FOUNDATIONS OF
GROUP BEHAVIOR
How Groups Work
Synergy is the goal
(Things so combined that they are more
effective together than the sum of their
separate parts)
Study Questions
• What is the nature of groups in
organizations?
• The dynamics of group formation and
various types of groups
• What are the stages of group
development?
• What are the foundations of group
performance?
• How do groups make decisions?
What is the nature of
groups in organizations?
• The group is recognized as an important
sociological and social psychological unit
of analysis in the study of organizational
behavior
• Studying groups is valuable when the
dynamics are analyzed
• Group dynamics-are the interactions and
forces among group members in social
situations
What is the nature of
groups in organizations?
• Work group and teams is soaring
• First used in corporate giants such as
Toyota
• Motorola, General Mills and General
Electric
• Study and application of groups is
undergoing considerable controversy and
change
What is the nature of
groups in organizations?
• In a commentary about the status of
groups in the field of OB Alderfer noted:• Groups and Group dynamics are a little
like the weather-something that nearly
everyone talks about and only few do
anything about it
• In the world of practice –we hear leaders
speaking out to encourage team
work-support empowering
people-establish organizational cultures
that promote total quality management
• Each initiatives depends on
understanding groups and acting
effectively with them
What is the nature of
groups in organizations?
• Today’s social environment surrounding
groups is changing
• Example-There is the assumption that
Generation Xers and now called “Echo
Generations”(offspring of the now aging
“Baby Boomers”)
• Difficult to manage in groups-they have
low needs for group affiliation –high
needs for individual achievement-doing
their own thing
• Solution may be found in the careful
construction of rewards and performance
measures –to obtain cooperation and
collaboration
Meaning of a Group
• Group
– a collection of two or more people who
work with one another regularly to
achieve common goals
– In a true group
1.Members are mutually dependent on one
another to achieve common goals
2.Members interact with one another to
pursue those goals over a sustained
period of time
• Groups are important resources that are
good for both organizations and their
members
• Help accomplish important tasks
• Help maintain a high-quality workforce by
satisfying needs of their members
Meaning of a Group and
Group Dynamics
• The term group can be defined in a
number of different ways-depends on the
perspective that is taken
• A comprehensive definition would say
that if a group exists in an organization its
members
• Are motivated to join
• Perceiving the group as a unified unit of
interacting people
• Contribute in various amounts to the
group processes(some people contribute
•
more time or energy to the group than do
others)
Reach agreements and have
disagreements through various forms of
interaction
Meaning of a Group and
Group Dynamics
• No one definition of the term group
• No universal agreement on what is meant
by group dynamics
• Kurt Lewin father of group dynamics
popularized the term in the 1030’s
• One normative view is that the group
dynamics describes how a group should
be organized and conducted
• Democratic leadership
• member participation
• and overall cooperation are stressed
Meaning of a Group and
Group Dynamics
• Another view of group dynamics is that it
consists of a set of techniques
- Here Role playing
 Brainstorming
 Focus groups
 Leaderless groups
 Group therapy
 Sensitivity training
 Team building
 Transactional analysis
 Johari Window are traditionally equated
with group dynamics -as are the more
modern self managed and virtual teams
Meaning of a Group and
Group Dynamics
• A recent example of a new group
technique is called “creative abrasion”
• Search for a clash of ideas rather than
“personal abrasion” or the clash of people
• Goal is to develop creativity
What is the nature of
groups in organizations?
