Test 4 Flashcards
(162 cards)
1
Q
how does perception affect information
A
Perception filters information received from our environment.
2
Q
what do perception distortions do
A
Perceptual distortions can obscure individual differences.
3
Q
what can perception do to events and problems
A
Perception can cause attribution errors as we explain events and problems.
4
Q
what does impression management do
A
Impression management is a way of influencing how others perceive us.
5
Q
perception
A
Perception is the process through which people receive and interpret information from the environment. It is the way we form impressions about ourselves, other people, and daily life experiences.
6
Q
list some perceptual distortions
A
stereotypes, halo effects, selective perception, projection
7
Q
stereotypes
A
Stereotypes—put people into categories and then use attributes of the category to describe the individual. Example: He’s close to retirement; too old to learn the new technology.
8
Q
halo effect
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Halo Effects—use one characteristic of a person or situation to form an overall impression. Example: She’s always at work early; she’s a great performer
9
Q
selective perception
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Selective Perception—focuses attention on things consistent with existing beliefs, needs, and actions. Example: Sales are down; I knew the new product design was flawed.
10
Q
projection
A
Projection—assumes others are just like us and assigns our attributes to them. Example: I’ll schedule planning meetings for 7:30 a.m.; it feels good to get an early start.
11
Q
attribution
A
attribution. This is the process of developing explanations for events and their perceived causes.
12
Q
Fundamental attribution error
A
The fundamental attribution error overestimates internal factors and underestimates external factors as influences on someone’s behavior.
fundamental attribution error.
his is a tendency to blame other people when things go wrong, whether or not this is really true. If I perceive that a student is doing poorly in my course, for example, this error pops up as a tendency to criticize the student’s lack of ability or unwillingness to study hard enough. But that perception may not be accurate, as you may well agree. Perhaps there’s something about the course design, its delivery, or my actions as an instructor that are contributing to the problem—a deficiency in the learning environment, not the individual.
eg - ‘they are performing poorly’ its their fault error
13
Q
self serving bias
A
It’s the tendency for people to blame personal failures or problems on external causes rather than accept personal responsibility. This is the “It’s not my fault!” error. The flip side is to claim personal responsibility for any successes—“It was me; I did it!”
eg ‘i am performing poorly’ its not my fault error
14
Q
impression managemetn
A
impression management, the systematic attempt to influence how others perceive us
15
Q
myers brigg type
A
yers-Briggs Type Indicator is a popular approach to personality assessment. It uses a sophisticated questionnaire to examine how people act or feel in various situations.
16
Q
myers brigs personality distinctions (4)
A
Extraversion vs. introversion (E or I—whether a person tends toward being outgoing and sociable or shy and quiet.
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Sensing vs. intuitive (S or N)—whether a person tends to focus on details or on the big picture in dealing with problems.
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Thinking vs. feeling (T or F)—whether a person tends to rely on logic or emotions in dealing with problems.
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Judging vs. perceiving (J or P)—whether a person prefers order and control or acts with flexibility and spontaneit
17
Q
sample myers briggs personality types
A
ESTJ (extraverted, sensing, thinking, judging)—practical, decisive, logical, and quick to dig in; common among managers.
ENTJ (extraverted, intuitive, thinking, judging)—analytical, strategic, forceful, quick to take charge; common for leaders.
ISFJ (introverted, sensing, feeling, judging)—conscientious, considerate, and helpful; common among team players.
INTJ (introverted, intuitive, thinking, judging)—insightful, free thinking, determined; common for visionaries.
18
Q
big five personaltiy traits
A
Extraversion
An extravert is talkative, comfortable, and confident in interpersonal relationships; an introvert is more private, withdrawn, and reserved.
Agreeableness
An agreeable person is trusting, courteous, and helpful, getting along well with others; a disagreeable person is self-serving, skeptical, and tough, creating discomfort for others.
Conscientiousness
A conscientious person is dependable, organized, and focused on getting things done; a person who lacks conscientiousness is careless, impulsive, and not achievement oriented.
Emotional stability
A person who is emotionally stable is secure, calm, steady, and self-confident; a person lacking emotional stability is excitable, anxious, nervous, and tense.
Openness to experience
A person open to experience is broad-minded, imaginative, and open to new ideas; and person who lacks openness is narrow-minded, has few interests, and resists change.
19
Q
big Five personality traits with work and career outcomes.
A
The expectation is that people with more extraverted, agreeable, conscientious, emotionally stable, and open personalities will have more positive relationships and experiences in organizations
20
Q
locus of control
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locus of control, noting that some people believe they control their destinies, whereas others believe what happens is beyond their control.14 “Internals” are more self-confident and accept responsibility for their own actions; “externals” are prone to blaming others and outside forces when bad things happen. Interestingly, research suggests that internals tend to be more satisfied and less alienated from their work.
21
Q
authoritarianism
A
Authoritarianism is the degree to which a person defers to authority and accepts status differences.15 Someone with an authoritarian personality might act rigid and control-oriented as a leader. Yet, this same person is often subservient as a follower. People with an authoritarian personality tend to obey orders. Of course, this can create problems when their supervisors ask them to do unethical or even illegal things.
