GROUP DYNAMICS

AND
COMMUNICATION
What is group ?
Different types of groups
Stages of group development.
Group Properties
What is group decision making ?
Group Decision-Making Techniques
Dimensions of group dynamics
Communication process
Essentials of interpersonal communication
Barriers to effective communication
Group culture
Conclusion
 DEFINING AND CLASSIFYING
GROUPS
Group(s)
Two or more individuals interacting and
interdependent, who have come together
to achieve particular objectives.

Formal Group Informal Group

A designated work A group that is neither
group defined by the formally structured nor
organization’s structure. organizationally determined;
appears in response to the
need for social contact.
 Types of formal group

Command Group Task Group

A group composed of Those working together
the individuals who to complete a job or task.
report directly to a
given manager.

Types of informal group

Interest Group Friendship Group
Those working together Those brought together
to attain a specific because they share one
objective with which or more common
each is concerned. characteristics.
WHY DO PEOPLE FORM
GROUPS ?
 Consider the celebrations that follow a
cricket win.
 Fans have staked their own self-image
on the performance of someone else.
 Fans of the losing team feel dejected ,
even embarassed.
 The human tendency to take personal
pride or offense for the accomplishments
of a group is explained by the Social
identity theory.
 SOCIAL IDENTITY THEORY

Social identity theory: The perspective that

considers when and why individuals
consider themselves members of groups.
SOCIAL IDENTITY THEORY

Downside of social identity :

Ingroup favouritism : This means we
see members of our ingroup better
than other people, and people
not in our group as all the same.
 Leads to stereotyping
When do people develop a social
identity ?
1. Similarity
2. Distinctiveness
3. Status
4. Uncertainty reduction
 WHY PEOPLE JOIN GROUPS ?

•Security
•Status
•Self-esteem
•Affiliation
•Power
•Goal Achievement
STAGES OF GROUP DEVELOPMENT
 AN ALTERNATIVE MODEL:
TEMPORARY GROUPS WITH
DEADLINES
Sequence of actions:
1. Setting group direction
2. First phase of inertia
3. Half-way point
transition
4. Major changes
5. Second phase of
inertia
6. Accelerated activity
 GROUP PROPERTIES

Roles
Norms
Status
Size
Cohesiveness
 ROLES
Role(s)
A set of expected behavior patterns attributed to
someone occupying a given position in a social unit.

Role Identity
Certain attitudes and behaviors
consistent with a role.

Role Perception
An individual’s view of how he or she
is supposed to act in a given situation.
Role Expectations
How others believe a person should act in a given
situation.

Psychological Contract
An unwritten agreement that sets out what
management expects from the employee and vice
versa.

Role Conflict
A situation in which an individual is confronted by
divergent role expectations.
 NORMS
Acceptable standards of behavior within a group
that are shared by the group’s members.

Classes of Norms:
• Performance norms
• Appearance norms
• Social arrangement norms
• Resource allocation norms
 Group Norms & The Hawthorne
Studies
 A series of studies undertaken by Elton Mayo at
Western Electric Company’s Hawthorne Works in
Chicago between 1924 and 1932.
 Research Conclusions:
 Worker behavior and sentiments were closely
related.
 Group influences (norms) were significant in
affecting individual behavior.
 Group standards (norms) were highly effective
in establishing individual worker output.
 Money was less a factor in determining worker
output than were group standards, sentiments,
and security.
Conformity ASCH STUDY

Adjusting one’s behavior to align

with the norms of the group.

Reference Groups
Important groups to which
individuals belong or hope
to belong and with whose
norms individuals are likely
to conform.
Deviant Workplace Behavior

Antisocial actions by organizational members

that intentionally violate established norms and
result in negative consequences for the
organization, its members, or both.

Group norms can influence the

presence of deviant behavior.
 TYPOLOGY OF DEVIANT WORKPLACE
BEHAVIOR
Category Examples

Production Leaving early

Intentionally working slowly
Wasting resources
Property Sabotage
Lying about hours worked
Stealing from the organization
Political Showing favoritism
Gossiping and spreading rumors
Blaming coworkers
Personal Aggression Sexual harassment
Verbal abuse
Stealing from coworkers
STATUS
A socially defined position or rank given to groups or
group members by others.

Power over Norms &

Others Interaction

Ability to Group Member

Contribute Status

Other things influencing

Personal or influenced by status
Characteristics
National
Status Inequity
Culture
SIZE

 Advantages of small group :-

1. Interact more with each other and easier to co-
ordinate
2. More motivated , satisfied and committed
3. Easier to share information
4. Faster at completing tasks
5. Individuals perform better in smaller groups

 Disadvantages of small group :-

1. Less number of ideas
 Advantages of large group :-
1. More resources at their disposal to achieve
group goals
2. Enables manager to obtain division of labor
advantages.

 Disadvantages of large group :-

1. Problem in communication and co-ordination
2. Conflict.
SOCIAL LOAFING

The tendency for individuals to

expend less effort when working
collectively than when working
individually.