What is an effective Group
• Scholar Harlod J.Leavitt well known
advocate for the power and
usefulness of groups
• Describes effective groups as
power groups
• They thrive in conditions of crises
and competition and whose
competition and whose creativity
and innovativeness generates
extraordinary returns
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Effective group
– one that achieves high levels of
task performance, member
satisfaction, and team viability
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Effective groups achieve high
levels of:
– Task performance
• Members attain performance goals
regarding quantity, quality, and
timeliness of work results
– Members satisfaction
• Members believe that their
participation and experiences are
positive and meet important
personal needs
– Team viability
• Members are sufficiently satisfied to
continue working together on an
ongoing basis
Synergy is the goal
Synergy and Group accomplishment
• When groups are effective they help
organizations accomplish important tasks
-particularly they offer the potential for
synergy
• Synergy Is the creation of a whole that is
greater than the sum of its parts
– When synergy occurs groups
accomplish more than the total of their
members individual capabilities
– Group synergy is necessary for
organizations to become competitive
and achieve long –term high
performance in today’s dynamic times
The Effective
Manager
• How groups can help
organizations
 Groups are good for people
 Groups can improve creativity
 Groups can make better decisions
 Groups can increase commitments to action
 Groups help control their members
 Groups help offset large organization size
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• 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
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Potential benefits for group
members
– People learn from each other and
share job skills and knowledge
– The learning environment and
the pool of experience within a
group can be used to solve
difficult and unique problems
– Helpful to new comers
– Groups are important sources of
need satisfaction for their
members
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
- Group members support and
help each other in acquiring
and improving job
competencies-may make up for
the deficiencies in
organizational training systems
Why People Join
Groups
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Groups can also have problem
• Social loafing-Ringlemann
effect
– The tendency of people to work
less hard in a group than they
would individually.
– Reasons for social loafing
• Individual contributions are less
noticeable in the group context
• Some prefer to see others carry the
workload
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Ways of preventing social
loafing
– Define roles and tasks to
maximize individual interests
– Raise accountability by making
individuals’ performance
expectations clear and
identifiable
– Tie individual rewards to
performance contributions to the
group
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Social facilitation is an
important aspect of group
work
– The tendency for a person’s
behavior to be influenced by the
presence of others
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Social facilitation theory
– indicates that working in the
presence of others creates an
emotional arousal or excitement
that stimulates behavior and
therefore affects performance
– World class athlete in front of an
enthusiastic hometown crowd
– Social facilitation can be negative
when task is not well learned
–public speaking-trying to talk
about an unfamiliar topic
Classifying Groups
Classifying Groups
Formal groups
Formal groups can be permanent or
temporary
• Permanent work groups or command
groups in the vertical structure often
appears in the organization chart as
departments( market research dept)
-division (consumer product division)
-or teams (product assembly teams)
• Vary in size
• They are formed to perform specific
function on an ongoing basis-continue till
some decision to change or reconfigure
the organization
Formal groups
Temporary work groups are task groups
specifically created to solve a problem or
perform a defined task
-They disband once the assigned purpose
or task is accomplished
-Committees
-Organizations make use of cross
functional teams and task forces for
special problem solving efforts
• Task force to examine possibility of
implementing flexible work hours for non
managerial position
• Project team –specific task like (new
email system-cross functional)
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Types of formal groups
– Cross-functional teams or task
forces
• Engage in special problem-solving
efforts drawing on input of the
functional areas
– Project teams
• Formed to complete a specific task
with a well-defined end point
– Virtual group
• Members work together via
computers
What is the nature of
groups in
organizations?
• Informal groups
– Emerge without being officially
designated by the organization
– Types of informal groups
• Friendship groups
• Interest groups
Dynamics of Group
formation
Dynamics of Group formation
• Why do individuals form into
groups?
• Lets discuss social psychology
theories of group formation
• Why people affiliate with one
another
• Basic theory of affiliation is
“propinquity”
• Affiliation is because of Spatial and
geographical proximity
Dynamics of Group
formation
• The drawback of propinquity theory
is that it is not analytical and does
not begin to explain some of the
complexities of group formation and
modern development of
globalization and electronic –online
networking and telecommuting
- virtual teams that are linked in
cyberspace rather than physical
proximity
- Give new meaning to spatial or
geographic proximity
Dynamics of Group
formation
Theories of group formation
• More comprehensive theory of
group formation is the Classic
theory of George Homans based on
•
Activities-Interactions and
Sentiments
• The major element is interaction
• Persons in a group interact with one
another not just in the physical
propinquity sense or increasingly
electronically
• But to accomplish many group
goals through cooperation and
problem solving
Dynamics of Group
formation
• Theodore Newcomb’s classic
balance theory of group formation
• Similar attitudes and common
relevant objectives and Goals
Dynamics of Group
formation
•
•
•
•
•
Another Theoretical approach to
Group formation from Social
psychological theory
Exchange theory similar to its
functioning as a work –motivation
theory
Based on reward –cost outcomes of
interaction
Rewards from interactions gratify
needs
Costs incur anxiety
–frustration-embarrassment-fatigue
Propinquity-interaction –common
attitudes all have roles in exchange
theory
Dynamics of Group
formation
• Dr Bruce Tuckman published his Forming
Storming Norming Performing model in
1965. He added a fifth stage, Adjourning,
in the 1970s.