22
Q
self montoring
A
self-monitoring reflects the degree to which someone is able to adjust and modify behavior in new situations.17 Persons high in self-monitoring tend to be learners, comfortable with feedback, and both willing and able to change. Because they are flexible, however, others may perceive them as constantly shifting gears and hard to read. A person low in self-monitoring is predictable and tends to act consistently. But this consistency may not fit the unique needs of differing circumstances.
23
Q
stress
A
Stress is a state of tension experienced by individuals facing extraordinary demands, constraints, or opportunities
24
Q
type a
A
Researchers describe the Type A personality, also shown among the personality traits in the last figure, as someone who is oriented toward high achievement, impatience, and perfectionism. Because of this, Type A’s are likely to bring stress on themselves even in circumstances that others find relatively stress-free.
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constructive stress
Constructive stress is energizing and performance enhancing.23 Take the analogy of a violin.24 When a violin string is too loose, the sound produced by even the most skilled player is weak and raspy. When the string is too tight, the sound gets shrill and the string might even snap. But when the tension on the string is just right, it creates a beautiful sound.
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destructive stress
Destructive stress is dysfunctional because it is or seems so intense or long-lasting that it overloads and breaks down a person's physical and mental systems.
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job burnout
s job burnout. This is a sense of physical and mental exhaustion that drains our energies both personally and professionally
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flameout
Too much stress can also cause flameout, where someone expresses extreme agitation through words in interpersonal communication or electronic messages
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workplace rage
Yet another possible outcome of excessive stress is workplace rage in the form of overly aggressive—even violent—behavior toward co-workers, bosses, or customers.25 An extreme example called “bossnapping” made the news in France when workers at a Caterpillar plant held their manager hostage for 24 hours in protest of layoffs. A local sociologist said: “Kidnapping your boss is not legal. But it's a way workers have found to make their voices heard.”26
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what do attitudes do
Attitudes predispose people to act in certain ways.
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describe job satsifactio
Job satisfaction is a positive attitude toward one's job and work experiences. Job satisfaction influences work behavior.
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Job satisfaction has a complex relationship with job performance.
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what are emotions and moods
Emotions and moods are positive and negative states of mind that influence behavior.
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attitude
An attitude is a predisposition to act in a certain way toward people and environmental factors.31 Challis Lowe seemed disposed to take risks and embrace challenges. This positive attitude influenced her behavior when dealing with the inevitable problems, choices, and opportunities of work and career.
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three components of attitudes
cognition, affect, behavior
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cognitive dissonance
cognitive dissonance describes the discomfort we feel in situations where our attitude is inconsistent with our behavior.
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job satisfaction
job satisfaction, the degree to which an individual feels positive or negative about various aspects of his or her job and work experiences
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aspects that affect job satisfaction
Job tasks—responsibility, interest, challenge.
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Quality of supervision—task help, social support.
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Co-workers—harmony, respect, friendliness.
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Opportunities—promotion, learning, growth.
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Pay—actual and comparative.
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Work conditions—comfort, safety, support.
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Security—job and employment.
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withdrawal behaviors
Researchers tell us that there is a strong relationship between job satisfaction and the withdrawal behaviors of absenteeism—not showing up for work—and turnover—quitting one's job. In respect to absenteeism, workers who are more satisfied with their jobs are absent less often than those who are dissatisfied. In respect to turnover, satisfied workers are more likely to stay and dissatisfied workers are more likely to quit their jobs. The consequences of these withdrawal behaviors can be significant. Both absenteeism and excessive turnover are expensive for employers. In fact, one study found that changing retention rates—up or down—results in similar changes to corporate earnings
39
organizational citizenship behaviors
organizational citizenship behaviors.37 They show up as a willingness to “go beyond the call of duty” or “go the extra mile” in one's work.38 A person who is a good organizational citizen does things that, although not required, help advance the performance of the organization. You might observe this as a service worker who takes especially good care of a customer, a team member who always takes on extra tasks, or a friend who is works extra hours without pay just to make sure things are done right for his employer.
40
employee engagement
employee engagement, a strong sense of belonging or connection with one's job and employer. It shows up both in high involvement—being willing to help others and always trying to do something extra to improve performance, and in high commitment—feeling and speaking positively about the organization. A survey of American workers by the Gallup Organization suggests that more engaged workforces generate higher profits for employers.
41
emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence is an important human skill for managers and an important leadership capability. Daniel Goleman defines “EI” as an ability to understand emotions in ourselves and in others and to use this understanding to manage relationships effectively.
42
emotion
An emotion is a strong feeling directed toward someone or something. For example, you might feel positive emotion or elation when an instructor congratulates you on a fine class presentation; you might feel negative emotion or anger when an instructor criticizes you in front of the class
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moods
, moods are generalized positive and negative feelings or states of mind that may persist for some time.
44
mood contagion
Researchers are very interested in mood contagion, the spillover effects of one's mood onto others.44 It turns out that positive emotions of leaders can be “contagious,” causing followers to display more positive moods and also be both more attracted to the leaders and willing to rate the leaders more highly. As you might expect, such mood contagion can also have positive and negative effects on the moods of co-workers and teammates, as well as family and friends.45
45
maslow
Maslow described a hierarchy of needs topped by self-actualization.
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alderfer
Alderfer's ERG theory deals with existence, relatedness, and growth needs.
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mcclelland
McClelland identified acquired needs for achievement, power, and affiliation.
