Lecture 6
Teams
groups.
Two+ people working interdependently to achieve a common goal.
– Formal vs. Informal groups
– Vary
based
on
structural
characteristics
(size,
roles,
diversity,
cohesiveness, norms)
– Team member satisfaction & task performance à reflective of
effectiveness (or lack of it)
– 5 stages of group development
group structure & satisfaction.
Different structural characteristics impact interaction patterns and influence
team member satisfaction.
Size
Diversity
Roles
People working in larger
groups tend to report lower
satisfaction. Why?
Tough to achieve effective
communication & cohesion.
Forming,
Storming
&
Norming take longer.
Assigned vs. Emergent roles
1.
2.
3.
4.
Likelihood of conflict
Less room for bonding
Tougher to voice oneself
& make task contributions
Harder to identify with
group success
…Once
they
develop
though, more/less diverse
groups are as cohesive &
productive. Diverse groups
are especially good at
creative & innovative tasks.
Key issues with roles are
that they are not always
clearly defined & people
occupy multiple roles at
the same time
group size & performance.
The relationship between group size and performance depends on the type of
task and how good task performance is defined…Three types of tasks:
Additive Tasks
Disjunctive Tasks
Conjunctive Tasks
Group performance is dependent
on the sum of the performance of
individual group members (e.g.,
building a house)
Group performance is
dependent
on
the
performance of the best
group
member
(e.g.,
research team)
Group performance is limited
by the performance of the
poorest group member (e.g.,
assembly line)
Keep in mind! Groups run into issues of communication, coordination and
decision-making when they work on a task, these difficulties in performance
are called process losses à as groups get bigger in size, the losses rise
Actual performance = Potential performance – Process losses
group size & performance.
Additive Tasks
Disjunctive Tasks
Conjunctive Tasks
Potential
group
performance
increases with size…but eventually
so do process losses…
Potential
performance
increases with size (Because
of the greater probability
that the group includes a
superior performer)
Both the potential and actual
group
performance
will
decrease
as
group
size
increases
Actual performance will rise up to a
certain point & may the
start
declining
Actual performance will rise
up to a certain point & may
the start declining
As size increases, the probability
of including a weak link in the
group goes up
role ambiguity & conflict.
Role Ambiguity
Role Conflict
Goals of one’s job or means of
performance on the job are not
clear
Incompatible role expectations
Leads to stress, dissatisfaction,
turnover intent, lower performance,
lower org. commitment
1.
Intrasender role conflict: A single role sender provides
incompatible role expectations to a role occupant (e.g.
manager asks an employee to perform tasks outside
their job description).
2.
Intersender role conflict: Two or more role senders
provide
a
role
occupant
with
incompatible
expectations (e.g. reporting to two managers who set
incompatible expectations).
3.
Interrole conflict: Several roles held by a role occupant
involve incompatible expectations (e.g. being a father
& a CEO – two demanding roles).
4.
Person-role conflict: Role demands call for behaviour
that is incompatible with the personality or skills of a role
occupant (e.g. whistleblowing, prevalent when ethics
are involved)
Leads to stress, dissatisfaction, turnover
performance, lower org. commitment
intent,
lower
norms & cohesiveness.
Norms
Affects interaction patterns &
processes
Informal
rules
&
shared
expectations team establishes
to regulate member behaviors
Cohesiveness
Affects interaction patterns, norms & performance
The degree of attraction people feel toward the
team & their motivation to remain members
Greater cohesiveness
because :
improves
performance
1.
Members
are
motivated
to
maintain
membership & achieve team objectives
2.
Greater knowledge transfer & participation
3.
Stronger norms develop
4.
Higher member satisfaction
5.
Better social support
6.
More effective conflict resolution
What makes a group more cohesive?
Threat to group survival & To better deal with the situation at hand, the group
external competition
needs to communicate & coordinate better à more
cohesive
Success
Experiencing success will bring members even closer
together
Member diversity
Diverse groups can have a harder time becoming
cohesive than more homogeneous groups BUT If the
group is in agreement about how to accomplish a
task, its success will often outweigh surface dissimilarity
in determining cohesiveness
Group size
The larger the group the tougher it is to coordinate &
communicate
Toughness of initiation
Groups that are more exclusive (tougher to get into)
are more attractive à more cohesive
social loafing.
Tendency to withhold own physical or intellectual contributions to a
group
•
Free rider effect
•
Sucker Effect
How to limit social loafing?
•
Increase visibility of individual performance
•
Interesting & engaging work
•
More feedback
•
Increase feelings of indispensability (i.e., we cannot go on without you!)
•
Rewards for good group performance
Sources:
“Groups and Teamwork.” Organizational Behaviour, by Gary
Johns and Alan Saks, Prentice Hall, 2017, pp. 240-271.
“Managing Groups and Teams.” Organizational Behavior,
University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing, 2017, pp. 368–413.
retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.24926/8668.1501