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Communicating in Groups and Teams (The Nature of Group and Teams (What…
Communicating in Groups and Teams
The Nature of Group and Teams
What is a Group?
a group consists of a small collection of people who interact with one another, usually face-to-face, over time in order to reach goals.
Interdependence: In groups, people don't just interact: Group members are interdependent.8 By contrast, when people don't need one another, they are a collection of individuals and not a group. The behavior of one person affects all the others in what can be called a "ripple effect."
Time: A collection of people who interact for a short while doesn't qualify as a group. [A stirring example of this phenomenon occurred on September 11, 2001, when a group of passengers on United Airlines flight 93 banded together in a matter of minutes to thwart the efforts of hijackers who were attempting to crash the plane into a Washington, DC, landmark.]
Size: Our definition of groups includes the word small. Most experts in the field set the lower limit ofgroup size at three members. [For example, the only ways two people can resolve a conflict are to change each other's minds, give in, or compromise.]
Interaction: Without interaction, a collection of people isn't a group. [For example, the onlookers at a fire. Though they all occupy the same area at a given time, they have virtually nothing to do with one another. Of course, if they should begin interacting- working together to give first aid to or rescue victims, for example- the situation would change.]
What makes a Group a Team?
Unified commitment.
Collaborative climate.
Competent team members.
Standards of excellence.
A results-driven structure.
External support and recognition.
Clear and inspiring shared goals.
Principled leadership.
Despite these virtues, not all groups need to function as teams.
Virtual Groups
People who interact with one another via mediated channels, without meeting face-to-face. Virtual communication has clear advantages. Most obviously, a virtual team can meet even if the members are widely separated.
Goals of Groups and Their Members
Group Goals
The outcomes you seek to accomplish together. A working group will probably be more productive when members enjoy one another's company. [Ex. Most groups exist to achieve a collective task:win a contest, create a product, provide a service, and so on.]
Individual Goals
The personal motives of each member. [For example, your primary motive for joining a class study group would probably be to master the course material, and you'd volunteer to help in a local health clinic to make a difference in your community.]
Hidden Agenda: Individual goals that group members are unwilling to reveal.
Social Loafing: The tendency of some people to do less work as group members than they would as individuals.
Characteristics of Groups and Teams
Rules and Norms
Social norms: Group norms that govern the way members relate to one another. (e.g., what kinds of humor are/aren't appropriate, how much socializing is acceptable on the job).
Procedural norms: Norms that describe rules for the group's operation. (e.g., "We always start on time" or "When there's a disagreement, we try to reach consensus before forcing a vote")
Norms: Shared values, beliefs, behaviors, and procedures that govern a group's operation.
Task Norms: Group norms that govern the way members handle the job at hand. (e.g., "Does the job have to be done perfectly, or is an adequate, if imperfect, solution good enough?").
Rule: An explicit, officially stated guideline that governs group functions and member behavior.
Patterns of Interaction
Wheel network: A communication network in which a gatekeeper regulates the flow of information from all other members.
Gatekeeper: person in a small group through whom communication among other members flows.
All-channel network: A communication network pattern in which group members are frequently together and share all information with one another.
Sociogram: A graphic representation of the interaction patterns in a group.
Roles
The patterns of behavior expected of group members.
Formal Roles: A role assigned to a person by group members or an organization, usually to establish order. Formal roles usually come with a label, such as assistant coach, treasurer, or customer service representative.
Informal Roles: A role usually not explicitly recognized by a group that describes functions of group members, rather than their positions. These are sometimes called ufunctional roles."
Task Roles: Roles group members take on in order to help solve a problem.
Social Roles: Emotional roles concerned with maintaining smooth personal relationships among group members. Also termed umaintenance functions.
Dysfunctional Roles: Individual roles played by group members that inhibit the group's effective operation.
You can overcome the potential role-related problems by following these guidelines:
Make sure unfilled roles are filled.
Avoid role fixation.
Look for unfilled roles.