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herzberger two factor
Herzberg's two-factor theory focuses on higher-order need satisfaction.
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core characteristics
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| The core characteristics model integrates motivation and job design.
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motivation
In management we use the term motivation to describe forces within the individual that account for the level, direction, and persistence of effort expended at work. Simply put, a highly motivated person works hard at a job; an unmotivated person does not. A manager who leads through motivation creates conditions that consistently inspire other people to work hard.
51
needs
individual needs—unfulfilled desires that stimulate people to behave in ways that will satisfy them. And as you might expect, there are different theories about human needs and how they may affect people at wor
52
maslow hierchy
He described a hierarchy built on a foundation of lower-order needs (physiological, safety, and social concerns) and moving up to higher-order needs (esteem and self-actualization).2 Whereas lower-order needs focus on physical well-being and companionship, the higher-order needs reflect psychological development and growth.
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deficit principle
deficit principle states that a satisfied need is not a motivator of behavior.
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progression principle
The progression principle states that people try to satisfy lower-level needs first and then move step-by-step up the hierarchy.
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ERG theory
A well-regarded alternative to Maslow's work is the ERG theory proposed by Clayton Alderfer.3 His theory collapses Maslow's five needs into three. Existence needs are desires for physiological and material well-being. Relatedness needs are desires for satisfying interpersonal relationships. Growth needs are desires for continued psychological growth and development.
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existence needs
. Existence needs are desires for physiological and material well-being.
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relatedness
Relatedness needs are desires for satisfying interpersonal relationships.
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growth needs
Growth needs are desires for continued psychological growth and development.
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TAT
David McClelland and his colleagues began experimenting with the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) of human psychology.6 The TAT asks people to view pictures and write stories about what they see. Researchers then analyze the stories, looking for themes that display individual needs.
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From this research McClelland identified three acquired needs that he considers central to understanding human motivation.
The need for achievement is the desire to do something better or more efficiently, to solve problems, or to master complex tasks.
The need for power is the desire to control other people, to influence their behavior, or to be responsible for them.
The need for affiliation is the desire to have friendly and warm relations with other people.
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Work Preferences of High Need Achievers
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Individual responsibilities
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Challenging but achievable goals
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Performance feedback
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Importantly, McClelland distinguishes between two forms of the power need.
Importantly, McClelland distinguishes between two forms of the power need.7 The need for personal power is exploitative and involves manipulation purely for the sake of personal gratification. As you might imagine, this type of power need is not respected in management. By contrast, the need for social power is the positive face of power. It involves the use of power in a socially responsible way, one that is directed toward group or organizational objectives rather than personal ones. This need for social power is essential to managerial leadership.
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| Need for Personal Power
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| Need for Personal Power—seeking power for personal gratification.
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Need for Social Power
Need for Social Power—seeking power to help people and groups achieve goals.
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two factor theory
Frederick Herzberg's work on human needs took a slightly different route. He began with extensive interviews of people at work and then content-analyzed their answers. The result is known as the two-factor theory.8
When questioned about what “turned them on,” Herzberg found that workers mainly talked about the nature of the job itself—such things as a sense of achievement, feelings of recognition, a sense of responsibility, the opportunity for advancement, and feelings of personal growth. In other words, they told him about what they did. Herzberg called these satisfier factors, or motivator factors, and described them as part of job content. They are consistent with the higher-order needs of Maslow, growth needs of Alderfer, and achievement and power needs of McClelland.
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satisfier factors
satisfier factors, or motivator factors, and described them as part of job content. They are consistent with the higher-order needs of Maslow, growth needs of Alderfer, and achievement and power needs of McClelland.
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hygiene factors
When questioned about what “turned them off,” Herzberg found that his respondents talked about quite different things—working conditions, interpersonal relations, organizational policies and administration, technical quality of supervision, and base wage or salary. They were telling him about where they worked, not about what they did. Herzberg called these hygiene factors and described them as part of job context. They seem most associated with Maslow's lower-order needs, Alderfer's existence and relatedness needs, and McClelland's affiliation need.
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job design
Job design is the allocation of specific work tasks to individuals and groups.10 Its goal is a good person-job fit.
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job enrichment
job enrichment, the practice of designing jobs rich in content that offers opportunities for higher-order need satisfaction. For him, an enriched job allows the individual to perform planning and controlling duties normally done by supervisors. In other words, job enrichment involves a lot of self-management.
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five core job characteristics
shows that the core characteristics model approaches job design with a focus on five “core” job characteristics: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and job feedback. Can you think of specific jobs that might score high and low on these characteristics? Here's a bit more detail on them
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skill variety
Skill variety—the degree to which a job requires a variety of different activities to carry out the work and involves the use of a number of different skills and talents of the individual
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task identity
Task identity—the degree to which the job requires completion of a “whole” and identifiable piece of work, one that involves doing a job from beginning to end with a visible outcome
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task significance
Task significance—the degree to which the job has a substantial impact on the lives or work of other people elsewhere in the organization or in the external environment
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autonomy
Autonomy—the degree to which the job gives the individual freedom, independence, and discretion in scheduling work and in choosing procedures for carrying it out
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feedback from the job itself
Feedback from the job itself—the degree to which work activities required by the job result in the individual obtaining direct and clear information on his or her performance
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equity theory
Equity theory explains how social comparisons motivate individual behavior.