What causes social loafing?

 Ways to prevent social loafing:
(1) Set group goals, so the group has a common
purpose to strive toward;
(2) increase intergroup competition, which again
focuses on the shared outcome;
(3) engage in peer evaluation so each person
evaluates each other person’s contribution;
(4) select members who have high motivation
and prefer to work in groups, and
(5) if possible, base group rewards in part on each
member’s unique contributions.
 COHESIVENESS
Degree to which group members are attracted to
each other and are motivated to stay in the group.

Increasing group cohesiveness:

1. Make the group smaller.
2. Encourage agreement with group goals.
3. Increase time members spend together.
4. Increase group status and admission
difficultly.
5. Stimulate competition with other groups.
6. Give rewards to the group, not individuals.
7. Physically isolate the group.
 Relationship Between Group
Cohesiveness, Performance Norms, and
Productivity
GROUP DECISION MAKING

 Decision-making
 Large groups facilitate the pooling of information about
complex tasks.
 Smaller groups are better suited to coordinating and
facilitating the implementation of complex tasks.
 Simple, routine standardized tasks reduce the
requirement that group processes be effective in order
for the group to perform well.
 Strengths  Weaknesses
 More complete  More time consuming
information (slower)
 Increased diversity of  Increased pressure to
views conform
 Higher quality of  Domination by one or
decisions (more a few members
accuracy)
 Ambiguous
 Increased responsibility
acceptance of
solutions
Effectiveness & Efficiency

 Effectiveness:
Accuracy – group is better than
average individual but worse than
most accurate group member
Speed – individuals are faster
Creativity – groups are better
Degree of acceptance – groups are
better
 Efficiency – groups are generally less
efficient
 Two bi-products of group decision
making are:-
Groupthink
Phenomenon in which the norm for consensus
overrides the realistic appraisal of alternative course
of action.

Groupshift
A change in decision risk between the group’s
decision and the individual decision that member
within the group would make; can be either toward
conservatism or greater risk.
Symptoms Of The Groupthink
Phenomenon

 Group members rationalize any resistance to

the assumptions they have made.
 Members apply direct pressures on those
who express doubts about shared views or
who question the alternative favored by the
majority.
 Members who have doubts or differing
points of view keep silent about misgivings.
 There appears to be an illusion of unanimity.
 GROUP DECISION-MAKING
TECHNIQUES
Interacting Groups
Typical groups, in which the members interact with
each other face-to-face.

Brainstorming
An idea-generation process that specifically
encourages any and all alternatives, while withholding
any criticism of those alternatives
Nominal Group Technique
A group decision-making method in which
individual members meet face-to-face to pool
their judgments in a systematic but independent
fashion.

Electronic Meeting
A meeting in which members interact on
computers, allowing for anonymity of
comments and aggregation of votes.
 Evaluating Group Effectiveness

TYPE OF GROUP
Effectiveness Criteria Interacting Brainstorming Nominal Electronic
Number and quality of ideas Low Moderate High High
Social pressure High Low Moderate Low
Money costs Low Low Low High
Speed Moderate Moderate Moderate Moderate
Task orientation Low High High High
Potential for interpersonal conflict High Low Moderate Low
Commitment to solution High Not applicable Moderate Moderate
Development of High High Moderate Low
group cohesiveness
 GROUP DYNAMICS

Group dynamics concern the forces

operating within groups that affect the
way members relate to and work with one
another.
FEATURES OF GROUP
DYNAMICS

 Concerned with group

 Changes

 Rigidity or flexibility

 Continuous process
GROUP DIMENSIONS

Group
Dimensions

Culture
Communication
and Interaction
patterns

Social Integration
Cohesion and Influence
 COMMUNICATION

The transference and the

understanding of
meaning.

Communication Functions
1. Control member behavior
2. Foster motivation for what is to be done
3. Provide a release for emotional expression
4. Provide information needed to make decisions
 COMMUNICATION PROCESS

Communication Process

The steps between a source and a receiver that

result in the transference and understanding of
meaning.
 COMMUNICATION CHANNELS

 Channel
The medium selected by the sender through which the
message travels to the receiver.
 Types of Channels
 Formal Channels

Are established by the organization and transmit

messages that are related to the professional activities
of members.
 Informal Channels
Used to transmit personal or social messages in the
organization. These informal channels are spontaneous
and emerge as a response to individual choices.
 DIRECTION OF COMMUNICATION

Upward Downward Lateral

DIRECTION OF COMMUNICATION

CEO D
O
U W
P VP VP N
W W
A A
R Mgr Mgr Mgr Mgr R
D D

LATERAL
 INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION

➢ Oral Communication

Advantages: Speed and feedback

Disadvantage: Distortion of the message

➢ Written Communication

Advantages: Tangible and verifiable

Disadvantages: Time-consuming and lacks

feedback
 NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION

Body Movement Intonations

Facial Expressions Physical Distance

➢ Nonverbal Communication
 Advantages:

Supports other communications and provides

observable expression of emotions and
feelings

 Disadvantage:

Misperception of body language or gestures

can influence receiver’s interpretation of
message
COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
 SMALL GROUP NETWORK EFFECTIVENESS

 Small group effectiveness depends on the desired

outcome variable
TYPES OF NETWORKS
Criteria Chain Wheel All
Channel
Speed Moderate Fast Fast
Accuracy High High Moderate
Emergence of a leader Moderate High
None
Member satisfaction Moderate Low
High
 GRAPEVINE

 Three Main Characteristics

1. Informal, not controlled by
management

2. Perceived by most
employees as being more
believable and reliable than
formal communications

3. Largely used to serve the self-

interests of those who use it
Results from:
 Desire for information about important
situations

 Ambiguous conditions

 Conditions that cause anxiety

Insightful to managers

Serves employee’s social needs

REDUCING RUMORS

1. Announce timetables for making

important decisions

2. Explain decisions and behaviors that

may appear inconsistent or secretive

3. Emphasize the downside, as well as the

upside, of current decisions and future
plans

4. Openly discuss worst-case possibilities—

they are almost never as anxiety-
provoking as the unspoken fantasy
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS

 E-mail
 Advantages: quickly written, sent, and stored;
low cost for distribution
 Disadvantages:
Messages are easily and commonly
misinterpreted
Not appropriate for sending negative
messages
Overused and overloading readers
Removes inhibitions and can cause
emotional responses and flaming
Difficult to “get” emotional state
understood – emoticons
 Non-private: e-mail is often monitored and
may be forwarded to anyone
 Instant messaging/Text messaging
• Forms of “real time” communication of short
messages that often use portable
communication devices.
• Disadvantage: can be intrusive and
distracting.
 Intranet
• A private organization-wide information
network.
 Extranet
• An information network connecting
employees with external suppliers,
customers, and strategic partners.
 Videoconferencing
• An extension of an intranet or extranet that
permits face-to-face virtual meetings via
video links.
 CHOICE OF COMMUNICATION CHANNEL

Channel Richness

The capacity of a communication channel to

convey information effectively.

Characteristics of Rich Channels

1. Handle multiple cues simultaneously.
2. Facilitate rapid feedback.
3. Are very personal in context.
MEDIA RICHNESS MODEL

Low channel richness High channel richness

Routine Nonroutine
 Richest channels — face-to-face communication.

 Moderately rich channels — telephone, electronic

chat rooms, E-mail, written memos, and letters.

 Leanest channels — posted notices and bulletins.

BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

Filtering

A sender’s manipulation of information so that it will be

seen more favorably by the receiver.

Selective Perception

People selectively interpret what they see on the basis of

their interests, background, experience, and attitudes.

Information Overload

A condition in which information inflow exceeds an

individual’s processing capacity.
 Emotions

How a receiver feels at the time a message is

received will influence how the message is
interpreted.

Language

Words have different

meanings to different
people.
Communication Apprehension

Undue tension and anxiety about oral

communication, written communication, or both.
 Silence as Communication
 Absence of speech or noise

Powerful form of communication

Can indicate

Thinking

Anger

Fear

Watch for gaps, pauses, & hesitations in

conversations
Common sources of noise in interpersonal
communication.
 Physical distractions
 Semantic problems
 Mixed messages
 Cultural differences
 Absence of feedback
 Status effects
 “POLITICALLY CORRECT” COMMUNICATION

 Certain words do stereotype, intimidate, and insult individuals.

 In an increasingly diverse workforce, we must be sensitive to

how words might offend others.

“Garbage” becomes “post-consumer waste materials”

“Quotas” become “educational equity”

“Women” become “people of gender”

 Such non-standard sanitizing of potentially offensive words

can reduce the clarity of messages
GROUP CULTURE

Values, beliefs, customs, and traditions held in

common by group members.

Cultural
barriers
Perception
differences

Semantics

Word Tone
Connotatio differences
ns
HAND GESTURES MEAN DIFFERENT THINGS IN
DIFFERENT COUNTRIES
 CULTURAL CONTEXT

Cultures tend to differ in the degree to which

context influences the meaning individuals take
from communication
High-Context Cultures

Cultures that rely heavily on

nonverbal and subtle situational
cues to communication.
Low-Context Cultures

Cultures that rely heavily on words to

convey meaning in communication.
 A CULTURAL GUIDE

Assume Emphasize
Differences Description

Develop a Cultivate
Hypothesis Empathy
TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
 CONCLUSION

 The groups operate on a common task and common attitudes.

 The group dynamics is concerned with the interaction between the

group members in a social situation.

 This is concerned with the gaining in the knowledge of the group,

how they develop and their effect on the individual members and
the organization in which they function.
 The group dynamics is essential to study since it
helps to find how the relationships are made within
a group and how the forces act within the group
members in a social setting.

 This helps to recognize the formation of group and

how a group should be organized, lead and
promoted.
RIGHT AWAY WE HAD COMMUNICATED
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