Avoid dysfunctional roles.
Leadership and Communication
Understanding Leadership
Balancing task and relational goals: The leadership Grid
Leadership Grid: Explain how leaders manage this balance. The horizontal axis measures a leader's concern for production. The vertical axis measures a leader's concern for people's feelings and ideas.
Authority Obedience (9,1): Efficiency in operations results from arranging conditions of work in such a way that human elements interfere to a minimum degree.
Middle-of-the-Road Management (5,5): Adequate organization performance is possible through balancing the necessity to be productive with maintaining morale of people at a satisfactory level.
Country Club Management (1,9): Thoughtful attention to the needs of people for satisfying relationships leads to a comfortable, friendly organization atmosphere and work tempo.
Team Management (9,9): Work accomplishment is from committed people; interdependence through a "common stake" in organization purpose leads to relationships of trust and respect.
Improverished Management (1,1): Exertion of minimum effort to get required work done is appropriate to sustain organization membership.
Dimensions of leadership
People tend to look for qualities that is under that certain person's control such as passion, insight and honesty, rather than innate characteristics such as intelligence, extraversion, attractiveness, and so on.
Transformational Leaders
Defined by their devotion to help a team fulfill an important mission.
Leadership Styles
Authoritarian leadership: A style in which the designated leader uses coercive and reward power to dictate the group's actions.
Democratic leadership: A style in which the leader invites the group's participation in decision making.
Laissez-faire leadership: A style in which the designated leader gives up his or her formal role, transforming
the group into a loose collection of individuals.
Servant leadership: A style based on the idea that a leader's job is mostly to recruit outstanding team members and provide the support they need to do a good job.
Situational Approach
Situational leadership: A theory that argues that the most effective leadership style varies according to leader-member relations, the nominal leader's power, and the task structure.
Trait Theories
Trait theories of leadership: A school of thought based on the beliefthat some people are born to be leaders and others are not.
Becoming a Leader
Emergent leaders: A member who assumes leadership roles without being appointed by higher-ups.
During this phase, the following kinds of behavior boost the odds of emerging as the formal or informal leader:
Demonstrated competence.
Assertion, not aggression.
Frequent participation.
Support of other members.
Provide a solution in a time of crisis.
Followership and Communication
Types of Followers
Participants: Participants attempt to have an impact. Some participants support leaders' efforts, whereas others work in opposition.
Activists: Activists are more energetically and passionately engaged than participants. They, too, may act either in accordance with, or in opposition to, leaders' efforts.
Bystanders: Bystanders are aware ofwhat's going on around them, but they tend to hang back and watch rather than play an active role.
Diehards: Diehards will, sometimes literally, sacrifice themselves for the cause.
Isolates :Isolates are indifferent to the overall goals ofthe organization and communicate very little with people outside their immediate environment.
The Power of Followers
Power: The ability to influence others' thoughts and/or actions.
Legitimate power: The ability to influence a group owing to one's position in a group.
Nominal leader: The person who
is identified by title as the leader of a group.
Expert Power: The ability to influence others by virtue of one's perceived expertise on the subject in question.
Connection Power: The influence granted by virtue of a member's ability to develop relationships that help the group reach its goal.
Reward: The ability to influence others by the granting or promising of desirable consequences.
Coercive Power: The power to influence others by the threat or imposition of unpleasant consequences.
Referent power: The ability to influence others by virtue of the degree to which one is liked or respected.
Power is distributed among group members.
Power isn't an either-or concept.
Power is group centered.
Extra Question
What bothered or intrigued you?
This chapter made me more aware regarding the importance of communicating in groups and teams and how that there are a lot of things to think of and consider .
What confused you or made you want to find out more?
There were no things that confuses me but I do would like to learn more about communicating in groups and teams, especially the leadership grid.
What surprised you in the readings?
In the reading I was surprised with how important of communicating in groups and teams. I learned a lot of views and interesting facts regarding this form of communication.