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expectancy theory
motvation = expectancy x instrumentality x valence
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goal setting theory
Goal-setting theory shows that well-chosen and well-set goals can be motivating.
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perceived negative inequity
perceived negative inequity—feeling uncomfortable at being unfairly treated. People who feel underpaid, for example, may experience disappointment or even a sense of anger. They will be motivated to try to restore perceived equity to the situation. This might be done by reducing work efforts to compensate for the missing rewards, asking for more rewards or better treatment, or even by quitting the job
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perceived positive inequity
an equity dynamic among people who feel overpaid. This perceived positive inequity is associated with a sense of guilt. It is discomfort felt over benefitting from unfair treatment. The individual is motivated to restore perceived equity by doing such things as increasing the quantity or quality of work, taking on more difficult assignments, or working overtime. Do you think this really happens? What if one of your instructors decides to inflate the grades of students on early assignments, thinking that perceived positive inequities will motivate them to study harder for the rest of the course? Would you work harder or perhaps work less?
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victor vroom on motivation
Victor Vroom offers another approach to understanding motivation. His expectancy theory asks: What determines the willingness of an individual to work hard at tasks important to the organization?16 Vroom answers this question with an equation:
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expectancy
. Expectancy is a person's belief that working hard will result in achieving a desired level of task performance (sometimes called effort-performance expectancy
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instrumentality
. Instrumentality is a person's belief that successful performance will lead to rewards and other potential outcomes (sometimes called performance-outcome expectancy)
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valence
Valence is the value a person assigns to the possible rewards and other work-related outcomes.
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How Can Managers Use the Insights of the Expectancy Theory of Motivation?
Managers should act in ways that maximize expectancies, instrumentalities, and valences for others. To maximize expectancy, they need to hire capable workers, train and develop them continuously, and communicate goals and confidence in their skills. To maximize instrumentality, managers must clarify and stand by performance-reward linkages. Finally, to maximize valence, they need to understand individual needs and try to tie work outcomes to important sources of need satisfaction.
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high expectancies + self efficacy
To have high expectancies, people must believe in their abilities; they must believe that if they try hard to do something, they can perform well at it. Managers can help build these expectancies by selecting workers with the right abilities for the jobs to be done, providing them with the best training and development, and supporting them with resources so that the jobs can be done very well. All these factors stimulate motivation based on something called self-efficacy, a person's belief that they are capable of performing a task.
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high insturmentalism
To have high instrumentalities, people must perceive that their performance accomplishments will be followed by desired work outcomes. In others words, they believe that performance will lead to valued rewards. Managers can create positive instrumentalities by taking care to clarify the rewards to be gained by high performance. They must also continually confirm this “promise,” so to speak, by actually delivering the expected results. Any disconfirmation or failure to deliver will diminish the instrumentality.
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high and positive valences
To have high and positive valences, people must value the outcomes associated with high performance. This means that the reward being offered is what they really want. Of course, this is a major source of individual differences. But managers should be able to use insights of the content theories—Maslow, Alderfer, and McClelland, for example—to best match important individual needs with the rewards and outcomes that can be earned through high performance.
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law of effect
e law of effect: People repeat behavior that results in a pleasant outcome and avoid behavior that results in an unpleasant outcome
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operant conditioning
Psychologist B. F. Skinner used this notion to popularize the concept of operant conditioning. This is the process of influencing behavior by manipulating its consequences.23 You may think of operant conditioning as learning by reinforcement, and Figure 13.5 shows how managers stimulate it through four reinforcement strategies
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How Can Managers Use Reinforcement Strategies to Influence Work Behavior?
To strengthen quality work, a supervisor might use positive reinforcement by praising the individual or negative reinforcement by no longer complaining to him about poor-quality work. To discourage poor-quality work, a supervisor might use extinction (withholding things that are positively reinforcing, such as outcomes) or punishment (associating the poor-quality work with unpleasant results for the individual).
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positive reinforcement
Positive reinforcement strengthens or increases the frequency of desirable behavior by making a pleasant consequence contingent on its occurrence. Example: A manager nods to express approval to someone who makes a useful comment during a staff meeting.
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negative reinforcement
Negative reinforcement increases the frequency of or strengthens desirable behavior by making the avoidance of an unpleasant consequence contingent on its occurrence. Example: A manager who has nagged a worker every day about tardiness does not nag when the worker comes to work on time
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punishment
Punishment decreases the frequency of or eliminates an undesirable behavior by making an unpleasant consequence contingent on its occurrence. Example: A manager issues a written reprimand to an employee whose careless work creates quality problems.
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extinction
Extinction decreases the frequency of or eliminates an undesirable behavior by making the removal of a pleasant consequence contingent on its occurrence. Example: After observing that co-workers are providing social approval to a disruptive employee, a manager counsels co-workers to stop giving this approval.
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law of contingent reinforcement
Whether we are talking about verbal praise, a pay raise, or any other forms of positive reinforcement, two laws govern the process. The law of contingent reinforcement states: For a reward to have maximum reinforcing value, it must be delivered only if the desired behavior is exhibited.
