GROUP DYNAMICS

CHAPTER 3 – COMMUNICATION WITHIN GROUPS

TWO FACTORS:
1. Patterns of group communication
2. Variables that influence communication effectiveness
GROUP COMMUNICATION – pattern of interaction among members than as a specific set of skills
 A message sent by a group member to one of more receivers with the conscious intent of affecting the receivers’
behavior
 Any signal aimed at influencing the receiver’s behavior in any way is COMMUNICATION
EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION – exists among group members when the receivers interpret the sender’s message in the
same way the sender intended it
COMMUNICATION – basis for all human interaction and for all group functioning
 It is through communication that group members interact, and effective communication is prerequisite for every
aspect of group functioning.
 The complexities of group communication are reflected in its pervasiveness in all aspects of sensing other group
members
 Whenever group members see, hear, smell, or touch one another
 Pervasive in all aspects of sensing other group members
 It not a sequence of events in which a group member thinks up a message, sends it, and other group members
receive it
 The multiperson nature of group communication makes it difficult to create a theory of group communication
 Communication models portray communication between two individuals because message exchange between
two individuals is relatively orderly and meanings are fairly easy to understand
DYADIC ANALYSES – may be misleading  do not represent the complexity of group interaction
MULTIPLE RELATIONSHIPS – simultaneously be developed and managed  do not exhaust the interesting possibilities of
group communication
DYAD – communication is a two-way exchange
TRIAD – there are six lines of communication
GROUPS OF FOUR – there are twelve interactions to keep track of
SENDER – the communicator
RECEIVERS – persons at whom the message is aimed
MESSAGE – any verbal or nonverbal symbol that one person transmits to others; it is subject matter being referred to in
a symbolic way
CHANNEL – means of sending a message to another person
NOISE – any element that interferes with the communication process
 SENDER – things as his or her attitudes and frame of reference and the appropriateness of his or her language or
other expression of the message
 RECEIVER – things as attitudes, background, and experiences that affect the decoding process
 CHANNEL – environmental sounds, speech problems, and annoying or distracting mannerisms
NOTE: the success of communication is determined by the degree to which noise is overcome or controlled

THREE APPROACHES TO EXAMINING PATTERNS OF GROUP COMMUNICATION

1. Interaction Analysis
2. One-versus two-way communication
3. Communication Networks
INFLUENCES
1. Cooperative versus competitive context
2. Group norms
3. Physical barriers
4. Seating arrangements
1
 5. Humor

PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION WITHIN A SMALL GROUP

1. The ideas, feelings, and intentions of the sender and the way he or she decides to behave lead him or her to
send a message to the receivers
2. The sender encodes a message by translating ideas, feelings, and intentions into a message appropriate for
sending
3. The sender transmits the message to the receivers
4. The message is sent through a channel
5. The sender perceives any discernible response of the receivers  receiving a feedback
6. The receivers decode the message by interpreting its meaning. The receivers’ interpretation depends on how
well they understand the content of the message and the intentions of the sender
7. The receivers respond internally to this interpretation of the message

SENDING AND RECEIVING MESSAGES

FOLLOWING CRITERIA:
1. Clearly own your messages by using first-person singular pronouns
PERSONAL OWNERSHIP – involves taking responsibility for the ideas and feelings that one expresses
2. Establish your credibility
SENDER CREDIBILITY – refers to the receiver’s perception of the trustworthiness of the sender’s statements
A. Reliable as an information source
B. Motivated to tell the truth
C. Warm and friendly
D. Trustworthy
E. In possession of expertise
F. Dynamic
3. Make your messages complete and specific
4. Make your verbal and non verbal messages congruent
5. Be redundant
6. Ask for feedback concerning the way your messages are being received
7. Make the message appropriate to the receiver’s frame of reference
8. Describe your feelings by name, action, or figure of speech
9. Describe others’ behavior without evaluating or interpreting

SKILLS INVOLVED IN RECEIVING MESSAGES

1. Communicating the intention of wanting to understand the ideas and feelings of the sender without evaluation
2. Understanding and interpreting the sender’s ideas and feelings

NOTE: Evaluative receiving makes the sender defensive and cautious and thereby decreases the openness of the
communication
RECEIVING SKILLS – paraphrasing, checking one’s perception of the sender’s feelings, and negotiating for meaning

1. Restate the sender’s expressed ideas and feelings in your own words, avoid any indication of approval or
disapproval, neither add to nor subtract from the message, and indicate an understanding of the sender’s frame
of reference
2. Describe what you perceive to be the sender’s feelings
3. Negotiate the meaning of the sender’s message. State your interpretation of the message and negotiate with
the sender until there is agreement as to the message’s meaning