•
The Forming Storming Norming
Performing theory is an elegant and
helpful explanation of team development
and behaviour.
• Similarities can be seen with other
models, such as with Hersey and
Blanchard's Situational Leadership®
model, The Tannenbaum and Schmidt
Continuum model developed about the
same time.
•
Dynamics of Group
formation
• Tuckman's model explains that as the
team develops maturity and ability,
relationships establish, and the leader
changes leadership style.
•
Beginning with a directing style, moving
through coaching, then participating,
finishing delegating and almost detached.
At this point the team may produce a
successor leader and the previous leader
can move on to develop a new team.
Five stages of group
development
The Four Leadership
Styles
What are the stages of
group development?
• Forming stage
– Initial entry of members to a
group
– Member challenges
• Getting to know each other
• Discovering what is considered
acceptable behavior
• Determining the group’s real task
• Defining group rules
Forming stage
• High dependence on leader for guidance
and direction.
• Little agreement on team aims other than
received from leader.
• Individual roles and responsibilities are
unclear.
• Leader must be prepared to answer lots
of questions about the team's purpose,
objectives and external relationships.
Processes are often ignored. Members
test tolerance of system and leader.
Leader directs (similar to Situational
Leadership® 'Telling' mode).
What are the stages of
group development?
• Storming stage
– A period of high emotionality and
tension among group members
– Member challenges
• Hostility and infighting
• Formation of coalitions and cliques
• Clarification of members’
expectations
Storming
• Decisions don't come easily within group.
• Team members vie for position as they
attempt to establish themselves in relation
to other team members and the leader,
who might receive challenges from team
members.
• Clarity of purpose increases but plenty of
uncertainties persist. Cliques and factions
form and there may be power struggles.
• The team needs to be focused on its
goals to avoid becoming distracted by
relationships and emotional issues.
Compromises may be required to enable
progress. Leader coaches (similar to
Situational Leadership® 'Selling' mode).
What are the stages of
group development?
• Norming stage
– Sometimes called initial
integration
– The point at which the group
really begins to come together as
a coordinated unit
Norming
• Agreement and consensus is largely
forms among team, who respond well to
facilitation by leader.
• Roles and responsibilities are clear and
accepted.
• Big decisions are made by group
agreement. Smaller decisions may be
delegated to individuals or small teams
within group.
• Commitment and unity is strong. The
team may engage in fun and social
activities.
• The team discusses and develops its
processes and working style. There is
general respect for the leader and some
of leadership is more shared by the team.
Leader facilitates and enables (similar to
the Situational Leadership® 'Participating'
mode).
What are the stages of
group development?
• Performing stage
– Marks the emergence of a
mature, organized, and
well-functioning group
– Structure is stable
– Members are motivated by group
goals
Performing
• The team is more strategically aware; the team
knows clearly why it is doing what it is doing.
• The team has a shared vision and is able to stand
on its own feet with no interference or participation
from the leader. There is a focus on
over-achieving goals, and the team makes most of
the decisions against criteria agreed with the
leader.
• The team has a high degree of autonomy.
Disagreements occur but now they are resolved
within the team positively and necessary changes
to processes and structure are made by the team.
• The team is able to work towards achieving the
goal, and also to attend to relationship, style and
process issues along the way. team members look
after each other. The team requires delegated
tasks and projects from the leader. The team does
not need to be instructed or assisted. Team
members might ask for assistance from the leader
with personal and interpersonal development.
Leader delegates and oversees (similar to the
Situational Leadership® 'Delegating' mode).
Ten criteria for measuring the
maturity of a group
What are the stages of
group development?
• Adjourning stage
– A well-integrated group is:
• Able to disband when its work is
finished
• Willing to work together in the future
– Particularly important for
temporary groups
What are the stages of
group development?
• Tuckman's fifth stage, Adjourning, is the break-up
of the group, hopefully when the task is completed
successfully, its purpose fulfilled; everyone can
move on to new things, feeling good about what's
been achieved.
