UNIT III - FOUNDATION OF GROUP BEHAVIOR

3.1. What is a group?

A group is defined as two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent who have come together to
achieve particular objectives.
A group is any number of people who interact with one another and are psychologically aware of one
another and perceive themselves to be a group. We must study the behavior of people in group settings if
we are to understand organizational behavior. The behavior of individuals both affects and is affected by
the group.
3.2. Types of Groups
1. Formal Groups: A designated work group defined by the organization’s structure. A formal group is
set up by the organization to carry out work in support of the organization’s goals.
Formal groups may be command groups or task groups.
Command group: A command group consists of a manager and his or her immediate subordinates.
Task group: A task group is made up of employees who work together to complete a particular
A task group’s boundaries are not limited to its immediate hierarchical superior. It can cross command
relationships.
Characteristics of Formal Groups
 Created to carry out some specific task or to meet a required goal
 Explicitly defined structure, procedural rules and membership.
 Defined roles and designated work assignments
 Specified goals and deadlines
2. Informal Groups: A group that is neither formally structured nor organizationally determined;
appears in response to the need for social contact. Many factors explain why people are attracted to
one another.
One explanation is simply proximity; when people work near one another every day, they are likely to
form friendships. That likelihood is even greater when people also share similar attitudes, personalities, or
economic status
Interest group: Those working together to attain a specific objective with which each is concerned.
Employees who band together to support a peer who has been fired, or to seek improved working
conditions represent the formation of a united body to further their common interest.
Friendship group: Those brought together because they share one or more common characteristics.
Social alliance, which frequently extend outside the work situation, can be based on similar age, support
for the same football team, or the holding of similar political views.
3.3. Why do people join groups?
Security: By joining a group, individuals can reduce the insecurity of “standing alone.” People feel
stronger, have fewer self-doubts, and are more resistant to threats when they are part of a group.
Status: Inclusion in a group that is viewed as important by others provides recognition and status for its
members.
Self-Esteem: Groups can provide people with feeling of self-worth. That is in addition to conveying
status to those outside the group, membership can also give increased feelings of worth to the group
members themselves.
Affiliation: Groups can fulfill social needs people enjoy the regular interaction that comes with group
membership. For many people, these on the job interactions are their primary source of fulfilling their
needs for affiliation.
Power: what cannot be achieved individually often becomes possible through group action. There is
power in numbers.

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Goal Achievement: There are times when it takes more than one person to accomplish a particular task __
there is a need to pool talents, knowledge, or power in order to complete a job. In such instances,
management will rely on the use of a formal group.
3.4. Stages of Group Development
The five-stage model of group development was proposed by Bruce Tuckman in 1965(initially it was a
four stage but later he added a fifth stage, adjourning, in the 1970s).
I. Forming: The first stage in group development, characterized by much uncertainty. It is
characterized by a great deal of uncertainty about the group’s purpose, structure, and leadership.
Members are “testing the waters” to determine what types of behavior are acceptable. This stage is
complete when members have begun to think of themselves as part of a group.
II. Storming: The second stage in group development characterized by intragroup conflict. Members
accept the existence of the group, but there is resistance to the constraints that the group. When
this stage is complete, there will be a relatively clear hierarchy of leadership within the group.
III. Norming: A stage characterized by close relationships and cohesiveness. There is now a strong
sense of group identity and camaraderie. This norming stage is complete when the group structure
solidifies and the group has assimilated a common set of expectations of what defines correct
member behavior.
IV. Performing: At this stage the group is fully functional. Group energy has moved from getting to
know and understand each other to performing the task at hand. For permanent work groups,
performing is the last stage in their development. However, for temporary committees, teams, task
forces, and similar groups that have a limited task to perform, there is an adjourning stage.
V. Adjourning: The final stage in group development for temporary groups, characterized by
concern with wrapping up activities rather than task performance.
- In this stage, the group prepares for its disbandment.
- High task performance is no longer the group’s top priority.
- Instead, attention is directed toward wrapping up activities.
3.5. Obstacle to team /group productivity
To begin understanding the behavior of a work group, we need to view it as a subsystem embedded in a
larger system. Therefore, the organization will impose some conditions on the group. The external
conditions are:
1. Organization Strategy: An organization’s overall strategy outlines the organization’s goals and the
means for attaining these goals. Examples of these strategies are: reducing cost, improving quality,
expanding market share or shrinking the size of its overall operations. The strategy that an
organization is pursuing will influence the power and functions of groups.
2. Authority structures: organizations have authority structures that define who reports to whom who
makes decisions, and what decisions individuals or groups are empowered to make. This structure
typically determines where a given work group is placed in the organization’s hierarchy the formal
leader of the group, and formal relationships between groups. So while a work group might be led by
someone who emerges informally from within the group, the formally designated leader-appointed by
management__ has authority that others in the group don’t have.
3. Formal Regulations: Organizations create rules, procedures, policies, job descriptions, and other
forms of regulations to standardize employee behavior. The more formal regulations that the
organization imposes on all its employees, the more the behavior of work group members will be
consistent and predictable.
4. Organizational Resources: The presence or absence of resources such as money, time, raw
materials, and equipment __which are allocated to the group by the organization __have a large bearing
on the group’s behavior.

