Group behavior, teams and conflicts

1. Group behavior, teams and conflicts Prepared for SHP 1313 LECTURES at UTM Skudai. Prepared by SitiRokiahSiwok srsiwok@gmail.com

2. Introduction • Employee seldom work in isolation ( Mullins, 2006). • Groups are characteristics of all social situations ( Mullins, 2006). • Most employee behaviour takes place in groups or teams; thus important to understand group dynamics (Aamodt, 2007) • People in groups influence each other in various ways. • Groups may develop hierarchies and leaders . • Style of leadership affect groups.

3. Introduction • Groups are crucial to the functions of work organizations because through work groups : • Members can pool their resources (talents , energy etc) • Provide professional identities for members • Satisfies the human need for social interaction • Develop of interpersonal relationship on the job • Help establish rules for proper behaviour in the work setting and thus play a role in determining the course of action the work and the organization will follow. ( Riggio, 2009)

4. Definition of a group • No agreed definition. • Any no. of people interacting with one another, psychologically aware of one another and perceived themselves to be in a group ( Schein, 1988 in Mullins 2006). • A group is two or more individuals engaged in social interaction to achieve some goal (Riggio, 2009) • A definable membership, group consciousness, shared purpose, interdependence, interaction and ability to act in a unitary manner ( Adair, 1986 in Mullins 2006)

5. Definition of a group • Four criteria must be met (Gordon, 2001 in Aamodt, 2010): • Members see themselves as a unit • Group must provide rewards to members • Members of the group share a common goal • Corresponding effects(whatever happens to a member affects every other member).

6. Groups and Norms • Norms are rules that groups adopt governing appropriate and inappropriate behavior for members. • Norms have several purposes, they: • Facilitate group production. • Increase prediction of group member behavior. • Provide a sense of identity to the group.

7. Basic Group Process: Conformity • Conformity is the process of adhering to group norms. • Conformity is often very strong and helps maintain order and uniformity in group behavior. • Extreme and repeated norm violation results in ostracism from the group. • Members who have more power (e.g., the group leader) or who usually conform to norms are more likely to be successful in nonconforming behavior.

8. Basic Group Processes: Group efficacy • Group efficacy is a group’s shared belief that they can attain organizational outcomes. • Individual member self-efficacy contributes to group efficacy, which in turn increases cohesiveness and productivity (Pescosolido, 2003, in Riggio 2009). • Group efficacy is a better predictor of group performance than the sum of individual members’ self-efficacy. • Group efficacy enhances job satisfaction and organizational commitment. • Leaders can have an important effect on group efficacy (Walumbwa et al., 2004, in Riggio 2009).

9. Basic Group Processes • Cooperation is very likely in work groups because it is difficult to accomplish work goals alone. • Cooperation is often based on the reciprocity rule, the tendency for persons to pay back those to whom they are indebted for assistance. • Cooperation increases with task interdependence, the degree to which an individual’s task performance depends on the efforts/skills of others. • Social loafing occurs when individuals working in groups exert less effort than when they work alone.

10. Basic Group Processes : Competition • Competition is the process whereby group members are pitted against one another to achieve individual goals. • Wage systems in the U.S. and internationally are often competitive in nature (e.g., bonuses, promotions available). • While competition may increase motivation to perform, the introduction of competition when goals are already set may lead to a decrease in performance (Campbell & Furrer, 1995).

