Foundation of Group Behavior

Understanding the nature and

types of groups, Recognize the
assets and liabilities of groups
 Group: Concept & types

Group means there are

1.Two or more individuals
2.Interacting & interdependent
3.Come together to achieve particular
objectives.
 Group

Formal Informal

Command Interest

Task Friendship
Formal Group: A designated work
group defined by the organisation’s
structure.
Informal Group: A group that is
neither formally structured nor
organizationally determined; appears
in response to the need for social
contact. Membership in such groups id
voluntary.
Command group: A group composed
of the individuals who report directly
to a given manager.
Task group: represents those who
work together to complete a job task.
“ All command groups are task
groups but all task groups need not
be command groups as task groups
can cut across the organization.”
Interest group : A group of employees
who come together to satisfy a
common interest ;like improving
working conditions, protesting
company’s environmental policies, or
adjusting vacation schedules.
Friendship group
 Why people join groups
To satisfy mutual interests
To achieve security
To fill social needs
To fill need for self esteem.
 Five stage model of group
formation Stage V
Group
Stage IV Adjourning
Performing may
Stage III Group disband
Stage II Norming
Members members either
Stage I Storming
Members Work work after
come to
Forming
Members Resist
Together towards meeting
get to know Control by developing Getting their goals
group
each other & Leaders & Close their jobs or because
set ground Show Relationships done members
rules hostility & feelings of Leave
Cohesiveness
 Punctuated Equilibrium Model
Its is an alternative model for
temporary groups with deadlines’ as
they generally don’t follow the Five
Stage Model.
It claims that groups generally plan
their activities during the first half of
their time and then revise and
implement their plans in the second
half.
 Punctuated Equilibrium Model
High

Completi
on
Phase 2

First
Meeting Transitio
Phase n
A 1 (A+B)/ B
2
(Lo
w)
During the first half or Phase 1, groups
define their tasks, setting a mission
that is unlikely to change until the
second half of the group’s life.
Once groups reach the midpoint of
their life they experience a sort of
“middle life crisis” and recognize they
must change how they operate if they
are going to meet their goals.
This begins phase 2 of their existence,
which is the time when group drops
old way of thinking and adopt new
perspectives.
Groups then carry out their mission
until they reach the end of phase two
when they show bursts of activity
needed to complete their task.
 Dynamics of group formation
Theodore Newcomb’s classic balance theory of
group formation
–Identifiable stages of group development:
Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing
Adjourning

–Practicalities of group formation

Punctuated equilibrium model
 Types of groups

–Primary groups
Small groups and self-managed teams
–Coalitions
–Other types of groups
Memberships and reference groups
In-groups and out-groups
 Implications from research on
group dynamics

–Groups expert Richard Hackman says that

leadership plays an important role in group
performance
–Conditions a leader can control include:
Setting a compelling direction for the group’s work
Designing and enabling group structure
Ensuring that the group operates within a
supportive context
Providing expert coaching
Group Cohesiveness
 The Structural dynamics of work
Groups

The pattern of interrelationships

between the individuals constituting a
group; the guidelines of group
behavior that make group functioning
both orderly and predictable.
 Four different aspects of group
structure are :
Roles: various parts played by group
members. “The Hats We Wear”
Norms: rules & expectations within group.
“Group's Unspoken Rules”
Status: rank given to groups by others.
“prestige of group membership”
Cohesiveness: members sense of
responsibility. “getting the team spirit”
 Roles
The typical behavior characterizing a
person in a specific social context.
A set of expected behavior patterns
attributed to someone occupying a
given position in a social unit.
Role incumbent: A person holding a
particular job.
Role expectations: How others believe
a person should act in a given
situation.
Role Identity: Certain attitude and behavior
consistent with a role.
Role Ambiguity: The confusion arising from
not knowing what one is expected to do as
the holder of a role.
Psychological Contract: An unwritten
agreement that sets out what mgmt expects
from the employee and vice versa.
Role differentiation: The tendency for various
specialized roles to emerge as groups
develop.
Role conflict: When an individual finds that
compliance with one role requirement may
make it more difficult to comply with another.
Task oriented Relations Self oriented
roles oriented roles roles
Initiator: Harmonizers: Blockers:
Contributors Mediate group Act stubborn and
Recommend new conflicts resistant to the
solutions to group
problems.
group.

