3.

COMMUNICATION IN GROUPS
deals with some aspects of communication in and between groups.
why people form and join groups and how people behave in groups.

1. What is a group?

1.1 GROUPS WE BELONG TO

—you joined from your own choice,

—you joined without a free choice,
- different sorts of groups with different sorts of purposes.
Cater for needs may be short- term (an evening party) or long-term (a club that we belong to).
- It is helpful to describe different types of groups according to tbeir functions and qualities.
- short-lived gatherings of people - more permanent gatherings.
- formal, - informal.
- small (say, five people), - are large (say, several hundred).
- local, - international.
People in a group have some interest or purpose in common which brings them together.
-individuals in a group share common interests, - some sort of struggle for power.
Relationships and patterns of communication have to be developed for the group to
function. If there is no interaction between the individuals then a group cannot be formed. A
college or school class is a collection of individuals, it rarely becomes one group, but usually
consists of several sub-groups.

Family groups

The first group which most people join.

depend on those around us for physical and emotional support.
Domestic groups, - serve to provide security and an environment in which people can
develop and grow. A vital part of this is learning how to use the languages of human
communication.

Informal friendship groups

- provide important needs of belonging.

- peer groups because the relationships of these groups are between equals.
- to be with other people we like. We are often seeking to redefine our individual identity, to -
- As we change so we change our group memberships.

Formal organized groups

These are an element of all societies.

school and college groups,
voluntary organizations such as Brownies, Cubs, Guides, Scouts, youth clubs, church
groups, sports clubs and work organizations.
These organizations have stated aims and some of these we are required to join by the state,
for instance school groups. Membership of groups helps each of us to develop his or her
individual characteristics. We also develop our relationships with other people and the society
in which we live. This process of development is often called socializatíon. This term describes
the progress of becoming an active participating member of the society into which we are
born..

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 The functions of an organized work group e.g.

1.2 THE NATURE OF GROUPS

(a) To become a group the individual members must exist in some sort of relationship together.
- communication
- cohesion in order to stay together.
(b) share common goals, purposes or interests and interact
(c) accept a system of common values or norms of behaviour.
(d) develop set roles of behaviour
(e) conformity to norms of behaviour does not mean that everyone in a group behaves in
the same way.
(f) Members of a group have an identity that may be represented through their dress and pattem
of behaviour .

2 WHY DO PEOPLE JOIN GROUPS?

(a) To achieve a shared goal or resist a common threat

On your own you may not be able to wield much influence,
the influence of the group can be greater than the separate efforts of lots of individuals.
pressure groups
For the group to perform effectively it has to achieve the group qualities that were listed
above.
at least one common interest
in its members, but there may be many more differences between the individual members which
will make their relationship and communication difficult.
- a formal structure which all are required to agree to. Aims have to be agreed.
Responsibilities have to be assigned. The group must present a united front.
- problem solving.
- less easy.

(b) To have a sense of belonging and security

- simply enjoy being part of the group.

traditional English pub
- We create our own personal identity through membership of groups.
- For each of us they can provide an important reference for what we are and how we
see ourselves.
- We are prepared to give up some individual freedoms and accept some imposed norms of
behaviour - One of the main advantages is ease of communication with like-minded members =
- We assign status to various groups

Labelling people with group identities can prevent communication happening. Stereotypes
often result from our perceptions, even if false and prejudiced perceptions, of group
memberships and identities.

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3 HOW DO PEOPLE BEHAVE IN GROUPS?

3.1 ROLES

A role is a way of behaving which is considered to be suitable for a particular situation.

- We accept to a greater or lesser extent the goals and expected behaviour pattems of
a group to which we belong.
There are often tensions between individual wishes and group pressures. Hence we join and
leave many groupings during our lifetime.
As communicators it is helpful to identify the roles we play.
- we learn how to behave in those groups.
 an orchestral concert,
 a pop concert,
 -wedding ceremony
 an open-air pop concert
- part of an audience listening to music, but -accept the role of a different sort of audience

- a role is an expected pattern of behaviour, but that each person will bring to it their
own personality, attitudes and experience. Within a broad framework of a role there is a lot of
room for individual interpretation.
For example, if we were to compare two formal committees they would both have a
chairperson and a secretary. Each of these roles is defined; however, each person that fulfils
these roles will fulfil them differently. One person may be a firm authoritarian chairperson,
whilst a second person may be content to let the committee discuss issues in an open way with
each committee member's views being equally valued.

In order to manage the many relationships which we enter into and to communicate with other
people, we have to assume some predictability of behaviour. Hence we tend to predict that
people will behave in certain ways according to categories of roles. The following list of types of
roles is one which we often consciously, or less consciously use.

Professional roles
-have certain expectations of them.
- wears a uniform to signal their role and to decrease their human individuality and personality .

Age roles
Different sorts of behaviour are considered appropriate to particular stages of your life.
- playing with a doll, when you are a young child.- A 40-year-old woman playing with a doll

Gender roles
Even though the differentiation of sexual stereotypes is rightly being challenged, there still
presently remains some expectations about appropriate behaviour for men and women.

Class roles
Again this role is changing, but in many people's perceptions, whether they are acknowledged or
not, there still remain expectations about upper-, middle- or lower-class behaviour.