11. Reasons for joining a group • Assignment • Physical proximity • Affiliation (to fulfill the need to be with people) • Identification • Emotional support • Assistance or help • Common interest • Common goals

12. Factors affecting Group Performance • Group cohesiveness • Group homogeneity • Stability of membership • Isolation • External pressure • Group size • Group status • Group ability and confidence • Personality of group members • Communication network • Group roles • Presence of others • Individual dominance • Groupthink

13. Factors affecting Group Performance: Cohesiveness • Group cohesiveness • It is the extent to which group members like and trust each other, committed to accomplish a team goal and share a feeling of group pride ( Beale, Cohen, Burke & McLendon, 2003 in Aamodt, 2010) • Cohesiveness is the degree of attraction among group members ( Riggio, 2009)

14. Cohesiveness • Cohesiveness increases member satisfaction, but only increases productivity when it is work-related. • Cohesiveness increases when group members have equal status. • Cohesiveness increases with increased stability of group membership. • Greater similarity of group members increases cohesiveness. • The we-they feeling is cohesiveness created by the existence of a threat to the group.

15. Group Cohesiveness • Group Cohesiveness are influenced by many elements: • Group homogeneity • It is the extent to which members are similar • Homogeneous or heterogeneous will lead to the best group performance? • Stability of membership • The greater the stability, the greater the cohesiveness • Thus members who remain for long periods of time are more cohesive and perform better than groups that have high turnover (Bell, 2005 in Aamodt, 2007)

16. Group Cohesiveness 3. Isolation • Group that is isolated tends to be highly cohesive 4. External pressure • Groups that are pressured by external forces tend to be highly cohesive; which can be explained by the phenomena psychological reactance ( Brehm, 1966 in Aamodt, 2007) 5. Group size • Groups are most cohesive and perform best when the size is small. • However, not all small group are always the best; also depends on the tasks.

17. Group cohesiveness: Group Size • Smaller is best for cohesiveness • Performance depends on task type • additive tasks • conjunctive tasks • disjunctive tasks

18. Group Size and tasks • Additive tasks are the those for which the group’s performance is equal to the sum of the performances by each group member. • Each group member’s contribution is important. • Larger group is better than small group

19. Group Size and tasks • Conjunctive tasks are those for which group’s performance depends on the least effective group’s member. Smaller groups are best. • Disjunctive tasks are those for which the group’s performance is based on the most talented group members. Larger groups are better.

20. Examples of Task Types

21. Group Size: variations • Theadditionalof a new member to a group has the greatest effect when the group is small. Example: a single great player can turn a poor basketball into a victorious team. • The effect of size is also different with different apparatus used. Example: With the use of computers, larger groups appear to perform best and members are most satisfied (Dennis, Valacich and Nunamaker, 1990 etc in Aamodt, 2010)

22. Group Cohesiveness 6. Group status • The higher the group status, the greater is the cohesiveness; thus a group can be made more cohesive by increasing its status, at least in the eyes of the members.

23. Factors affecting Group Performance • Group ability and confidence • Groups with high-ability members outperform groups with low-ability members • Groups whose members believe that their team can be successful perform better than those whose members are not confident. • Personality of group members • Groups with members who score high in openness and emotional stability will perform better that groups whose members do not have these characteristics ( Bell, 2005 in Aamodt, 2007)

24. Factors affecting Group Performance • Communication network • Communication network affects groups’ performance • The best network depends on the situation and the goals of the group. • A good leader must choose the best communication network which facilitates the achievement of the group’s goals.

25. Communication Structure Chain Centralized Jill Peggy Bob Bob Jill Peggy Circle Open Jill Peggy Bob Jill Peggy Bob

26. Factors Affecting Group Performance: Group Roles • Rolesare patterns of behavior that are adapted based on expectations about the functions of a position in a group. • Role expectations are beliefs concerning the responsibilities and requirements of a particular role. • Role differentiation is the process by which group members learn to perform various roles. (Riggio, 2009)

27. Roles • Early researchers (Benne and Sheats, 1948) identified three categories of work roles in groups. • Group task rolesare related to getting the job done (e.g., leader, evaluator). • Group building and maintenance roles deal with maintaining personal relationships among members (e.g., encourager, compromiser). • Self-centered rolesinvolve satisfying personal rather than group goals (e.g., recognition seeker, aggressor).