COMMUNICATION IN A PROBLEM-SOLVING GROUP

2
  The members have to obtain the information they need to solve the problem and then put the information
together in such a way that results in an accurate or creative solution
 Each member is responsible for communicating what s/he knows to the other members but not by that person
 Effective sending and reeiving skills are both essential for all group members
 The integration of members’ information, ideas, experiences, and opinions is an essential part of problem
solving in a group
 Three factors:
o Sending and receiving skills
o Group norms about and procedures for communicating
o Pattern of communication among group members

INTERACTION ANALYSIS
 EQUILIBRIUM THEORY (BALES) – effective groups must maintain a balance between task and socio-emotional
activity
o INTERACTION PROCESS ANALYSIS – observation system to analyze the interaction among group
members
 HOMANS – a group must balance activity in its EXTERNAL SYSTEM (which deals with achieving and adapting to
its environment) with activity in its INTERNAL SYSTEM (which deals with relations among group members and
the development of the group)
 GOURAN AND HIROKAWA – effective decision making, communication serves two functions:
o PROMOTIVE FUNCTIONS – promotive sound reasoning and critical thinking
o COUNTERACTIVE FUNCTIONS – preventing groups from making errors
 Communication among group members facilitates the pooling of information, identifying and remedying
individual errors, and making persuasive arguments
 The effectiveness of decisions tends to increase as group communication focuses on problem analysis, clear and
realistic goal setting, and critical and realistic evaluation of information and alternatives

INTERACTION AMONG GROUP MEMBERS CAN BE ANALYZED ON THREE LEVELS

1. Relative frequency and length of communication acts – who talked, how often, and for how long
2. Who communicates to whom
3. Who triggers whom in what ways

COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
 Communication within the group needs to be arranged so that ideas, knowledge, and other information may
flow freely among group members
 COMMUNICATION NETWORKS – representations of the acceptable paths of communication among members of
a group or organization
 Determines the amount and type of information a group member can expect to receive from the other
members
 DOTS – represent individual group members
 LINES – represent links in the communication network
 ALEX BAVELAS – placing group members in cubicles connected by slots in their walls, through which written
messages could be passed. When all slots are open, every group member can communicate directly every other
member
 Communication networks have been found to influence the emergence of leadership, the development of
organization, the morale of group members, and the efficiency of problem solving
 CENTRAL PHYSICAL POSITION – usually has more information and emerges as the leader of the group’s work
than members who occupy fringe positions
o DECENTRALIZED – more efficient when the task is complex and requires the analysis of information
 The morale is higher (circle, open)

3
 o CENTRALIZED – more efficient when task is simple and requires only the collection of information
 May receive more messages than they can handle
 Any extra demands that must be addressed by a member in a central position are likely to
interfere with the efficiency of the network
COMMINICATION PATTERNS IN AN AUTHORITY HIERARCHY
 AUTHORITY HIERARCHY – exists when role requirements are established in such a way that different members
perform different role, and members performing particular roles supervise the other members to make sure
they fulfill their role requirements
 A system or rewards and punishments is usually established so that a supervisor will have some power over the
persons he or she is supervising
 To facilitate the effectiveness of the group, they often undermine communication, distributed participation and
leadership, and equalization of power
 To organize itself to accomplish its goals, maintain itself in good working order, and adapt to changing world
 FORMAL NETWORK – created to coordinate members’ efforts to accomplish goals
 INFORMAL COMMUNICATION NETWORK – based on patterns of friendship and social contact among group
members
 Communication procedures may be one-way, one-way-with-feedback, or two-way
 ONE-WAY COMMUNICATION – characterized by a group chair person giving instructions to the committee
chairpersons, who pass the instructions on to the group members
o The receivers are passive, and communication effectiveness is determined by how the messages are
created and presented
o Tends to take less time than the other two procedures
o Tends to be less effective
o Tends to be less frustrating for the sender
o Tends to be unsatisfactory for the receivers
 ONE-WAY-WITH-FEEDBACK COMMINICATION – chairperson presents the message and the group members give
feedback on how well they understand it
o Group members indicate to the chairperson that they have received the message correctly
o No provision exists for mutual influence or exchange group members can provide feedback on their
understanding of the message but not on whether they agree with it
o Tends to be faster than two-way communication
o Less frustrating for the chairperson
o Less effective
o More frustrating for the group members
 TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION – reciprocal process in which each member may initiate messages and clarify
other members’ messages
o The chairperson and the other group members freely exchange ideas and information
o Feelings of resistance or doubt can be discussed and resolved at the time they are experienced so they
do not interfere with the group’s work
o Encourages open and candid member interaction, distributed participation and leadership, consensual
decision making, and other elements of group effectiveness
o Tends to be more time consuming than the one-way procedures and more effective for the whole group
in the long run
o High-authority members often hesitate to reveal vulnerabilities, a tendency that also decreases open
and effective communication among group members