• From an organizational perspective, recognition of
and sensitivity to people's vulnerabilities in
Tuckman's fifth stage is helpful, particularly if
members of the group have been closely bonded
and feel a sense of insecurity or threat from this
change.
• Feelings of insecurity would be natural for people
with high 'steadiness' attributes (as regards the
'four temperaments' or DISC model) and with
strong routine and empathy style (as regards
the Benziger thinking styles model, right and left
basal brain dominance).
Johari window
• Known by self
unknown by self
known
To others
Ask
Unknown
By others
What are the stages of
group development?
• Tannenbaum and Schmidt
Continuum
• The Tannenbaum and Schmidt
Continuum management style tends to
offer more freedom as the group matures.
•
As the team matures and becomes more
self-suffient and self-directing, so the
manager's style should react accordingly,
ideally becoming more detached, more
delegating, encouraging and enabling the
group to run itself, and for a successor (or
if you are a good manager or a lucky one,
for more than one successor) to emerge.
An Alternative Model:
Temporary Groups
with Deadlines
The
Punctuated-Equilibri
um Model
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• To understand the foundations
of group performance let us
understand the open systems
model
• Help us understand how
groups like organizations
pursue effectiveness by
interacting with their
environments to transform
resource inputs into product
output
Open System Model
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• Tasks
– Technical demands of a task
includes:– Routineness, difficulty, and
information requirements
– Social demands of a task
• Relations, ego involvement, and
controversies over ends and means
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• Goals, rewards, and
resources
– Long-term performance relies on:
• Appropriate goals
• Well-designed reward systems
• Adequate resources
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• Technology
– Provides the means to get work
accomplished
– The right technology must be
available for the task at hand
– Workflow technology can affect
the way group members interact
- e.g to be a part of a group that
crafts products to specific
customer request(cross
functional )
- To be a part of a group whose
members staff one section of a
machine paced assembly line
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• Membership characteristics
– A group must have the right skills
and competencies available for
task performance and problem
solving
– In homogeneous groups,
members are very similar to one
another
– In heterogeneous groups,
members vary in age, gender,
race, and ethnicity
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• Diversity-consensus
dilemma
– The tendency for increasing
diversity among group members
to make it harder for group
members to work together, even
though the diversity itself
expands the skills and
perspectives available for
problem solving.
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• The blend of personalities is also
important in a group
• FIRO-B theory
– Identifies individual differences in how
people relate to one another in groups
– Based on needs to express and
receive feelings of inclusion, control,
and affection
– Developed by William Schutz
– Group Members who have compatible
needs are effective –than incompatible
needs
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• Symptoms of incompatibilities in a group
include withdrawn members ,open
hostilities, struggle over control and
domination of the group by a few
members
• Schutz states the management
implications of FIRO –B theory this way:
- “If at the outset we can choose a group of
people who can work together
harmoniously, we shall go far toward
avoiding situations where a group’s
efforts are wasted in interpersonal
conflicts”
What are the foundations
of group performance?
Another source of diversity within group
membership is Status
– A person’s relative rank, prestige, or
standing in a group
– Status is based on age, work
seniority, education,
– occupation, performance ,standing in
other groups
• Status congruence
– Involves consistency between a
persons status within and outside of a
group(High power distance
cultures-Malaysia –chair of a
committee expected to be highest
ranking member of the group)
– When status incongruence is present,
problems will likely occur( a young
member heads the group)
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• Group size
– Can make a difference in a
group’s effectiveness
– As group size increases,
performance and member
satisfaction increase up to a point
– Problem-solving groups should
have 5 to 7 members
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• Group and intergroup
Dynamics
• Effectiveness of a group depends
on how well members work together
to utilize inputs –to produce desired
outputs
• When we speak – people “working
together” in groups-dealing with
group dynamics(forces operating in
groups that affect the way members
relate to and work with one another)
• Open system model group
dynamics are the processes
through which inputs are
transformed into outputs
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
What goes on within Groups
• Workgroup behaviors
• George Homans classic model of group
involves two sets of behaviors
– Required behaviors — those that are
formally defined and expected by the
organization-punctuality, respect for
customers, assistance for co-workers
– Emergent behaviors — those that
group members display in addition to
what the organization asks of
them(email message sent to a absent
group member to keep her informed
about what happened in the meeting)
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
Member relationships(Homans model
of group dynamics)
• Activities
– the things people do or the
actions they take
• Interactions
– interpersonal communications
and contacts
• Sentiments
– the feelings, attitudes, beliefs, or
values held by group members
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
• What goes on between
groups
• Intergroup dynamics
– The dynamics that take place
between two or more groups
– Competition
– Intergroup problems(sales and
manufacturing don’t get
along)Negative
What are the
foundations of group
performance?