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law of immediate reinforcement
Whether we are talking about verbal praise, a pay raise, or any other forms of positive reinforcement, two laws govern the process. The law of contingent reinforcement states: For a reward to have maximum reinforcing value, it must be delivered only if the desired behavior is exhibited. The law of immediate reinforcement states: The more immediate the delivery of a reward after the occurrence of a desirable behavior, the greater the reinforcing value of the reward. Table 13.1—Guidelines for Positive Reinforcement and Punishment—presents several useful guidelines for using these two laws.
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positive reinforcement guidelines
Positive Reinforcement
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Clearly identify desired work behaviors.
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Maintain a diverse inventory of rewards.
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Inform everyone what must be done to get rewards.
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Recognize individual differences when allocating rewards.
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Follow the laws of immediate and contingent reinforcement.
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punishment guidelines
Punishment
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Tell the person what is being done wrong.
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Tell the person what is being done right.
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Make sure the punishment matches the behavior.
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Administer the punishment in private.
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Follow the laws of immediate and contingent reinforcement.
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team
A team is a small group of people with complementary skills who work together to accomplish shared goals while holding each other mutually accountable for performance results.2 Teams are essential to organizations of all types and sizes. Many tasks are well beyond the capabilities of individuals alone.
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teamwork
nd in this sense, teamwork, people actually working together to accomplish a shared goal, is a major performance asset.4
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synergy
The term synergy means the creation of a whole that exceeds the sum of its parts. When teams perform well, it's because of synergy that pools many diverse talents and efforts to create extraordinary results.
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social loafing
One of the most troublesome team problems is social loafing—the presence of one or more “free-riders” who slack off and allow other team members to do most of the work.8 For whatever reason, perhaps the absence of spotlight on personal performance, individuals sometimes work less hard, not harder, when they are part of a group.
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formal team
A formal team is officially designated for a specific organizational purpose. You'll find such teams described by different labels on organization charts—examples are departments (e.g., market research department), work units (e.g., audit unit), teams (e.g., customer service team), or divisions (e.g., office products division).
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informal groups
The informal structure of an organization also consists of informal groups. They emerge from natural or spontaneous relationships and offer members opportunities for social satisfactions as well as contacts for getting work done. Some are interest groups, whose members pursue a common cause, such as a women's career network. Some are friendship groups that develop for a wide variety of personal reasons, including shared hobbies and other nonwork interests. Others are support groups in which members basically help one another out in work and personal affairs.
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committee
Among the formal teams and groups in organizations, a committee brings together people outside their daily job assignments to work in a small team for a specific purpose.10 A designated head or chairperson typically leads the committee and is held accountable for the task agenda. Organizations, for example, often have committees dealing with issues like diversity, quality, and compensation.
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project teams
Project teams or task force put people together to work on common problems, but on a temporary rather than a continuing basis. Project teams, for example, might be formed to develop a new product or service, redesign workflows, or provide specialized consulting for a client.12 A task force might be formed to address employee retention problems or come up with ideas for improving work schedules
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cross functional team
The cross-functional team brings together members from different functional units.14 They are supposed to work together on specific problems or tasks, sharing information and exploring new ideas. They are expected to help knock down the “functional chimneys” or “walls” that otherwise separate departments and people in the organization. For example, Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel says that his firm uses cross-functional teams from “merchandising, marketing, design, communications, presentation, supply chain and stores” to create and bring to customers new limited edition fashions.
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employee involvement teams
Some organizations also use employee involvement teams. These groups of workers meet on a regular basis with the goal of using their expertise and experience for continuous improvement
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quality circle
The quality circle, for example, is a team that meets regularly to discuss and plan specific ways to improve work quality
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virtual team
A vice president for human resources at Marriott once called electronic meetings “the quietest, least stressful, most productive meetings you've ever had.”17 She was talking about a type of group that is increasingly common in today's organizations—the virtual team
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self managing team
In a growing number of organizations, traditional work units of supervisors and subordinates are being replaced with self-managing teams. Sometimes called autonomous work groups, these are teams whose members have been given collective authority to make many decisions about how they work, ones previously made by higher-level managers.24 The expected advantages include better performance, decreased costs, and higher morale.
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What Are the Management Implications of Self-Managing Teams?
Members of self-managing teams make decisions together on team membership, task plans and job assignments, training and performance evaluations, and quality control. Because they essentially manage themselves in these ways, they no longer need a traditional supervisor or department head. Instead, the team leader performs this role with the support of team members. The team leader and team as a whole report to the next higher level of management and are held accountable for performance results.
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team info
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Teams need the right members for the tasks to be accomplished.
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Teams need the right setting and size to be effective.
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Teams need the right processes to be effective.
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Teams move through different stages of development.
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Team performance is affected by norms and cohesiveness.
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Team performance is affected by task and maintenance roles.
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Team performance is affected by communication networks.
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effective teams focus on 3 things
n effective team should be accomplishing three output goals—task performance, member satisfaction, and team viability.27
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What Are the Foundations of Team Effectiveness?
An effective team achieves high levels of task performance and member satisfaction and remains viable for the future. The foundations of effectiveness begin with inputs—things such as membership composition, nature of the task, resources and support in the organizational setting, and team size. The foundations of effectiveness further rest with team process—how well the members utilize their talents and other inputs to create the desired outputs. Key process factors on any team include the stages of development, norms and cohesion, task and maintenance activities, communication, and decision making.