Information Compromisers: Recognition

Seekers: Shift own opinions to seekers:
Attempt to obtain the create group harmony. Call attention to their
necessary facts. own achievements.

Opinion Givers: Encourages: Dominators:

Share own opinions Praise & encourage Assert authority by
with others others manipulating the group

Energizers: Expediters: Avoiders:

Stimulate the group Suggest ways the Maintain distance,
into action whenever group can operate isolate themselves from
more smoothly. fellow group members.
interested
 Norms
Norms are acceptable standards of
behavior within a group that are
shared by the group’s members.
Norms are generally–on informal rules
that guide the behavior of group
members.
Norms differ among groups,
communities and societies, but they all
have them.
 Types of norms
Prescriptive Norms: Expectations
within group regarding what is
supposed to be done.
Proscriptive Norms: Expectations
within group regarding behaviors in
which members are not supposed to
engage.
 Common classes of Norms
Though norms in each group are
unique yet there are some common
classes.
1. Performance Norms
2. Appearance Norms
3. Arrangement Norms
4. Allocation of Resources Norms
How Norms are Formed

Explicit statements by supervisors or

coworkers
Critical events in the group’s history
Primacy
Carryout behaviors from past situations
 Reference groups
Are important groups to which
individuals belong or hope to belong &
with whose norms individuals are likely
to perform.
 Conformity
Group member’s desire for acceptance
motivate them to conform to the
group norms.
Conformity to norms is powerful force
in groups.
GROUP THINK: The phenomena in
which groups place strong pressures
on individual members to change their
attitudes & behaviors to conform to
the group standards.
Symptoms of groupthink
 Deviant workplace Behavior
This term covers a wide range of
antisocial actions by organizational
members that intentionally violate
established norms and that result in
negative consequences for the
organizations its members or both.
 Status
It’s a socially defined position or rank
given to groups or group members by
others .
As per status characteristics theory
differences in status characteristics
create status hierarchies within group.
 Size
Smaller groups are faster at
completing tasks than larger but large
groups are better in problem solving
than smaller.
Social loafing: The tendency of
individuals to expend less efforts when
working collectively than when
working individually.
 Cohesiveness
It is the degree to which members are attracted to
each other and are motivated to stay in the group.
To encourage group cohesiveness-
1.Make small groups.
2.Encourage agreement with group goals.
3.Increase the time members spend together.
4.Increase the status of the group and the
perceived difficulty of attaining membership in the
group.
5.Stimulate competition with other groups.
6.Give reward to the group rather than to the
individual members.
7.Physically isolate the group.
 Cohesivenes
s
High Low

High Moderate
Hig Productivity Productivity
h

Low Low Moderate to Low

Productivity Productivity
Performanc
 Assets & Liabilities of Group
Decision Making
More complete Time consuming
information & Conformity pressures
knowledge. in groups.
Higher quality Dominated by 1 or a
decisions. fewer members.
Increased diversity Suffer from
of views. ambiguous
Increased reponsibility.
acceptance of a
solution.
Two byproducts of group decision
making.
Group think: Phenomenon in which the
norm for consensus overrides the realistic
appraisal of alternatives courses of action.

Group shift: A change in decision risk

between the group’s decision and the
individual decision that members within the
group would make, can be either toward
conversation or greater risk.
Group decision making techniques
Interacting groups
Brainstorming
Nominal group Technique
Electronic meeting
 Effectiveness Criteria

Types of Group
Effectiveness Interact Brainstorm Nominal Electron
No. & quality
Criteria ing ing ic High
Low Moderate High
of ideas
High Low Low
Social Pressure Moderate
Money Cost Low Low Low High
Speed Moderate Moderate Moderate Moderate
Task Orientation Low High High
High
Potential for
High
interpersonal conflict Low Moderate Low

Commitment to solution
High NA Moderate Moderate

Development of group
High High Moderate Low
cohesiveness
 Teams –

self-managed
and cross-
functional
 Cross-functional teams

–Choose members carefully

–Establishing team purpose
–Ensuring understanding of functions
–Conduct intensive team building
–Achieve noticeable results
 Virtual teams

–Synchronous technologies
 Self-managed teams
A group of employees who are
responsible for managing and
performing technical tasks that result
in a product or service being delivered
to an internal or external customer
Training guidelines: self-managed
teams
How to make teams more effective

–Team building
–Collaboration
–Group leadership
–Cultural/global issues