TOPIC

4.1
WORKING AND
WRITING IN TEAM
WHAT KNOWLEDGE WILL WE LEARN?
What Kinds of Communication Happen in Groups?

What Roles Do People Play in Groups?

Leadership in Groups

Characteristics of Successful Groups

 How Can Team Members Handle Conflict?

Steps in Conflict Resolution

How to Respond to Criticism?

WHAT
SKILLS WILL How Can Teams Co-Author Good Documents?

WE LEARN? Collaborative Writing

How to Understand Group Writing Process?

How to Making the Group Process Work?

 What Kinds of Communication Happen in
Groups?

Group messages fall into three categories.

Informational • Focus on content: the problem or challenge,

messages data and possible solutions
• Focus on the method and process: who will
Procedural
do what, how decisions will be made, and so
messages on.
• Focus on people, promoting friendliness,
Interpersonal messages cooperation, and group loyalty

Read: BC – Topic 4.1 – Braun – Chap20 – page 382

What Kinds of Communication Happen in Groups? (Cont.)

Groups go through various stages as they develop

Orientation

Formalization Formation

Coordination
What Kinds of Communication Happen in Groups? (Cont.)

Orientation creates Formation creates Coordination

Formalization
group leadership and creates products
creates consensus.
cohesiveness. task-roles. and deliverables.
• Goals are defined. • Roles are defined. • Work is • Members agree
• Social • Procedures are completed. on solutions.
cohesiveness is clarified. • Procedural and
fostered. interpersonal
communications
maintain trust.
• Creative conflicts
recur as debate
over alternative
solutions
happens.
What Roles Do People Play
in Groups?

People play both group maintenance

and task roles, and every role can be
positive or negative.

Positive task roles focus on getting

the job done.

Positive maintenance roles focus on

building a cohesive, solid group.
What Roles Do People Play in Groups? (cont.)

• Seeking information and opinions

• Giving information and opinions
• Summarizing
Task Behaviours • Evaluating
• Coordinating

• Listening actively
Maintenance • Encouraging participation
Behaviours • Relieving tensions
• Checking feelings
• Solving interpersonal problems
What Roles Do People Play in
Groups? (cont.)

Roles and actions that hurt

group work include:
• Blocking (disagreeing with
everything)
• Dominating
• Clowning
• Withdrawing
 Leadership in Groups

Effective groups balance three kinds of leadership:

Informational Interpersonal Procedural

leaders leaders leaders

Generate and evaluate Monitor the group’s Set the agenda

ideas and text process Ensure members know
Check people’s what is due when;
feelings ensure completion of
Resolve conflicts tasks

READ: BC – TOPIC 4.1 – BRAUN – CHAPTER 20 – PAGE 384

 Characteristics of Successful Groups

• Leaders set clear deadlines and schedule frequent meetings.

• Members communicate more often with each other and deal
directly with conflict.
• Members listen to each other, attend to criticism and make
important decisions together.
 Characteristics of Successful Groups (Cont.)

Groupthink is agreeing with the group on all issues to avoid

conflict. Doing so limits alternatives and possibilities, resulting in
inferior products or documents.

Avoid groupthink by
• Brainstorming for additional alternatives
• Testing assumptions
• Encouraging disagreement
• Protecting the right of people who choose to disagree
 How Can Team Members Handle
Conflict?

Listen actively to get at the real issue

and repair bad feelings.
Teams can reduce conflict by
• Making responsibilities and rules
clear from the start
• Framing ideas positively
• Acknowledging verbal and nonverbal
messages
• Discussing problems as they arise
• Realizing members aren’t
responsible for others’ feelings
READ: BC – TOPIC 4.1 – BRAUN – CHAPTER 20 – PAGE 386
Steps in Conflict Resolution

Follow this five-step procedure to

resolve conflicts constructively.
1. Make sure the people involved
really disagree.
2. Check to see that information
is correct.
3. Discover the needs each
person is trying to meet.
4. Search for alternatives.
5. Repair bad feelings.
 Paraphrase the verbal Check the speaker’s
content of the critic’s feelings. Ask if your
message. perception is correct.

How to
Respond to Check for inferences to
determine the “real”
Buy time with limited
agreement. Restate the

Criticism? problem.
part of the criticism that
you agree is true.

Use you-attitude . Use I-

based statements about
your own feelings and
perceptions.
 Talk about your purposes and
audiences; discuss drafts and
How Can revisions as a group.

Teams Co- Successful writing teams

Author Good • Distribute power equally
Documents? • Work to soothe hurt feelings
• Are careful to involve all
group members

READ: BC – TOPIC 4.1 – BRAUN – CHAPTER 20 – PAGE 390-392

Collaborative Writing
 Follow these steps when writing as a
group:
How to 1. Plan the work and the document.

Understand • Articulate and agree on format,

organization and deadlines
Group Writing 2. Compose the draft.

Process? • Use virtual and collaboration

technology. Have the best writers
do the draft after everyone gathers
information.
3. Revise the document.
• Once content is agreed upon, have
the best writer do the edits to
maintain a single style.
4. Edit and proofread.
• Have one member edit for
consistent style; one for format
• Have all members proofread at
least once
 How to Making the Group Process Work?

Pay Allow Take Be Be Understand

During Allow time to Take time to Be a Be aware Understand

collaborative discuss get to know responsible others have that just
writing problems and one another. group different because the
projects, pay solutions. member. ways of discussion
special expressing went
attention to themselves. smoothly it
the group does not
process. mean the
draft writing
will.

READ: BC – TOPIC 4.1 – BRAUN – CHAPTER 20 – PAGE 393