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3 outcomes of effective teams
task performance. When you are on a team, ask: Did we accomplish our tasks and meet expectations? The second outcome of an effective team is member satisfaction. Ask: Are we individually and collectively pleased with our participation in the process? The third outcome of an effective team is viability for future action. Ask: Can this team be successful again in the future?
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team effectiveness equation
quality of inputs + (process gains - process losses)
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team diversity
Team diversity also counts in team membership. It represents the mix of skills, experiences, backgrounds, and personalities among team members. The presence or absence of diversity on a team can affect both relationships among members and team performance. And when diversity is present, just how well it is managed can make the difference between a team that struggles between failure or modest success and one that achieves something truly great.
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homogenous teams
It is easier to manage relationships among members of homogeneous teams—those whose members share similar characteristics. But this sense of harmony can come at a price. Researchers warn about risks when team members are too similar in background, training, and experience. Such teams may underperform, especially on complex or creative tasks, even though the members may feel very comfortable with one another
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hetereogenous team
It is harder to manage relationships among members of more heterogeneous teams—those whose members are quite dissimilar to one another.33 But, the potential complications of membership diversity also come with special performance opportunities. When heterogeneous teams are well managed, the variety of ideas, perspectives, and experiences within them can be helpful for problem solving. Highly creative teams, for example, are often ones that mix experienced people with those who haven't worked together before.34 The experienced members have the connections, whereas the newcomers add fresh thinking.
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team process
Team process counts, too. Think of it as the way the members of any team actually work together as they transform inputs into outputs. This team effectiveness equation is also worth remembering
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team iq
team IQ or “the ability of teams to perform well.”35 He points out that “champion” teams excel because their members know how to use their talents in cooperation with others and are able to handle occasional disharmony and interpersonal conflicts. In other words, great teams combine talent with emotional intelligence and positive team processes to create a winning performance combination.
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5 stages of team development
Forming
—a stage of initial orientation and interpersonal testing
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Storming
—a stage of conflict over tasks and working as a team
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Norming
—a stage of consolidation around task and operating agendas
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Performing
—a stage of teamwork and focused task performance
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Adjourning
—a stage of task completion and disengagement
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forming stage
The forming stage of team development is one of initial task orientation and interpersonal testing. New members are likely to ask: What can or does the team offer me? What will they ask me to contribute? Can my efforts serve team needs while also meeting my needs? In this stage, people begin to identify with other members and with the team itself. They focus on getting acquainted, establishing interpersonal relationships, discovering what is considered acceptable behavior, and learning how others perceive the team's task. Difficulties in the forming stage tend to be greater in more culturally and demographically diverse team
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storming stage
The storming stage of team development is a period of high emotionality. Tension often emerges between members over tasks and interpersonal concerns. There may be periods of conflict, outright hostility, and even infighting as some individuals try to impose their preferences on others. But this is also the stage where members start to clarify task agendas and understand one another. Attention begins to shift toward mastering obstacles, and team members start looking for ways to meet team goals while also satisfying individual needs. As the prior figure shows, the storming stage is part of a “critical zone” in team development where process failures cause lasting problems but process successes set the foundations for future effectiveness.
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norming stage
Cooperation is an important issue for teams in the norming stage of team development. At this point, members of the team begin to better coordinate their efforts as a working unit and operate with shared rules of conduct. The team feels a sense of leadership, with each member starting to play a useful role. Most interpersonal hostilities give way to a precarious balancing of forces as norming builds initial integration. Norming is also part of the critical zone of team development. When it is well managed, team members are likely to develop initial feelings of closeness and a sense of shared expectations. This helps protect the team from disintegration while members continue their efforts to work well together.
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performing stage
Teams in the performing stage of team development are mature, organized, and well functioning. This is a stage of total integration in which team members are able to creatively deal with complex tasks and interpersonal conflicts. The team has a clear and stable structure, members are motivated by team goals, and the process scores high on the criteria of team maturity shown in Figure 1
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What Are the Criteria for Assessing the Process Maturity of a Team?
Teams vary greatly in the degree of maturity they achieve and demonstrate in day-to-day behavior. These criteria are helpful for assessing the development and maturity of a team as it moves through various phases—from forming to storming to norming to performing. We would expect that teams would start to show strong positives on these criteria as members gain experience with one another in the norming stage of team development. We would expect teams to have consistently strong positive scores in the performing stage.
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adjourning
The adjourning stage of team development is the final stage for temporary committees, task forces, and project teams. Here, team members prepare to achieve closure and disband, ideally with a sense that they have accomplished important goals.
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group norms
group norms, or behaviors expected of team members.39 A norm is a rule or standard that guides behavior. And when a norm is violated, team members are usually pressured to conform. In the extreme, violating a norm can result in expulsion from the group or social ostracism.
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performance team
And without a doubt, one of the most important norms for any team is the performance norm. It defines the level of work effort and performance that team members are expected to contribute.
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team contribution
, team contributions have to be considered one of the most essential career skills.
We need to be able to contribute in as many different ways team members so that our teams can reach their performance potential. But experience proves time and time again that teams often underperform or, at least, lose time and effectiveness as members struggle with a variety of process difficulties.
