Chapter Five: Group Behavior

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–0

Chapter Outline

– Nature and definition of Group

– Types of groups
– Stages of group development
– Group task and productivity
– How group control their members
– Group vs team
– Group Decision Making

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–1

 Defining and Classifying Groups

Any numbers of people who:

 interact with one another
 are psychologically aware of one another; and
 perceive themselves to be a group

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–2

 Defining and Classifying Groups(cont’d)

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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–3

 Defining and Classifying Groups (cont’d)

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.

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.
By Aman A. (PhD) 8–4
 Why People Join Groups

• Security
• Status
• Self-esteem
• Affiliation
• Power
• Goal Achievement

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–5

Tuckman (1965) Five-Stage Model of Group Development

Forming Stage
The first stage in group development, characterized
by much uncertainty.

Storming Stage
The second stage in group development,
characterized by intragroup conflict.

Norming Stage
The third stage in group
development, characterized
by close relationships and
cohesiveness.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–6

 …Group Development (cont’d)

Performing Stage
The fourth stage in group development, when the
group is fully functional.

Adjourning Stage
The final stage in group
development for temporary
groups, characterized by
concern with wrapping up
activities rather than
performance.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–7

 Stages of Group Development

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–8

 Group Task and Productivity

• People can be more productive when working

in groups than when working alone, if the
obstacles to group productivity are avoided
•Synergy- the whole is more than the sum of its
parts (2 + 2 > 4)
•Process loss- is the difference between what is
actually produced by a group and what could
have been produced by the group when you
consider its inputs (2 + 2 < 4)

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–9

 How Groups Control Their Members?

Group structure:
Rules
Roles
Norms
Status
Size
Composition
Cohesiveness

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–10

 Group Structure – 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.
By Aman A. (PhD) 8–11
 Group Structure - Roles (cont’d)

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.
By Aman A. (PhD) 8–12
 Group Structure - Norms

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
• Allocation of resources
norms

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–13

 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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–14

 Group Structure - Norms (cont’d)

Conformity
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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–15

 Group Structure - Norms (cont’d)

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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–16

 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
Source: Adapted from S.L. Robinson, and R.J. Bennett. “A Typology of Deviant Workplace Behaviors:
A Multidimensional Scaling Study,” Academy of Management Journal, April 1995, p. 565.
By Aman A. (PhD) 8–17
 Group Structure - Status

Status
A socially defined position or rank given to groups or
group members by others.

Group Norms

Group Member
Status Equity
Status

Culture

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–18

 Group Structure - Size
Social Loafing
The tendency for individuals to expend less effort when
working collectively than when working individually.
Performance

Other conclusions:
• Odd number groups do
better than even.
• Groups of 7 or 9 perform
better overall than larger
or smaller groups.

Group Size
By Aman A. (PhD) 8–19
 Group Structure - Composition

Group Demography
The degree to which members of a group share a
common demographic attribute, such as age, sex,
race, educational level, or length of service in the
organization, and the impact of this attribute on
turnover.

Cohorts
Individuals who, as part of
a group, hold a common
attribute.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–20

 Group Structure - Cohesiveness

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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–21

 Relationship Between Group Cohesiveness,
Performance Norms, and Productivity

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–22

 Group Tasks
 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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–23

 Group Decision Making
 Strengths  Weaknesses
– More complete – More time
information consuming (slower)
– Increased diversity – Increased pressure
of views to conform
– Higher quality of – Domination by one
decisions (more or a few members
accuracy) – Ambiguous
– Increased responsibility
acceptance of
solutions

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–24

 Group Decision Making (cont’d)

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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–25

 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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–26

 Group Decision-Making Techniques
Interacting Groups
Typical groups, in which the members interact with
each other face-to-face.

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.

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–27

 Group Decision-Making Techniques

Brainstorming
An idea-generation process that specifically
encourages any and all alternatives, while
withholding any criticism of those alternatives.

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

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–28

 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

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–29

 Team vs Group

A team is “A small number of people with

complementary skills who are committed to a
common mission, performance goals, and approach
for which they hold themselves mutually
accountable”
Thus while not all groups are teams, all teams can
be considered groups
Teams Vs groups: What is the difference?
Discuss

By Aman A. (PhD) 8–30