- not in any way fixed and we are free to choose the way we play our roles. Although we may
not be able to change our gender and age we can change out of the expected behaviour patterns
of a 50-year-old male.

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Comment

It must be emphasized that we should seek to develop a range of communication styles and
not become stuck in one pattern of behaviour.

3.2 NORMS

- we may be prepared to accept the norms of behaviour which the group has developed.
- can be stated as formal rules - imposed quite clearly.
- can also be left unstated and informal.
e.g., at a café - people will be noisy, joking, fast-talking, interrupting each other, and that each
person will be treated on equal easy-going terms.
- at the dining table
- development of norms usually results from the processes that have formed the group into a
stable entity.
-B. W. Tuckman - Michael Argyle - four clear stages in their development:

(a) Forming - anxiety, dependence on leader (if any), members find out about the task, rules and
nature of the situation.
(b) Rebellion - conflict between individuals and sub-groups, rebellion against leader, resistance
to rules and demands of task.
(c) Norming - development of stable group structure, with social norms, conflicts are resolved,
cohesiveness develops.
- the individual members are prepared to forego some of their own personal demands in
favour of the solidarity of the group. Solidarity: order to fulfil the task
(d) Co-operation - interpersonal problems are solved, the group turns to constructive solution of
problem, energy is directed to the task.

If an outsider enters the group he or she will feel the pressure to conform to these norms.
ASH experiment lines

3.3 LEADERS

autocratic, laissez-faire, democratic and collective.

Autocratic
- one person imposes his or her will on the rest. - hostility and lack of personal commitment -\
- in groups with formally stated hierarchies, like the uniformed services, - accepted.

Laissez-faire
-no one person or sub-group takes responsibility for decisions. - little is achieved - general state
of confusion.

Democratic
no one person dominates the group. may be an 'elected' leader - rotated.

Collective
- a team of equals. Each person is assigned equal status and power. Actions and decisions require
the agreement and support of all, hence there is need for lengthy group discussion and persuasive
communication skills. 'Collectives' can be slow to decide and act, but they can create a very solid
and committed group.

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4 COMMUNICATING IN GROUPS

4.1 OBSERVING GROUP COMMUNICATION

human groups exist on two levels:

(a) the goal, task or purpose which brought the group of people together and
(b) the social, communicating processes that enable the group to work as a group.

- communication in groups, - group dynamics, in two ways: participation and interaction

4.2 PARTICIPATION AND INTERACTION PATTERNS

We can observe the participation and interaction of people in the groups. We can see who talks
most and least. We can also see who talks to whom.

Participation in a group
You can record levels of participation by drawing a circle to represent each member of the group
and placing a mark in the circle for each time the person speaks.

Interaction in a group
To record the interaction between people in the group you can draw the same circles with the
same labels and then indicate who talks to whom by linking the circles by lines with arrows
indicating the direction of speaking.
sociogram.

4.3 GROUP COMMUNICATION: TASKS, RELATIONSHIPS, INDIVIDUAL NEEDS

diagrams, -, do not really indicate what the content of these communications is.
- different method of recording the group processes is needed. We can draw up a grid
which records whether the group members are
(a) contributing to the task of the group, and/or
(b) contributing to the maintenance of the group relationships and/or
(c) only concerned with their self-centred needs.
By using headings for different sorts of communication, some of which are concerned with the
task of the group, some of which are concerned with the members of the group contributing to
the group, and some of which are more concerned with the individuals working as individuals,
we can build a picture of what each person is contributing to the actual discussion or meeting
that is being observed.
The significance of such exercises lies in the fact that these methods of observing group
communication often reveal that how we behave and communicate in groups is quite
different from how we thought we had.

4.4 BECOMING AN EFFECTIVE GROUP MEMBER

We spend our lives as members of various groups.

to become effective group members it is useful to take notice of the following points:

 What motivates people to join groups.

 The expectations of roles within groups.
 The relationships between group members.
 The skills of verbal and non-verbal communication.

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  Understanding of how groups develop from a collection of individuals to a cohesive force
with their own norms of behaviour.
 Understanding of group identities and the labelling of people according to group
memberships and roles.

4.5 COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN GROUPS

-interpersonal skills.

- certain skills relate especially to group members as people in a relationship, and

others relate to these people as problem solvers and decision makers: some are personal,
some are more practical. - a skill to be able to praise to group members for ideas or actions.
- fooling around or as casual chat. Again, the sense of group solidarity can be reinforced
by behaviour such as making jokes. If someone does this then they can help the group to relax
which will then help them to get on with their main activity.
too much joking actually becomes destructive—-a certain amount can create group
harmony. - be able to relax group members without distracting them.
One kind of behaviour which works on a personal level as well as on a practical task
level is that which shows agreement.
- someone who communicates nothing gives nothing to the group.
- to offer information and ideas to the group.
- to evaluate ideas and information offered.

groups are by definition co-operative. - invite opinions and involvement from other group
members.
- bring together ideas and opinions.
- suggest actions involving the group.
Group skills are used for the group, not for the individual. Sometimes group
members will agree to things which they actually disagree with privately, to a greater or lesser
extent. They do it for the group.