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cohesiveness
Whether the team members will accept and conform to norms is largely determined by cohesiveness, the degree to which members are attracted to and motivated to remain part of a team.41 Members of a highly cohesive team value their membership. They try to conform to norms and behave in ways that meet the expectations of other members, and they get satisfaction from doing so. In this way, at least, a highly cohesive team is good for its members. But does the same hold true for team performance?
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How Do Norms and Cohesiveness Influence Team Performance?
Group norms are expected behaviors for team members; cohesiveness is the strength of attraction members feel toward the team. When cohesiveness is high, conformity to norms is high. Positive performance norms in a highly cohesive group create a desirable situation, with high-performance outcomes likely. However, negative performance norms in a highly cohesive group can be troublesome; conformity by members to the negative norms creates low-performance outcomes.
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task activities
Task activities contribute directly to the team's performance purpose
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maintenance activities
maintenance activities support the emotional life of the team as an ongoing social system. Although you might expect that these are things that team leaders or managers should be doing, this is only partially correct. In fact, all team members should share the responsibilities for task and maintenance leadership.
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distributed leadership
The concept of distributed leadership in teams makes every member continually responsible for both recognizing when task or maintenance activities are needed and taking actions to provide them. Leading through task activities involves making an effort to define and solve problems and advance work toward performance results. Without task activities, such as initiating agendas and sharing information, teams have difficulty accomplishing their objectives. Leading through maintenance activities, such as encouraging others and reducing tensions, helps strengthen and perpetuate the team as a social system.
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disruptive behaviors
As shown below, both task and maintenance activities stand in distinct contrast to dysfunctional or disruptive behaviors. These include obvious self-serving behaviors that you often see and perhaps even engage in yourself—things such as aggressiveness, excessive joking, and nonparticipation. Think about this the next time one of your groups is drifting toward ineffectiveness. Think also what you and other members can do to correct things by fulfilling distributed leadership responsibilities.
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decentralized communication network
In a decentralized communication network, all members communicate directly with one another. Sometimes called the all-channel or star structure, this arrangement works well for tasks that require lots of creativity, information processing, and problem solving. Use of a decentralized communication network creates an interacting team in which all members actively work together and share information. Member satisfaction on successful interacting teams is usually high.
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What Communication Networks Are Used in Teams?
Members of teams communicate and interact together in different ways. A decentralized structure is where all members communicate with one another. It works best when tasks are complex and the need for information sharing is high. When tasks are simple and easily broken down into small parts, a centralized structure works well. It coordinates members' communications through one central point. A restricted communication network sometimes forms when subgroups break off to do separate work or due to member alienation. Any lack of communication between the subgroups can create performance problems.
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centralized communication network
centralized communication network, sometimes called the wheel or chain structure. It has a central “hub” through which one member, often the team leader, collects information from and distributes information to all others. This creates a coacting team whose members work independently and pass completed tasks to the hub. There, they are put together into a finished product. The hub member often experiences the most satisfaction on successful coacting teams.
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restricted communication network
, this may create a restricted communication network. Left unmanaged, this counteracting team environment can deteriorate to the point where subgroups fail to adequately communicate with one another and even engage in outwardly antagonistic relations. Although these situations create problems, there are times when counteracting teams might be intentionally set up to encourage conflict, increase creativity, and help double-check the quality of specific decisions or chosen courses of action.
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team building
One of the ways to grow capacity for long-term team effectiveness is a practice known as team building. This is a set of planned activities used to analyze the functioning of a team and then make changes to increase its operating effectiveness.45 Most systematic approaches to team building begin with awareness that a problem may exist or may develop within the team. Members then work together to gather data and fully understand the problem. Action plans are made and implemented. Results are evaluated by team members. As difficulties or new problems are discovered, the team-building process recycles.
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decision making
The best teams don't limit themselves to just one decision-making method. Edgar Schein, a respected scholar and consultant, describes six ways teams make decisions.47 He and other scholars note that teams ideally choose and use methods that best fit the problems at hand.48 But mistakes are often made.
In decision by lack of response, one idea after another is suggested without any discussion taking place. When the team finally accepts an idea, all alternatives have been bypassed and discarded by simple lack of response rather than by critical evaluation. In decision by authority rule, the leader, manager, committee head, or some other authority figure makes a decision for the team. Although time-efficient, the quality of the decision depends on whether the authority figure has the necessary information. Its implementation depends on how well other team members accept the top-down approach. In decision by minority rule, two or three people dominate by “railroading” the team into a decision. How often have you heard: “Does anyone object? Okay, let's go ahead with it.”
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Keys to Consensus Decisions
Don't argue blindly; consider others' reactions to your points.
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Don't change your mind just to reach quick agreement.
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Avoid conflict reduction by voting, coin tossing, bargaining.
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Keep everyone involved in the decision process.
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Allow disagreements to surface so that things can be deliberated.
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Don't focus on winning versus losing; seek acceptable alternatives.
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Discuss assumptions, listen carefully, and encourage inputs by all.
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consensus
Teams are often encouraged to try for decision by consensus. This is where full discussion leads to most members favoring one alternative, with the other members agreeing to support it. Even those opposed to the decision know that the others listened to their concerns. Consensus doesn't require unanimity, but it does require that team members be able to argue, debate, and engage in reasonable conflict, while still listening to and getting along with one another
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decision by unamity
A decision by unanimity means all team members agree on the course of action to take. This is the ideal state of affairs but it is also very difficult to reach. One of the reasons that teams sometimes turn to authority decisions, majority voting, or even minority decisions is the difficulty of managing team processes to achieve consensus or unanimity.