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5. Human Resource Selection Process: Members of any work group are; first, members of the
organization of which the group is a part. So the criteria that an organization uses in its selection
process will determine the kinds of people that will be in its work groups.
6. Reward System: Since work groups are part of the larger organizational system, group member’s
behavior will be influenced by how the organization evaluates performance and what behaviors are
rewarded.
7. Organizations Culture: Every organization has an unwritten culture that defines standards of
acceptable and unacceptable behavior for employees. Members of work groups have to accept the
standards implied in the organization’s dominant culture if they are to remain in good standing.
8. Physical Work Setting: The physical setting creates both barriers and opportunities for work group
interaction. It is a lot easier for employees to talk if their work stations are close together, there are no
physical barriers between them, and their supervisor is close to them.

Group Structure
Work groups are not unorganized mobs.
They have a structure that shapes the behavior of members and makes it possible to explain and predict a
large portion of individual behavior within the group as well as the performance of the group itself. Some
of the structural variables are leadership, roles, norms, group status, group-size, composition of the group,
and the degree of group cohesiveness.
1. Formal Leadership: Almost every work group has a formal leader. This leader can play an important
part in the group’s success. The primary function of a leader (formal or informal) is to facilitate the
accomplishment of group goals. The leader constantly evaluates, directs and motivates member
behavior towards overall goals.
2. Roles: A role is a set of expected behavior patterns attributed to someone occupying a given position.
Individuals play multiple roles while adjusting their roles to the group in which they are.
Role Identity: Is certain attitudes and behavior consistent with a role. People have the ability to shift
roles rapidly when they recognize that the situation and its demands certainly require major changes.
For example, when a worker who holds a position in a workers’ union is promoted as supervisor, his
attitude will change from pro-union to pro-management.
Role Perception: Is an individual’s view of how he or she is supposed to act in a given situation.
Based on an interpretation of how we believe we are supposed to behave, we engage in certain types
of behavior.
Role Expectations: Are defined as how others believe you should act in a given situation. There is an
unwritten agreement (Psychological contract) that exists between employees and their employer. This
psychological contract sets out mutual expectations__ what management expects from workers, and
vice versa.
Role Conflict: Is a situation in which an individual is confronted by divergent role expectations. Role
conflict, like other forms of conflict, can be a major source of stress.
3. Norms: Norms are acceptable standards of behavior within a group that are shared by the group’s
members. Groups control members through the use of norms. A norm is a rule of conduct that has
been established by group members to maintain consistency in behavior. Norms tell members what
they ought to and ought not to do under certain circumstances. Norms differ among groups,
communities, and societies, but they all have norms.
Common classes of norms:

Performance norms __work groups typically provide their members with explicit cues on how hard they
should work, how to get the job done, their level of output, etc.
Appearance norms __Some organizations have formal dress codes. However, even in their absence,
norms frequently develop to dictate the kind of clothing that should be work to work.

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Conformity__ Adjusting one’s behavior to align with the norms of the group. As a member of a group, you
desire acceptance by the group. Because of your desire for acceptance, you are susceptible to conforming to
the group’s norms.
4. Status: Status is a socially defined position or rank given to groups or group members by other. High
status group members get high status roles such as group leader or expert, whereas low-status group
members get low-status roles.
5. Size: Smaller groups are faster at completing tasks than are larger ones. However, if the group is
engaged in problem solving, large groups consistently get better results than their smaller
counterparts. One of the most important findings related to the size of a group has been labeled social
loafing. Social loafing is the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively
than when working individually.
6. Composition: Most group activities require a variety of skills and knowledge. Given this
requirement, it would be reasonable to conclude that heterogeneous groups __those composed of
dissimilar individuals __would be more likely to have diverse abilities and information and should be
more effective.

When a group is heterogeneous in terms of gender, personalities, opinions, abilities, skills, and
perspectives, there is an increased probability that the group will possess the needed characteristics to
complete its tasks effectively. The group may be more conflict laden and less expedient as diverse
positions are introduced and assimilated, but the evidence generally supports the conclusion that
heterogeneous groups perform more effectively than do those that are homogeneous.
7. Cohesiveness: Group cohesiveness is the extent to which a group is committed to staying together. It
is the degree to which group members are attracted to each other and are motivated to stay in the
group. The relationship of cohesiveness and productivity depends on the performance __related norms
established by the group. If performance __related norms are high (for example, high output, quality
work, cooperation with individuals outside the group), a cohesive group will be more productive than
will a less cohesive group. But if cohesiveness is high and performance norms are low, productivity
will be low. If cohesiveness is low and performance norms are high, productivity increases but less
than in the high cohesiveness __high norms situation. Where cohesiveness and performance __related
norms are both low, productivity will tend to fall into the low -to-moderate range. These conclusions
are summarized in the following exhibit.

