Group Behavior: Group Dynamics

Group Behavior: Group Dynamics

Group: A group is two or more people having common interests, objectives and continuing interaction. Groups emphasize individual leadership, individual accountability, and individual work products.

Group dynamics (coined by Kurt Lewin to describe positive and negative forces within groups of people) is a system of behaviors and psychological processes occurring within a social group or between social groups

Psychological Intimacy is emotional and psychological closeness to other team or group members. It results in feelings of affection and warmth, unconditional positive regard, opportunity for emotional expression, openness, security and emotional support, and giving and receiving nurturance.

Integrated involvement is closeness achieved through tasks and activities. It results in enjoyable and involving activities, social identity and self-definition, being valued for one’s skills and abilities, opportunity for power and influence, conditional positive regard, and support for one’s beliefs and values.

Group Behavior:

Norms of Behavior: The standards that a work group uses to evaluate the behavior of its members are its norms of behavior. These norms may be written or unwritten, verbalized or not verbalized, implicit or explicit. Group norms of cooperative behavior within a team can lead to members working for mutual benefit, which in turn facilitate team performance. Organizational culture and corporate codes of ethics reflect behavioral norms expected within work groups.

Group Cohesion: The interpersonal glue that makes the members of a group stick together is group cohesion. This can enhance job satisfaction for members and improve organizational productivity.

Social Loafing: The failure of a group member to contribute personal time, effort, thoughts, or other resources to the group is known as social loafing. This can be countered by identifying individual contributions to the group product and member self-evaluation systems.

Loss of individuality: Loss of individuality is a social process in which individual group members lose self-awareness and its accompanying sense of accountability, inhibition, and responsibility for individual behavior.

Status structure: It is the set of authority and task relations among a group’s members. The status structure may be hierarchical or democratic.

Characteristics of a Mature Group:

•  A clear purpose and mission
• Well-understood norms and standards of conduct
• High level of group cohesion
• Flexible status structure

Group Formation and Development:

Group Development Model- Bennis and Shepard: Four stages of the group’s formation are as follows:

• Mutual acceptance
• Decision making
• Motivation and commitment
• Control and sanctions

According to this model, a group addresses three issues:

•  Interpersonal issues: Matters of trust, personal comfort, and security
•  Task issues: mission or purpose of the group, methods the group employs and the outcomes expected of the group
• Authority issues: Decisions about who is in charge, how power and influence are managed, and who has the right to tell whom to do what

Tuckman’s Group Development model: Focuses on leadership and evolution of behavior in teams

Stages	Characteristics	Leadership style
Forming	·        Unclear purpose ·        Little agreement	Guidance
Storming	·        Increased clarity of purpose ·        Power struggles and conflict	Coaching
Norming	·        Clear roles and responsibilities ·        Agreement and consensus	Facilitation
Performing	·        Clear vision and purpose ·        Focus on goal achievement	Delegation
Adjourning	·        Task completion ·        Good feelings about achievements	Recognition

Limitations:

Unrealistic - Teams experience relational conflicts at different times and different contexts

Punctuated Equilibrium Model – Connie Gersick:

Groups do not necessarily progress linearly from one step to another in a predetermined sequence but alternate between periods of inertia with little visible progress toward goal achievement punctuated by bursts of energy as work groups develop.

Theories of Group Formation:

1.   Propinquity theory (based on nearness): The theory states that individuals affiliate with one another because of spatial or geographical proximity. Individuals working together tend to form a group with others more easily as compared to with individuals working relatively at a distant place.

Limitations: The theory is not analytical and unable to explain the complex aspect of group formation.

2. Homan Interaction theory - George C.Homans (based on activities, interactions and sentiments): According to this theory” The more activities persons share, the more numerous will be their interactions and the stronger will be their share activities and sentiments and the more sentiments persons have for one another, the more will be their shared activities and interactions.”

3.   Balance theory - Theodore New Comb (based on similar attitudes): This theory states that persons are attracted with one another on the basis of similar attitudes towards commonly relevant objects and goals. Once a relationship is formed it strives to maintain a symmetrical balance between the attraction and the common attitudes.

4.    Exchange theory - Thalibaunt and Kelly (based on reward-cost outcomes of interaction between employees): This theory states that an individual will (or will not) join a group on the basis of outcomes of reward and cost.

5.   Equilibrium model – Bales: This theory is based on the premise that group members strive to maintain a balance between tasks oriented actions and emotionally expressive behaviors.