Chapter NINE

Foundations of
Group Behavior
Defining
Defining and
and Classifying
Classifying Groups
Groups
Group(s)
Two or more individuals interacting and
interdependent, who have come together to
achieve particular objectives

Formal Group Informal Group

A designated work group A group that is neither formally
defined by the structured nor organizationally
organization’s structure determined; appears in
response to the need for social
contact
The
The Five-Stage
Five-Stage Model
Model of
of Group
Group Development
Development
1) Forming Stage
The first stage in group development, characterized by
much uncertainty

2) Storming Stage
The second stage in group development, characterized
by intragroup conflict

3) Norming Stage
The third stage in group
development, characterized
by close relationships and
cohesiveness
…Group
…Group Development
Development (cont’d)
(cont’d)
4) Performing Stage
The fourth stage in group development, when the group
is fully functional

5) Adjourning Stage
The final stage in group
development for temporary
groups, characterized by
concern with wrapping up
activities rather than
performance
The
The Punctuated-Equilibrium
Punctuated-Equilibrium Model
Model
Helpful
Helpful Information
Information Regarding
Regarding E-Collaboration
E-Collaboration

Effective e-mail collaboration techniques:

 Use shorter, more frequent emails to help

performance
 Frequent emails prevent miscommunication
 Keep your emails easy to read, concise and clear
 Set deadlines in emails
 Avoid flaming but do not shy away from resolving
issues either on-line or in person (do *something*)
Group
Group Properties—Roles
Properties—Roles
Role(s)
A set of expected behavior patterns attributed to
someone occupying a given position in a social unit
Group
Group Properties—Roles
Properties—Roles (cont’d)
(cont’d)
Role Expectations
How others believe a person
should act in a given situation

Psychological Contract
An unwritten agreement that sets out
what management expects from the
employee and vice versa
Group
Group Properties—Norms
Properties—Norms
Norms
Acceptable standards of behavior within a group that
are shared by the group’s members

Classes
ClassesofofNorms
Norms
•• Performance
Performancenorms
norms
•• Appearance
Appearancenorms
norms
•• Social
Socialarrangement
arrangementnorms
norms
•• Allocation
Allocationofofresources
resourcesnorms
norms
Conformity:
Conformity: Asch
Asch Studies
Studies
Which line is the same length as “X”?
Group
Group Properties—Norms
Properties—Norms (cont’d)
(cont’d)
Deviant Workplace Behavior
Antisocial actions by organizational
members that intentionally violate
established norms and result in
negative consequences for the
organization, its members, or both

Group norms can influence the

presence of deviant behavior.
Group
Group Properties—Size
Properties—Size
Social Loafing
The tendency for individuals to expend less effort when
working collectively than when working individually

•• Odd
Oddnumber
numbergroups
groupsdodobetter
better
than
thaneven.
even.
•• Groups
Groupsof of55to
to77perform
performbetter
better
overall
overallthan
thanlarger
largeror
orsmaller
smaller
groups.
groups.
Relationship
Relationship Between
Between Group
Group Cohesiveness,
Cohesiveness,
Performance
Performance Norms,
Norms, and
and Productivity
Productivity
How
How To
To Increase
Increase Cohesiveness
Cohesiveness
Cohesiveness is the degree to which group members are
attracted to each other and are motivated to stay in the group.
How can we increase this?

•Make the group smaller.

•Encourage agreement with group goals.
•Increase time members spend together.
•Increase group status and admission difficultly.
•Stimulate competition with other groups.
•Give rewards to the group, not individuals.
•Physically isolate the group.
Group
Group Decision
Decision Making
Making
 Decision Making
– Large groups facilitate the pooling of information about
complex tasks.
– Smaller groups are better suited to coordinating and
facilitating the implementation of complex tasks.
– Simple, routine standardized tasks reduce the
requirement that group processes be effective in order
for the group to perform well.
– REMEMBER: AS A MANAGER, ASK YOURSELF
WHAT YOU WANT TO ACCOMPLISH BEFORE YOU
CREATE A GROUP
Group
Group Decision
Decision Making
Making (cont’d)
(cont’d)
 Strengths  Weaknesses
– More complete – More time consuming
information (slower)
– Increased diversity of – Increased pressure to
views conform
– Higher quality of – Domination by one or
decisions (more a few members
accuracy) – Ambiguous
– Increased acceptance responsibility
of solutions
Group
Group Decision
Decision Making
Making (cont’d)
(cont’d)
Groupthink
Phenomenon in which the norm for consensus overrides
the realistic appraisal of alternative course of action

