Groups and Teams

True group

A group consisting of 2 or more people working together towards a common goal, characterized by quality interactions, self-categorization, social structure, mutual benefit, and common fate.

Tuckman's five stage model

A model of group development consisting of five stages - forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning - that describes the process of bringing a group together, determining roles and responsibilities, developing unity, working towards the goal, and reaching the goal and planning for the future.

Pendular perspective

A model of group development that suggests groups go through a dynamic back and forth process consisting of four stages - orientation, differentiation and conflict, resolution and cohesion, and differentiation and conflict - where the group experiences getting along, disagreement, working through conflict, and repeating the cycle.

Punctuated equilibrium model

A model of group development that suggests groups experience periods of instability due to external forces, leading to a shift in the group's behavior and dynamics.

Romance of Teams

The decision-making process of determining whether a task requires teamwork or not, and ensuring the right conditions are in place to increase the chances of team success.

Process loss

The potential decrease in performance or efficiency when two people work together, as individuals need to consider their interactions with each other.

Group norms

Shared expectations of behavior within a social setting, including function, descriptive norms, injunctive norms, informational norms, and integrative norms.

Group cohesion

The belief in group unity, which is multidimensional, dynamic, and has a moderate to large effect on group performance. It includes collective efficacy, transactive memory, and factors like performance, commitment, satisfaction, and burnout.

Types of team conflict

Task conflict, process conflict, and relationship conflict, which can arise within a team and impact its functioning.

Flaws in group decision making

Planning fallacy, where groups tend to be overly optimistic in their planning, and group polarization, where groups end up taking more extreme positions than their initial inclinations.

Social loafing

The tendency of individuals to not contribute their personal time, effort, or resources to a group, leading to reduced group performance.

Common mistakes in team management

Using teams when not necessary, treating individuals within a team setting as individuals rather than a team, giving a team too much freedom without proper guidance, not considering the context in which the team will work, lack of incentives/motivation, and not recognizing that not everyone can work effectively in a team setting.

Conditions that optimize the chances of team success

Establishing the right track for the team early on, ensuring proper team formation and development.