Developed
Spontaneously
 Control: Social Sanctions
Why do People Join Groups?
 Security
 Status
 Self-esteem
 Power
 Goal achievement
Why Do People Join Groups?
 Security –
By joining a group, individuals can reduce the
insecurity of “standing along.” People feel
stronger, have fewer self-doubts, and are more
resistant in threats when they are part of a
group.
 Status –
Inclusion in a group that is viewed as important
by others provides recognition and status for its
members.
 Self-esteem –
Groups can fulfill social needs. People enjoy the
regular interaction that comes with group
membership. For many, the on-the-job interactions
are their primary source of fulfilling their needs for
affiliation & hence their likingness about themselves.
 Power –
There is strength in numbers. What cannot be
achieved individually often becomes possible through
group action.
 Goal achievement –
There are times when it takes more than one person to
accomplish a particular task – there is a need to pool talents,
knowledge, or power in order to complete a job.
 Models
of
Group Development
Theories of Group
Formation
 Theory of Propinquity
 Classical Theory
 Balance Theory
 Exchange Theory
Theory of Propinquity
 Degree of Closeness
Classical Theory
Given by George Homans

 Activities
 Interactions
 Sentiments
Balance Theory
Given by Theodore Newcomb
Individual X Individual Y

Z
Authority, Work , Religion
Exchange Theory
 Reward Cost Outcomes
 Five-Stage
Model of Group
Development

 Punctuated Equilibrium Model

Stages of Group
Development
 Group development

 Forming
 Storming
 Norming
 Performing
 Adjourning
Tuckman's Five-Stage Model of Group
Development
Group Development

Phase Relations Task

Form ing M istrust Seek objective
Storm ing Com munication Identify problems
Norm ing Cohesiveness Clarify roles
Perform ing Cooperation Emerging solutions
Adjourning Disengagement Task completion
Limitations
 Groups can sometimes go back to an earlier stage
 Conflict can sometimes be helpful to the group
 Context can matter: airline pilots can immediately
reach performing stage
PUNCTUATED EQUILIBRIUM

A model of group development that describes how

groups with deadlines are affected by their first
meetings and crucial mid-point transitions.
The Punctuated-Equilibrium
Model

(High)
Performance

Phase 2
Completion
First
Meeting
Transition
Phase 1
(Low)
A (A+B)/2 B
Time
PHASE 1

 Setting the agenda for what happens

 Developing assumptions, approaches and
precedents.
Mid-point Transition

 The transition occurs at exactly the half-way

point in time toward the group’s deadline.
 There is an apparent need to move forward.
 The group may seek outside advice.
 It consolidates acquired information or even
marks a completely new approach.
PHASE 2

 Decision and approaches adopted at

the mid-point are implemented.
 It concludes with a final meeting that
reveals a burst of activity and a
concern for how outsiders will evaluate
the product.
ADVICE FOR MANAGING THE
PUNCTUATED EQUILIBRIUM MODEL

 Prepare carefully for the first meeting

during Phase 1.

 As long as people are working, do not look

for radical progress during Phase 1.
 Manage the mid-point transition carefully.

 Be sure adequate resources are available to

actually execute the Phase 2 plan.

 Resist deadline changes. These could

damage mid-point transition.
Accelerating Group
Development
Group facilitator
 Draw groups’ attention to the group
processes and suggest ways to enhance
group skills
 Ideal that facilitation is performed by all
group members
CHARACTERISTICS OF
GROUPS
 Status
 Roles
 Norms
 Cohesiveness
 Composition
 Size
 Leadership
Status
A person’s relative rank, prestige, or
standing in a group.

 Status congruence
 Occurs when a person’s position within the group is
equivalent in status to positions held outside the
group.
 When status incongruence is present, problems will

likely occur.
Roles
 A role is a set of expected behaviour
patterns attributed to someone occupying
a given position in a social unit.
Roles

Expected Role

Perceived Role

Enacted Role
Role Relationships

Expected Role Perceived Role Enacted Role

Role Ambiguity Role Conflict

Norms
 Norm: an assumption or expectation held
by group members concerning what kind
of behaviour is:
 Right or wrong
 Good or bad
 Allowed or not allowed
 Appropriate or not appropriate
Why Group Members Conform to
Norms
 Compliance - assenting to a norm in
order to attain rewards or avoid
punishment.

 Identification - associating oneself with

supporters of a norm and conforming to
the norm because those individuals do.
 Internalization - believing that the
behavior dictated by a norm is truly the
right and proper way to behave.
Group Cohesiveness
 Cohesiveness – the extent that group
members are attracted to each other and
to the group values and accept group
goals
 As the cohesiveness of a work group
increases, the level of conformity to group
norms also increases
Consequences of Group
Cohesiveness
 Positive
 Enjoy Group Membership
 Participate in Group Activities
 Accept Group Goals
 Low Absenteeism & Turnover
 Negative
 Lose sight of Goals
 May Work Against Organizational Interests
Strategies for Increasing Group
Cohesion

1. Inducing agreement on group goals

2. Making the group more homogeneous in its
composition
3. Increasing the frequency of interaction among
group members
4. Making the group smaller
5. Physically and/or socially isolating the group
from other groups
6. Allocating rewards to the group rather than to
the individual
GROUP COMPOSITION
ADVANTAGES: ADVANTAGES:
HOMOGENEOUS HETEROGENEOUS
 Group members like and Group makes good decision
get along well with each because diverse points of
other (similarity counts!) view are represented.
 Group members share  Group performs at a high
information, have low level because the group
levels of conflict, and has a variety of resources
have few coordination at its disposal
Group Size
 Small Group
 Large Group
 ADVANTAGES: ADVANTAGES:
SMALL GROUPS LARGE GROUPS
 Group has many resources at
 Interaction among its disposal to accomplish its
group members are goals, including members’
more frequent skills, abilities, knowledge,
 Information is more and experience.
easily shared among
group members  Group can have a greater
 Group members division of labor, so group
recognize their members focus on particular
contributions to the tasks. When group members
group focus on particular tasks,
they generally become skilled
at performing them.
Social Loafing
 The tendency to withhold physical or
intellectual effort when performing a group
task.
 In the free rider effect, people lower their
effort to get a free ride at the expense of their
fellow group members.
 In the sucker effect, people lower their effort
because of the feeling that others are free
riding.
Social Loafing
 Some of the ways to counteract social loafing:
 Make individual performance more visible
 Make sure that the work is interesting
 Increase feelings of indispensability
 Increase performance feedback
 Reward group performance
Leadership

Questions?