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Shadi Garman
HSP 305 Core
Group Culmination Paper
There are many different kinds of groups. Throughout the year, we have focused
on our individual selves, on dyadic groups and small groups. This quarter, working in a
small group system has taught me many things about the process and needs of such a
system. By engaging in a group project, we are all accountable towards each other to
succeed at a common goal. As stated in Adams and Galanes, “Members must be willing
to communicate and share ideas, information, and perspectives within the group….Group
members should treat their fellow members with respect and consideration.” (Galanes &
Adams, 2010). The Pure Bliss Girls wanted to assist the students of Shuksan Middle
School in their ornithological project. This assistance translated towards two main ad-hoc
groups who had different focuses. It was important that we recognized the importance of
dividing roles in regards to schedules and availability. In our work group, I personally felt
very frustrated at my personal involvement. It ended up that the group which I was a part
of had limited involvement in the project. Once those limitations were clear, I simply
accepted it and sulked. But it was important to not let those feelings be clear to the group
since “as group members you have a responsibility to consider how you talk to each
other” (Galanes & Adams, 2010).
In our small group we did not have to deal with primary tension, since we were all
classmates in the same Core class all year. There was no stage fright between our
members. However, we did deal with some secondary tension. According to Adams and
Galanes, secondary tension is “task-related tension that stems from differing opinions
about the substantive work of the group” (Galanes & Adams, 2010). This occurred when
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we were deciding things about our group representation as a whole. A strong example is
when we were deciding on the layout of our powerpoint. I felt that we had differing
opinions about how to make decisions for planning the powerpoint. It was interesting
because the layout overall was fine by everyone, but the process of execution was
stressful and tense. I found myself getting increasingly frustrated with my group. But
instead of spreading negativity to the group’s aura, I grit my teeth and let go. It was easier
to stay silent and accept things than argue pointlessly. In those situations, I used
accommodation which is defined as “a person’s willingness to engage in conflict;
however she or he backs away from the conflict giving in to appease the other party”
(Galanes & Adams, 2010).
The two ad-hoc committees were group members whose schedules permitted
them to actually go with the kids out in the field on their service learning projects and
group members who would help the kids with their reflection essays. While the majority
of us were in the aforementioned group, Kelsey and Meghan took leadership in the
service group. Meghan and Kelsey did a great job information giving, “offering facts,
information, evidence, or personal experience relating to the group’s task” (Galanes &
Adams, 2010). After each Friday on Dr. Otto’s sanctuary, they would get on facebook
and post about their experiences. It was a large responsibility to meet the students each
week as the sole representatives of our group, but they did so without complaints or
hesitation. Their dedication to sharing what they learned was extremely effective for all
of our learning.
Outside of the ad-hoc focus, when we were all together, we took on various task
roles in the group. Thuy was strong at summarizing, “reviewing what has been said
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previously; reminding the group of items previously mentioned or discussed” (Galanes &
Adams, 2010). And Molly established check-ins and conclusions which helped with
consensus testing, “asking if the group has reached a decision acceptable to all;
suggesting that agreement has been reached” (Galanes & Adams, 2010). Overall, we
found ourselves more apt to participate in creative thinking. Creative thinking is defined
as “encouraging use of hunch, intuition, insight, and fantasy to promote creativity”
(Galanes & Adams, 2010). Methods include mind mapping and brainstorming, both of
which we utilized. I believe that I have been a leader through spreading positivity in the
group. I made sure to help support in the best of my ability with my group members.
While I was unable to go to Shuksan due to scheduling conflicts, I would always be sure
to let the other group members know my gratitude of their work and to contribute as
much as possible when we had discussions. My ultimate goal was to be the best member
in my personal capacity. “Ideally everyone in a group wants to be a member others can
count on. Groups require collaborative, cohesive behavior from members” (Galanes &
Adams, 2010).
As an entire group, we did a great job with maintenance roles. Maintenance roles
are defined as “behaviors that help the group maintain harmonious relationships and a
cohesive interpersonal climate” and include supporting each other, relieving tension with
jokes and light-hearted discussion and showing solidarity through positive reinforcements
(Galanes & Adams, 2010). Personally, I have discovered that I embrace a concrete
learning style, which is described as “individuals who learn well from events they
actually observe or activities in which they actually participate in” (Galanes & Adams,
2010). This discovery can help me in the future when I work in small groups, to know
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which tasks I would be best at. In small groups, various learning styles are beneficial for
the members. By identifying my personal learning style, I can positively contribute to the
overall system.
In the small groups project, as well as my dyad project, I worked with an allfemale group. Gender is an important aspect of culture. As stated by Adams and Galanes,
“culture, and our own construction of gender, influences how we experience behaviors in
groups and what choices we make” (Galanes & Adams, 2010). They go on to list four
areas where women and men show differences. Women are more behaviorally expressive
than instrumental; women focus more on relationships than task focus; women tend to be
less forceful; and women show more collectivist behavior to emphasize groups as a
whole. In group systems, there is no guarantee of what kind of peers you will work with.
However, since I have only interacted with females it would be a very different
experience with some gender variance.
Listening is a very important action in all groups. This was apparent in the dyad
projects and now. Effective communication skills require listening as well as vocalizing
thoughts. Many steps are involved; “…listening is a four-step process that begins with
perceiving a message, then interpreting it, deciding what it means, and finally responding
to it” (Galanes & Adams, 2010). Our use of facebook to post messages to one another
was a really helpful tool for listening. By having to read a group member’s post, it
allowed us time to truly think about what they were saying. Since our group did not have
many in-person meetings, the times that we did get together were often rushed. We would
be so excited to chat that we were apt to interrupt one another as we shared information.
Posting messages online also forced the team member to think carefully about their
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words, about how they were choosing to communicate. In order to contribute as group
members, we shared as much as possible together. “Small groups provide a rich and
complex means for solving all sorts of conjunctive tasks whose outcomes depend on
members pooling their information” (Galanes & Adams, 2010).
In the future when I operate in small groups, I have specific goals to immediately
accomplish. As soon as commitments are made to a project, I want to have all
expectations and limitations openly communicated. Therefore once potential conflicts are
recognized, I would like to work with my group members and find a way to fix them as
soon as possible. In this particular example, we found ways to accommodate scheduling
conflicts within ourselves but were not in clear communication with Shuksan. Although
there were varying levels of involvement, we all contributed to the greater goal. “The
members of the group rely on each other as they strive to reach their objective; one
member cannot reach the objective alone” (Galanes & Adams, 2010).
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Works Cited
Adams & Galanes. (2012). Communicating in groups: Applications and skills (8th Ed).
McGraw Hill. ISBN: 978-0-07-353427-6