INFORMAL COMMUNICATION NETWORKS AND GATEKEEPERS

 Comprehension of messages is often so poor that group members turn to the informal communication network
to clarify what has been communicated

4
  GATEKEEPER/OPINION LEADERS – person who translates and interprets messages, information, and new
developments to groupmates
o Two common types:
 INFORMATION GATEKEEPERS – receive messages from superiors and outside sources and read,
listen, and reflect on written reports and verbal messages to a greater extent than do other
group members
 TECHNOLOGICAL GATEKEEPERS – read more than in their field and consult more with outside
sources than do the other group members
o Frequently serve as translators by taking messages from superiors and rephrasing them into more
understandable forms and into the specific meanings they have for different group members
EFFECTS ON THE MESSAGE OF A ONE-WAY COMMUNICATION PROCEDURE
The more the message is passed from person to person, the more distorted and changed it tends to become
1. LEVELING – the receiver tends to reduce the amount of information he or she receives by remembering
much less of the message than was presented by the sender
a. The message tends to grow shorter and more concise to be more easily understood
2. SHARPENING – selective retaining, perceiving, and reporting of a limited number of details from a larger
context
a. The receiver sharpens certain part of the information so that a few high points are readily
remembered even as most of the message is forgotten
3. ASSIMILATION – the receiver takes much of the message into his own frame of reference and personality
a. Interpretations and memories of what was heard are affected by the receiver’s pwn thoughts and
feelings
b. Changing the unfamiliar to some known context
c. Leaving out materials that seems irrelevant and substituting material that derives meaning from the
receiver’s own frame of reference
INFLIUENCES ON EFFECTIVENESS OF GROUP COMMUNICATION
The most powerful is whether the group climate is primarily cooperative or competitive

EFFECTS OF COOPERATION AND COMPETITION ON COMMUNICATION

 COOPERATIVELY – communication tends to be more frequent, open, complete, accurate, and honest
o The effectiveness of communication is enhanced by cooperator’s long-term time orientation, focus on
both achieving goals and good working relationships with others, interest in informing as well as being
informed by others, and the frequent use of sending and receiving skills.
o Tend to perceive more accurately the intentions and actions of other group members
o Misperceptions and misunderstandings occur less frequently  easier to correct and clarify
 COMPETING – communication tends to be either lacking or deliberately misleading
o Gives rise to espionage for obtaining information other group members are unwilling to share and
tactics to delude or mislead other group members
o Typically have a short-term orientation, focus their energies on winning, tend to deny the legitimacy of
others’ needs and feelings, and consider only their own interests
o Tends to have a suspicious, hostile attitude toward one another’s requests
o The more intense the competition, the more likely it is that communication will be ineffective
o DEFENSIVE COMMUNICATION – behavior that occurs when a person feels threatened or anticipates a
threat
 Evaluation, control, superiority, certainty, and neutrality create defensive communication
 Tends to create similar defensive reactions in others
 The more defensive the communication in a group, the more likely it is that members will
perceive the motives, values, and emotions of other members and the less efficient and
effective communication tends to be
PHYSICAL INFLUENCES ON COMMUNICATION
 The groups’ environment can be a source of stress
5
  The louder the noise, the more likely it is produce distraction, irritation, and psychological stress
 The effectiveness of group communication may be enhanced if members pay attention to where they meet, the
acoustics of the meeting space, the time of the day the meeting takes place, the duration of the meeting, and
the ventilation, temperature, and lighting in the room

SEATING ARRANGEMENTS
 Creates a group ecology
 The way in which group members seat themselves in relation to one another exerts significant influences on
their perceptions of status, patterns of participation, leadership activities, and affective reactions
 Easy eye contact among members enhances frequency of interaction, friendliness, cooperativeness, and liking
for the group and its work
 The more formal a seating arrangement, the more anxious members may feel

HUMOR
 Tends to promote cohesiveness and reduce tension in groups
 More effective at relieving tension, better at encouraging member participation, and more willing to share
opinions than leaders who used superior-targeted, or subordinate-targeted disparaging humor
 It reduced tensions among surgical team members, and it provided variety when standard operating procedures
were perceived as boring to surgical team members