Groupshift
A change in decision risk between the group’s decision
and the individual decision that member within the group
would make; can be either toward conservatism or greater
risk
Group
Group Decision-making
Decision-making Techniques
Techniques
Interacting Groups
Typical groups, in which the members interact with each
other face-to-face

Nominal Group Technique

A group decision-making method in which individual
members meet face-to-face to pool their judgments in a
systematic but independent fashion
Group
Group Decision-making
Decision-making Techniques
Techniques

Brainstorming
An idea-generation process that specifically encourages
any and all alternatives while withholding any criticism of
those alternatives

Electronic Meeting
A meeting in which members interact on-line, allowing
for anonymity of comments and aggregation of votes
Chapter TEN

Understanding
Work Teams
Why
Why Have
Have Teams
Teams Become
Become So
So Popular?
Popular?

 Teams typically outperform

individuals.
 Teams use employee talents
better.
 Teams are more flexible and
responsive to changes in the
environment.
 Teams facilitate employee
involvement.
 Teams are an effective way to
democratize an organization
and increase motivation.
Team
Team Versus
Versus Group:
Group: What’s
What’s the
the Difference?
Difference?
Work Group
A group that interacts primarily to
share information and to make
decisions to help each group
member perform within his or her
area of responsibility

Work Team
A group whose individual efforts
result in a performance that is
greater than the sum of the
individual inputs
Comparing
Comparing Work
Work Groups
Groups and
and Work
Work Teams
Teams
Types
Types of
of Teams
Teams
Problem-solving Teams
Groups of 5 to 12 employees from the
same department who meet to improve
quality, efficiency, and the work
environment

Self-Managed Work Teams

Groups of 10 to 15 people who take on
the responsibilities of their former
supervisors (i.e., select employees,
control operations, working with
suppliers, etc.)
Types
Types of
of Teams
Teams (cont’d)
(cont’d)
Cross-Functional Teams
Employees from about the same hierarchical level, but
from different work areas (production, accounting,
marketing, etc.), who come together to accomplish a task
Types
Types of
of Teams
Teams (cont’d)
(cont’d)

Virtual Teams
Teams that use computer
technology to tie together
physically dispersed members
in order to achieve a common
goal

Characteristics
CharacteristicsofofVirtual
VirtualTeams
Teams
1.1. The
Theabsence
absenceofofnonverbal
nonverbalcues
cues
2.2. AAlimited
limitedsocial
socialcontext
context
3.3. The
Theability
abilitytotoovercome
overcometime
timeand
andspace
spaceconstraints
constraints
AATeam-Effectiveness
Team-Effectiveness
Model
Model
Turning
Turning Individuals
Individuals into
into Team
Team Players
Players
 The Challenges
– Overcoming individual resistance to team membership
– Countering the influence of individualistic cultures
– Introducing teams in an organization that has
historically valued individual achievement
 Shaping Team Players
– Selecting employees who can fulfill their team roles
– Training employees to become team players
– Reworking the reward system to encourage
cooperative efforts while continuing to recognize
individual contributions
Beware:
Beware: Teams
Teams Aren’t
Aren’t Always
Always the
the Answer
Answer
 Three tests to see if a team fits the situation:
– Is the work complex and is there a need for different
perspectives?
– Does the work create a common purpose or set of
goals for the group that is larger than the aggregate of
the goals for individuals?
– Are members of the group involved in interdependent
tasks?