Ways to achieve positive
intergroup dynamics
• Refocusing members on a common
enemy or goal
• Negotiating directly
• Training members to work more
cooperatively
• Refocusing rewards on
contributions to the total
organization and how much groups
help each other
Interaction pattern and
communication network in
groups
How do groups make
decisions?
• Decision by lack of
response
– One idea after another is
suggested without any
discussion-taking place
• Decision by authority rule
– The chairperson, manager, or
leader makes a decision for the
group
• Decision by minority rule
– Two or three people are able to
dominate or “railroad” the group
into making a decision to which
they agree
How do groups make
decisions?
• Decision by majority rule
– Formal voting may take place, or
members may be polled to find
the majority viewpoint
• Decision by consensus
– Discussion leads to one
alternative being favored by most
members and the other members
agree to support it
• Decision by unanimity
– All group members agree totally
on the course of action to be
taken
How do groups make
decisions?
Assets and Liabilities of Group Decision
making
• Potential advantages of group
decision making
• Information-More knowledge and
expertise is applied to solve the
problem
• Alternatives-A greater number of
alternatives are examined
• Understanding and acceptance-The
final decision is better understood and
accepted by all group members
• Commitment-More commitment
among all group members to make the
final decision work
How do groups make
decisions?
• Potential disadvantages of group
decision making
• Social pressure to conform-Individuals
may feel compelled to conform to the
apparent wishes of the group
• Minority domination-The group’s
decision may be dominated by one
individual or a small coalition
• Time delays-Group decisions usually
take longer to make
How do groups make
decisions?
• An Important potential problem when
groups make decisions was identified by
social psychologist Irving Janis and called
Groupthink
– the tendency of members in highly
cohesive groups to lose their critical
evaluative capabilities
– Members unwilling to criticize one
another’s ideas and suggestions
– Avoid unpleasant disagreement
– The possible result is poor decision
• Group leaders and members should be
alert to the symptoms and take
necessary action to prevent
occurrence
Group Decision
Making (cont’d)
How do groups make
decisions?
• Ways to avoid groupthink
– Assign the role of critical
evaluator to each group member
– Have the leader avoid seeming
partial to one course of action
– Create subgroups that each work
on the same problem
– Have group members discuss
issues with outsiders and report
back
How do groups make
decisions?
• Ways to avoid groupthink
– Invite outside experts to observe
and react to group processes
– Assign someone to be a “devil’s
advocate” at each meeting
– Write alternative scenarios for
the intentions of competing
groups
– Hold “second-chance” meetings
after consensus is apparently
achieved
How do groups make
decisions?
How to improve Group Decisions
• Brainstorming
– Group members actively generate as
many ideas and alternatives as
possible
•
•
•
•
– Four rules govern the brainstorming
process
All criticism is ruled out(judge and
evaluate idea)
“Freewheeling” is welcomed(emphasis on
creativity and imagination)Wilder and
more radical the idea -the better
Quantity is wanted(number of ideas)
“Piggy-backing” is welcomed(Every one is
encouraged to suggest-others ideas
turned to new ideas-two or more ideas
joined into still another new idea)
How do groups make
decisions?
• Nominal group technique
– Puts people in small groups of six to
seven members and asks everyone to
respond individually and in writing to a
“nominal” question (What should be
done to improve the effectiveness of
this work team ?)
– List alternative ideas
– Read aloud in Round Robin fashion
Clarify-no evaluation-structured voting
procedure to prioritize responses
This procedure allows ideas to be
evaluated without risking the
inhibitions-hostilities and distortion
which may occur in a open meeting
How do groups make
decisions?
• Delphi technique
– Involves generating
decision-making alternatives
through a series of survey
questionnaires
• Computer-mediated decision
making
– Group decision making takes
place across great distances with
the aid of group decision support
systems