COMMUNICATING IN GROUPS

COMMUNICATING IN GROUPS

1. THE NATURE OF GROUPS

   • A Group is a small collection of people who interact with each other, usually face-to-face, over time in order to reach goals.
   • Interaction/ Interdependence/ Time/ Size/ Goals
   • Virtual and Face-to-Face Groups: Teams who interact with one another through mesiated channels without meeting face-to-face.

2. GOALS OF GROUPS AND THEIR MEMBERS

   • Individual Goals: motives of individual members. Task orientation: getting the job done. Social orientation: pp join together to seek a sense of belonging, to exercise influence over others, to gain the liking of others.
   • Group Goals: the outcome the group seeks to accomplish. Hidden agenda: individual's goal.

3. CHARACTERISTICS OF GROUPS

   • RULES and NORMS. Rules: explicit, officially stated guidelines that govern what the group is supposed to do and how the members should behave. Norms: unstated rules. Social norms: govern the relationship of members to each other. Procedural norms: outline how the group should operate. Task norms: focus on how the job itself should be handled.
   • ROLES: define patterns of behavior expected of members. Formal Roles: assigned by an organization or group partly to establish order. Informal roles: rarely acknowledged by the group. Task role: help the group accomplish its goal. Social role: help the relationships among the members run smoothly. Dysfunctional roles: prevent a group from working effectively.
   • ROLE EMERGENCE: Each member fulfills specific roles.
   • ROLE-RELATED PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS: Blocker, Aggressor, Deserter, Dominator, Recognition Seeker, Joker, and Cynic.
   • PATTERNS OF INTERACTION: Sociogram: suggest the number and complexity of interactions that can occur in a group. All-channel network: when group members stay together and share every piece of information with one another. Chain network: moving sequetially from one member to another. Wheel network: one person acts as a clearinghouse, receiving and relaying messages to all other members.
   • DECISION-MAKING METHODS
     • Concensus: occurs when all members of a group support a decision.
     • Majority Control: risky method.
     • Expert Opinion: one group member will be defined as an expert and will be given the power to make decisions.
     • Minority Control: a few members of a group decide matters.
     • Authority Rule: decision made by 1 person (dictatorship)
     • The most efective approach in a given situation depends on the circumstances: The type of decision, The importance of the decision, TIme available

4. CULTURAL INFLUENCES ON GROUP COMMUNICATION

   • Individualism vs. Collectivism: Members of individualistic cultures view their primary responsiblities as being to themselves. Ones of collectivistic societies feel loyalties and obligations to the group of which they belong to.
   • Power Distance: refers to the degree to which members are willing to accept a difference in power and status between embers of a group.
   • Uncertainty Avoidance: some cultures favor stability an tradition. Ex: Greece, Portugal, Turkey, Mexico, Israel.
   • Task vs. Social Orientation: Task-oriented societies focus on making the team more competent through training and up-to-date methods. Socially oriented societies focus on collective concerns: cooperative problem solving, friendly atmosphere, good physical working conditions.
   • Short vs. Long Term Orientation: some cultures looks for quick payoffs, others are willing to pursuit long-range goals.

5. LEADERSHIP AND POWER IN GROUPS

   • Power in Groups: Power is the ability to influence others.
     • Legitimate Power: Supervisor, Parent, Professor,... (nominal leader)
     • Coercive Power: comes from the threat or actual imposition of unpleasant consequences.
   • Reward Power: when others are influences by the granting or promise of desirable consequences.
   • Expert Power: when we are influenced by people because of what we believe they know or can do.
   • Information Power: comes from a member's knowledge that he or she can help the group reach its goal.
   • Referent Power: comes from the respect, liking, and trust others have for a member. Power is Group Centered, Power is Distributed Among Group Members, Power isn't an Either-Or Concept.
   • What Makes Leaders Effective?
     • Trait Analysis: trait theories of leadership.
     • Leadership Styles: authoritarian leadership style relies on legitimate, coercive, and reward power to influence others. Democratic leadership style invited other members to share in decision making. Laissez-faire leadership style tranforms the group into a leaderless collection of equals.
     • Situational Approach: situational leadership: a leader's style should change with the circumstances.