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decision by majority rule
One of the most common ways teams make decisions, especially when early signs of disagreement arise, is decision by majority rule. Although consistent with democratic methods, it is often used without awareness of potential downsides. When votes are taken some people will be “winners” and others will be “losers.” In all likelihood, you've been on the losing side at times. How did it feel? If you're like me, it may have made you feel left out, unenthusiastic about supporting the majority decision, and even hoping for a future chance to win.
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groupthink
How often have you held back stating your views in a meeting, agreed to someone else's position when it really seemed wrong, or gone along with a boss's suggestions even though you disagreed?50 If and when you do these things, you are likely trapped by groupthink, the tendency for members of highly cohesive groups to lose their critical evaluative capabilities.51 It occurs when teams strive so hard to reach agreement and avoid disagreement that they end up making bad decisions
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Symptoms of Groupthink
Illusions of invulnerability
—Members assume that the team is too good for criticism or is beyond attack.
Rationalizing unpleasant and disconfirming data
—Members refuse to accept contradictory data or to thoroughly consider alternatives.
Belief in inherent group morality
—Members act as though the group is inherently right and above reproach.
Stereotyping competitors as weak, evil, and stupid
—Members refuse to look realistically at other groups.
Applying direct pressure to deviants to conform to group wishes
—Members refuse to tolerate anyone who suggests the team may be wrong.
Self-censorship by members
—Members refuse to communicate personal concerns to the whole team.
Illusions of unanimity
—Members accept consensus prematurely, without testing its completeness.
Mind guarding
—Members protect the team from hearing disturbing ideas or outside viewpoints.
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conflict and 2 forms of it
At its core conflict involves disagreements among people. And in our experiences, it appears in two quite different forms.
substantative conflict, emotional conflict
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substantative conflict
Substantive conflict involves disagreements over such things as goals and tasks, the allocation of resources, the distribution of rewards, policies and procedures, and job assignments. You are in a substantive conflict with a teammate when, for example, each of you wants to solve a problem by following a different strategy
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emotional conflict
Emotional conflict results from feelings of anger, distrust, dislike, fear, and resentment as well as relationship problems. You know this form of conflict as a clash of personalities or emotions—when you don't want to agree with another person just because you don't like or are angry with him or her.
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What Are the Five Common Styles of Conflict Management?
In conflict situations, a combination of cooperative and aggressive behaviors results in five possible conflict management styles. Competition occurs when aggression dominates our behavior, and accommodation occurs when cooperation dominates. Avoidance occurs with both low aggression and cooperation, whereas compromise occurs with moderate amounts of both. When both cooperation and aggression are high, true collaboration and problem solving are more likely to occur.
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avoidance
In avoidance, everyone withdraws and pretends that conflict doesn't really exist, hoping that it will simply go away. You might think of this as teammates mad about a missed deadline and each unwilling to mention it to the other.
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accomodation
In accommodation, peaceful coexistence is the goal. Differences are played down, and areas of agreement are highlighted, even though the real cause for the conflict doesn't get addressed. Both avoidance and accommodation are forms of lose-lose conflict. No one achieves her or his true desires, and the underlying conflict remains unresolved, often to recur in the future.
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competitoin
n competition, one party wins through superior skill or outright domination. Although the first example that may come to mind is sports, competition is common in work teams. It occurs as authoritative command by team leaders and as railroading or minority domination by team members.
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compromise
In compromise, trade-offs are made, with each party giving up and gaining something of value. Both competition and compromise are forms of win-lose conflict. Each party strives to gain at the other's expense. But whenever one party loses something, seeds for future conflict remain in place.
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collaboration
Unlike the prior methods, collaboration tries to find and address the problem and reconcile the real differences underlying a conflict. As you would expect, it is often time-consuming and stressful. But it's also the most effective conflict management style in terms of real conflict resolution. Collaboration turns a difficult situation into a win-win conflict. Things are resolved to everyone's mutual benefit—no avoiding, no smoothing, no domination, and no compromising. A real agreement is reached. From experience, you should recognize that this approach depends on the willingness of everyone to dig in, confront the issues, and openly and honestly discuss them. When it works, collaboration eliminates the underlying causes of a conflict and creates positive conditions for future teamwork.
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When to Use Alternative Conflict Management Strategies
Collaboration, or problem solving
, is the preferred way to gain true conflict resolution when time and cost permit.
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Avoidance, or withdrawal
, may be used when an issue is trivial, when more important issues are pressing, or when people need to cool down temporarily and regain perspective.
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Competition, or authoritative command
, may be used when quick and decisive action is vital or when unpopular actions must be taken.
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Accommodation, or smoothing
, may be used when issues are more important to others than to yourself or when you want to build “credits” for use in later disagreements.
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Compromise
may be used to arrive at temporary settlements of complex issues or to arrive at expedient solutions when time is limited.
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conflict resolution
Only true conflict resolution, characteristic of the collaborative style, eliminates the underlying causes of a conflict in ways that should prevent similar conflicts in the future.
