Small Group Communications Midterm

grouphate

of anti-pathy and hostility many people have about working in a group, fostered by the many ineffective, time-wasting groups that exist.

group

three or more people with an interdependent goal who interact and influence each other

interdependent goal

An objective shared by members of a small group where they all succeed or fail together

small Group

A group of at least three but few enough members of each to perceive all others as individuals, share some identity or common purpose and share standards for governing their activities as members

small Group Discussion

A small group of people communicating with each other to achieve some interdependent goal to achieve a solution to a shared problem

small Group Discussion Characteristics

1. between 3-7 people
2. a mutually interdependent purpose
3. each person has a sense of belonging in the group
4. involves both verbal and nonverbal communication
5. face-to-face or virtual interactions
6. cooperation between members, even in disagreements and conflict where they are pursuing a group outcome whether the outcome is good or bad

primary group

a group whose main purpose is to meet members needs for inclusion,belonging, and openness

secondary group

to complete a task (also known as task groups) help us meet our needs for control and achievement

activity group

A group formed primarily for members to participate in an activity such as bridge, bowling, hunting, and so forth.

personal growth group

A group of people who come together to develop personal insights, overcome personality problems, and grow personally through feedback and support of others.

learning group

A group discussing for the purpose of learning about and understanding a subject more completely

problem-solving group

A group whose purpose is finding ways to solve a problem or address a particular condition.

committee

a small group of people given an assigned task or responsibility by a larger group or person of authority

ad hoc committee

a group that doesn't work together anymore after their task is completed

standing committee

a group given an area of responsibility that includes many tasks and continues indefinitely.

quality control circle

A group of employees who meet on company time to investigate work-related problems and to make recommendations for solving these problems (also called a quality circle)

self-managed work group

A small group of peers who determine within prescribed limits their own work schedules and procedures.

top management team (TMT)

A team composed of top officers of an organization charged with making complex strategic decisions

social loafer

A person who makes a minimal contribution to the group and assumes the other members will take up the slack

participant-observer

An active participant in a small group who at the same time observes and evaluates its processes and procedures

ethics

the rules or standards that a person or group uses to determine whether conduct or behavior is right and appropriate

context

the situation or environment that influences the dynamics of communication

communication

a transactional process by which people simultaneously create, interpret, and negotiate shared meaning through their interaction

symbol

human creation used to represent something with which it has no inherent relationship; all words are symbols

people-oriented listener

A listener who is sensitive to others, nonjudgmental, and concerned about how his or her behavior affects others; can become distracted from the task by others' problems

action-oriented listener

a listener who focuses on the task

context-oriented listener

a listener who enjoys analyzing information and disecting others arguments

time-oriented listener

a listener sensitive to time

active listening

listening with intent

paraphrase

restatement in one's own words of what one understood a speaker to mean

computer-mediated communication (CMC)

group members use of computers to communicate with each other

net conference

a conference that takes place electronically over networked computers

social presence

the sense of being "there" with another person in a particular moment in time

nonverbal behavior

messages other than words to whcih listeners react

regulator

nonverbal behavior used to control who speaks during a discussion

proxemics

the study of space and territory between and among people

kinesics

study of communication through movements

backchannel

nonverbal vocalizations such as mm-hmm and uh-huh are uttered while another is speaking

dialect

a regional variation in the pronunciation, vocabulary, and/or grammar of a language

paralanguage

nonverbal characteristics of voice and utterance, such as pitch, rate, or tone of voice

haptics

study of perception and use of touch

thelen's principle of least-sized group

the principle that the ideal group contains as few members as possible so long as all necessary perspectives and skills are represented

personal traits

personal traits are major factors that help determine whether a group succeeds or fails. Hirokawa and his colleagues analyzed stories group members to explain why groups succeed or fail.

trait

a relatively enduring, consistent pattern of behavior or other observable characteristic

attitude

a network of beliefs and values that a person holds toward an object, person, or concept

communication apprehension

anxiety or fear of speaking in a variety of social situations

nonassertive behavior

allows one's own rights and beliefs to be ignored or dominated

passive-aggression behavior

someone who subtly sabotages the group, like forgetting to do their work

aggressiveness

behavior designed to win or dominate that fails to respect the rights or beliefs

assertiveness

behavior that shows respect both for your own and other's rights

cognitive complexity

how well developed a group members construct system for interpreting signals

self-monitoring

the extent to which someone pays attention to and controls his or her self-presentation in social situations

rhetorical sensitivity

Speaking and phrasing statements in such a way that the feelings and beliefs of the listener are considered

Extroversion-introversion dimension

Extraverts whether you focus on the visible outer world and introverts your own inner world

Myers Briggs type indicator

a personality measure based on the work of Carl Jung that categorizes individuals based on how they related to the world around them

Sensing intuiting dimension

the type of information individuals use; sensors prefer facts and figures, whereas intuiters prefer to dream about possibilities

Thinking feeling dimension

how individuals prefer to make decision; thinkers are objective and fact based whereas feelers are subjective and emotion based

Perceiving-judging dimension

how people organize the world's; perceivers are spontaneous and flexible where judgers are decisive and prefer structure

agreeableness

cooperative and compliant in a friendly way

Conscientiousness

people who are reliable, diligent, and responsible

openness to experience

people who are imaginative and creative

Neuroticism

people who experience negative emotions with anxiety, fear, and respond to stress in antagonistic or hostile

extrovert

being social

OCEAN

openness, conscientiousness, experience, agreeableness, neuroticism

formal role

official job, established position

informal role

a unique role resulting from a member's pattern of behavior, taking on a role without a formal name

behavior

any observable action by a group member

behavioral function

the effect or function a member's behavior has on the group as a whole

task function

task-oriented member behavior that contributes to accomplishing the goals of the group

maintenance function

relationship-oriented member behavior that reduces tensions, increases solidarity, and facilitates teamwork

self-centered function

action of a small group member, motivated by personal needs

tasks roles

maintenance roles, relation oriented, self-centered roles

collective culture

values the needs of a group or community

individual culture

culture group encourages independence self-assertion, competition and expression of personal needs.

intracultural

within the group

ultraculture

outside the group

deep diversity

different perspectives

high context

relies heavily on subtle, often nonverbal cues to maintain social harmony such as body language and peron's statusperson’s

low context

rely on the spoken or written word to communicate meaning

uncertainty avoidance

the extent to which people try to avoid situations that are unstructured, unclear, or unpredictable

expressive/feminine

warmth, caring , sensitive

instrumental/masculinity

assertive, self-reliance, task oriented

power distance

the perceived degree of inequality among people

synergy

how well people work together

boost moral

a leader who helps achieve a goal

dynamic equilibrium

state of balance

pare to principle

80/20 rule

assembly bonus effect

combined contributions of individual group members

boundary spanner

interacting with groups outside of your group

throughput

how we do it

input

what we got

output

the results

Mehrabian

immediacy(like or dislike), power, responsiveness

transactional

doing it together, participation

Shutz, fundamental interpersonal needs

inclusion, control(some people want to be controlled), affection(openness)