Cohesiveness
High Low
Performance norms

High High productivity Moderate productivity

Low productivity Moderate to Low

Low
productivity

Relationship between Group Cohesiveness, Performance Norms, and Productivity

What can a manager do to encourage group cohesiveness? The managers might try one or more of the
following suggestions:
- Make the group smaller
- Encourage agreement with group goals
- Increase the status of the group and the perceived difficulty of attaining membership in the group
- Stimulate competition with other groups
- Give rewards to the group rather than to members.

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 3.6. Using Work Teams in Organizations
A team is a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose,
common performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. A work
team generates positive synergy through coordinated effort.
Teams imply a high degree of coordination among their members, along with a shared belief that winning
(achieving team goals) is not only desirable but the very reason for the team’s existence. Any team is
therefore a group, but unfortunately, not all groups have the high degree of interdependence and commitment
to success that we associate with the concept of a team. Many organizations are restructuring work processes
around teams. The extensive use of teams creates the potential for an organization to generate greater outputs
with no increase in inputs.
Types of Teams
Based on their objectives, teams may be classified as problem-solving teams, self-managed teams, and cross-
functional teams.
1. Problem __Solving Teams: Problem-solving teams consist of groups of 5 to 12 employees from the same
department who meet for a few hours each week to discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency, and the
work environment. These members share ideas or offer suggestions on how work processes and methods
can be improved. Rarely, however, are these teams given the authority to unilaterally implement any of
their suggested actions.
2. Self __Managed Work Teams: Self-managed work teams are groups of 10 to 15 people who take on
responsibilities of their former supervisors. Typically, this includes planning and scheduling of work,
collective control over the pace of work, making operating decisions, and taking action on problems.
Fully self-managed work teams even select their own members and have the members evaluate each
other’s performance. As a result, supervisory positions take on decreased importance and may even be
eliminated.
3. Cross __Functional Teams: Cross-functional teams are employees from about the same hierarchical
level, but from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a task. Cross-functional teams are
an effective way to allow people from diverse areas within an organization (or even between
organizations) to exchange information, develop new ideas, solve problems and coordinate complex
projects problems and coordinate complex projects. These teams are not easy to manage. Their early stage
of development are often time consuming as members learn to work with diversity and complexity.
There are two types of cross-functional teams:
i. Task force is a temporary cross-functional team.
ii. Committees are groups made up of members from across departmental lines.

Reasons for Using Teams

Higher quality, productivity and profits: organizations can achieve continuous improvement thorough
team efforts.
Greater flexibility: teams can improve flexibility because team member’s broad skills and job descriptions
enable them to adapt processes quickly.
Greater responsiveness to Change: For the organization to respond fast, the employees who implement
strategies must be involved in decisions about those strategies.
Meets social needs: Team work offers a chance to meet social needs and enjoy a sense of involvement and
achievement.
Toward Creating High-Performance Teams
 Size of work teams: The best work teams tend to be small. Large numbers of people usually can’t
develop the cohesiveness, commitment, and mutual accountability necessary to achieve high
performance.
 Abilities of members: To perform effectively, a team requires people with technical expertise,
problem-solving and decision-making skills, and interpersonal skills. No team can achieve its

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 performance potential without developing all three types of skills. The right mix of the skills is
crucial. Too much of one at the expense of others will result in lower team performance.
 Allocating roles and Promoting diversity: Teams have different needs, and people should be
selected for a team on the basis of their personalities and preferences. High-performing teams
properly match people to various roles. Managers need to understand the individual strengths that
each person can bring to a team, select members with their strengths in mind, and allocate work
assignments that fit with members’ preferred styles. By matching individual preferences with team
role demands, managers increase the likelihood that the team members will work well together.
 Having a commitment to a common purpose: Effective teams have a common and meaningful
purpose that provides direction, momentum, and commitment for members.
 Establishing Specific goal: Successful teams translate their common purpose into specific,
measurable and realistic performance goals. Goals lead individuals to higher performance and also
energize teams.
 Leadership and Structure: Team members must agree on who is to do what and ensure that all
members contribute equally in sharing the workload. Additionally, the team needs to determine how
schedules will be set, what skills need to be developed, how the group will resolve conflicts, and how
the group will make and modify decisions.
 Social loafing and accountability: High-performing teams undermine the tendency to social loafing
by holding themselves accountable at both the individual and team level. Team members are clear on
what they are individually responsible for and what they are jointly responsible for.
 Appropriate performance evaluation and reward Systems: In addition to evaluating and
rewarding employees for their individual contributions, management should consider group-based
appraisals, profit sharing, small-group incentives, and other system modifications that will reinforce
team effort and commitment.
 Developing high mutual trust: High-performance teams are characterized by high mutual trust
among members. Members believe in the integrity, character and ability of each other.