Group & team dynamics

Question 1

What is a group?

Answer 1

a group is a collection of people who share similar goals and interact with one another

Question 2

What is the model of group formation and development?

Answer 2

Forming-Storming-Norming-Performing

Question 3

What are the characteristics of Forming in group formation?

Answer 3

• High dependence on the leader for guidance and direction.
• Group members are getting to know each other.
• Leader must be prepared to give strong direction.
• Very little agreement on team aims, other than received from the leader.
• Each team member’s individual roles are unclear.

Question 4

What are the characteristics of storming in group formation?

Answer 4

• Team members jostle for positions / leadership in the team.
• There is now a clearer focus for the team (still many uncertainties).
• Cliques form at this stage and there may be power struggles.
• Group decisions are difficult.
• Team must be focused on its goals to avoid becoming distracted by relationships and emotional issues.
• There needs to be an environment of compromise to enable progress.
• The leader has a more advisory or coaching role.

Question 5

What are the characteristics of norming in group formation?

Answer 5

• Much more agreement and consensus of opinion in the team.
• Roles and responsibilities are clearer and generally accepted.
• Important decisions are increasingly made through group agreement.
• Less important decisions are delegated to individuals or small teams.
• There is now a much stronger sense of commitment and unity.
• The team is much more social / friendly at this stage.
• There is general respect for the leader.
• Leadership is more likely to be shared.

Question 6

What are the characteristics of performing in group formation?

Answer 6

• The team has more strategies and has a clear vision and clear aims.
• There is a focus on achieving goals.
• Team members trusted to get on with the job with little interference.
• There is no interference or participation from the leader.
• Disagreements occur but are resolved within the team positively.
• The team does not need to be instructed or assisted.
• Team members might ask for assistance from the leader with personal and interpersonal issues.

Question 7

What are the four factors that can affect team performance?

Answer 7

• Steiner’s Model
• The Ringelmann Effect
• Team Cohesion
• Social Loafing

Question 8

What is steiner’s model?

Answer 8

Actual Productivity = Potential Productivity − Losses due to Faulty Processes

• Potential productivity - The best possible performance of the group and takes into account the resources available and the abilities of the individual members.
• Losses due to Faulty Processes:
  1. Co-ordination problems: if co-ordination / timing of members don’t match, strategies that depend upon that individual will fail. [E.g. set piece not working because 1 player made the wrong run].
  1. Motivation problems: if individuals are not motivated to the same extent, they will be ‘pulling in different directions’. [E.g. someone plays to win, his teammate is playing for fun].

Question 9

What is the Ringelmann Effect?

Answer 9

• Groups pulled with more force than an individual
• But not with as much force (per person)
• Eight people pulled only four times as hard as one, not eight times as hard.
• Loss in performance was mainly due to loss of motivation (and partly co-ordination problems).

Question 10

What is team cohesion?

Answer 10

It concerns the motivation which attracts individuals to the group and the resistance of those members to the group breaking up.

Question 11

What is definition of cohesiveness in a team?

Answer 11

the total field of forces which act on members to remain in the group

Question 12

What is the two dimensions of team cohesion?

Answer 12

• Group integration – how the individual members of the group feel about the group as a whole.
• Individual attraction to the group – how attracted the individuals are to the group.

Question 13

What is social loafing?

Answer 13

In summary, it’s a drop in individual performance due to motivation loss caused by the individual losing identity when placed in a group

Question 14

How do we avoid social loafing?

Answer 14

• Social loafing is undesirable and should be eliminated.
• If lack of identity is the main cause.
• Strategies should be developed to highlight individual performance.
• Examples of giving credit to individuals in team situations to make them feel important include ‘tackle counts’ in rugby or the number of ‘assists’ in basketball.
• Individual feedback about performance can also remove social loafing.
• Peer response / support from teammates can also help - (social support).

Question 15

How to avoid coordination problems?

Answer 15

• To cut down on losses in team performance due to co-ordination difficulties, individuals should be selected on their interactive skills.
• Teachers and coaches should also emphasise that good co-ordination will eventually lead to better performance.
• Games using small teams, for instance, may help to co-ordinate the actions of different sets of players within a team.