28. Riggio, 2009, page 310

29. (Riggio, 2009 page 310)

30. Roles • Role ambiguity involves a sense of uncertainty over the requirements of a particular role. • Role conflict results when the expectations associated with one role interfere with the expectations concerning another role.

31. Roles • Organizational socialization is the process by which new employees learn group roles and norms and develop specific work skills and abilities. • Organizational socialization occurs in stages. • Anticipatory socialization: new employees develop expectations concerning the job and assess they “fit” in the organization. • Accommodation: new employees learn about work group roles and norms. • Role management: newcomers transition to regular members.

32. Factors Affecting Group Performance: Presence of Others • Social Facilitation and Inhibition • mere presence of others • comparison of performance • evaluation apprehension • distraction • Social Loafing • effort won’t be noticed • free-rider theory • sucker-effect theory

33. Factors affecting Group Performance :Individual Dominance • By the group leader • If the leader has an accurate solution to a problem in the group, then the group performs at high level. • By a group member

34. Factors affecting Group Performance: Groupthink • Groupthink is a syndrome characterized by a concurrence-seeking tendency that overrides the ability of a cohesive group to make critical decisions.

35. Factors affecting Group Performance: Groupthink Can occur when the group : • is cohesive • is insulated from outsiders • believes it is infallible • it is morally superior • is under pressure to conform • has a leader who promotes a favorite solution • has gatekeepers who keep information from members (Aamodt, 2010)

36. Riggio, 2009, page 334

37. Group versus Individual Performance • When several people work individually on a problem but do not interact, they are called nominal group. • When several individuals interact to solve problems are called interacting group. • Research shows that interacting group will usually outperform one individual, but interacting groups do not outperform nominal groups ( Kerr and Tinsdale, 2004 in Aamodt 2010)

38. Group versus Individual Performance • Interacting Groups • Are more risky • Individuals (nominal groups) • Are more creative and higher quality ( comparison using brainstorming activities) • Make a decision more quickly

39. Nominal versus Interacting groups • There is a tendency for interacting groups to take more extreme positions than the positions of individual members. This tendency is called polarization. • Thus : Group polarization is the tendency for groups to make decisions that are more extreme than those made by individuals ( Riggio, 2009)

40. Nominal versus Interacting groups • The superiority of nominal group over interacting groups may depend on the type of task. • Wilson (2007 in Aamodt, 2010) criticizes the results of research which seem to conclude the superiority of nominal over interacting groups. He believes that the tasks were too easy and if the tasks were difficult, the interacting group are superior.

41. Groups or teams?

42. Groups or teams? • Not all groups are teams. • “ Teams occurs when a number of people have a common goal and recognize that their personal success is dependent on the success of others. They are all interdependent…” ( Crainer, 1998, in Mullins 2006)

43. Teams verses groups • Teams are more likely to consist of people with diverse abilities, with their own specialization and different perspectives to ensure the completion of a common task. Eg: a surgical team. • Teams usually develops more interdependence compared to groups. • Members in teams have high degree of group identity and thus more like to identify themselves as a team. ALL TEAMS CONSIST OF GROUPS, BUT NOT ALL GROUPS ARE TEAMS.

44. Comparison :Group and team (Belbin, 2000 in Mullins 2006)

45. Teams

46. What is a Team?Donnellon (1996) • Identification • Interdependence • Power differentiation • Social distance • Conflict management tactics • Negotiation process

47. Teams and Teamwork • A team is an interdependent group of workers with complementary skills working toward shared goals. • Teams are most appropriate for complex tasks, complex decision-making, or creative tasks. • Teams are also appropriate when the situation is variable, requiring the team to adapt to changing external conditions. • Self-managing work teams have complete responsibility for whole work tasks. (Riggio, 2009 )

48. Riggio, 2009, page 338

49. Types of Teams • Work Teams • Parallel Teams • Project Teams • Management Teams

50. Types of Teams • Project Teams • Work Teams • Focus Group • Parallel Teams • Management Teams