GROUP AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION

Group

refers to two or more individuals who are connected by and within social relationships. It is two or more people who perceive themselves as a group and interact in some way.

For a collection of people to be called this, the following criteria must be met:
(a) the members must see themselves as a unit
(b) rewards must be provided to its members
(c) anything that happens to one member affects every other member
(d) the members of the group must share a common goal.

Formal Group

this is formed when people come together to accomplish a goal, and their relationship is professional and less intimate, such as in an organization.

Informal Group

this group is formed spontaneously as soon as individuals start interacting with each other, and the relationship is deep and intimate, such as friends and family.

Group Cohesion

refers to the solidarity and oneness of the group.

The extent to which group members like and trust one another, are committed to accomplishing a team goal, and share a feeling of group pride

Conjunctive Tasks

group performance depends on the least effective group member

Disjunctive Tasks

group performance is based on the most talented group member

Additive Tasks

those for which the group’s performance is equal to the sum of the performances by each group member; each contribution is important

Group Dynamics

the influential actions, processes, and changes that occur within and between groups over time; it also refers to the scientific study of those processes.

Group Structure

refers to the roles, norms, and intermember relationships in the group.

Group Behavior

it refers to the ways in which individuals act and interact within a group setting.

Social Facilitation

it refers to the positive effect of the presence of others on an individual's behavior.

Social Inhibition

the negative effects that occur when a person performs a task in the presence of others.

Audience Effect

a phenomenon wherein a person performs because they are being watched or observed by another person.

Coaction

this refers to the effect on behavior when two or more people are doing the same task in the presence of another. For example, a person tends to eat more when eating with others than when eating alone.

Social Loafing

this refers to the phenomenon where an individual exerts less effort when working in a group.

Free Rider Theory

refers to a situation where some members of a group benefit from the work or contributions of others without putting in their fair share of effort

Groupthink (Irving Janis)

it is a negative state of mind that occurs when members become so cohesive and like-minded that it leads to poor decision-making. For example, if one person dislikes something, everyone follows.

Devil's Advocate

it refers to a group member who intentionally provides an opposing opinion.

Nominal Group

when several people individually work on a problem but do not interact

Interacting Group

when individuals interact to solve a problem

Brainstorming

group members are encouraged to speak out their ideas

Group Polarization

group members will shift their beliefs to a more extreme version of what they already believe individually

Forming Stage

in this stage, team members get to know each other and decide what role they will play. Members are on their best behavior and are anxious about working with others.

Storming Stage

in this stage, the good behavior disappears, and tensions and conflicts start to arise.

Norming Stage

in this stage, the members try to resolve the conflicts and make adjustments.

Performing Stage

in this stage, the members start working together to accomplish their goals.

Adjourning

the end stage of group development, mostly encountered by formal groups.

Upward Communication

it refers to communication within an organization in which the direction of communication is from employees up to the management.

Serial Communication

it is a type of upward communication wherein the message is passed down from one person to another until it reaches the top.

Downward Communication

it refers to communication within an organization in which the direction of communication is from management to employees.

Informal Communication

it refers to communication among employees in an organization that is not directly related to the completion of an organizational task.

Grapevine

a type of informal communication that refers to the unofficial, often rumor-driven flow of information, such as gossip.

Single Strand Grapevine

grapevine is passed from one person to another.

Gossip Grapevine

grapevine is passed to selected individuals.

Probability Grapevine

grapevine is passed randomly among employees.

Cluster Grapevine

grapevine is passed into a group of people, and then that group passes it to another group.

Isolate

an employee who receives less than half of all the grapevine.

Dead Enders

employees who receive much grapevine but don’t pass it to anyone.

Defamation

a statement that injures a third party's reputation.

Triangling

An employee discusses a conflict with a thirdparty such as a friend or supervisor. In doing so, the employee hopes that the third party will talk to the second party and that the conflict will be resolved without the need for the two parties to meet.

Teams

a highly specialized group; a collection of two or more individuals who interact intensively to provide an organizational product or plan.

Work Teams

Consists of groups of employees who manage themselves, assign jobs, plan, and schedule work, make work-related decisions, and solve work-related problems

Functional Team

also known as a vertical team, is composed of individuals from the same department or area of expertise. These teams handle ongoing tasks and responsibilities related to their specific function.

Example: A finance team works together to manage budgets and financial reports.

Cross-functional Team

brings together members from different departments or areas within the organization. This type of team is often formed to solve complex problems or work on projects that require diverse skills and perspectives

Example: launching a new product may involve team members from marketing, research and development, and logistics.

Project Team

a temporary group created to complete a specific project within a set timeline. Once the project is finished, the team usually disbands. A typical example is an IT team assigned to develop a new software application.

Management Teams

this team coordinate, manage, advise, and direct employees and teams. It provides general direction and assistance to work, parallel, and project teams.

Conflict

psychological and behavioral reaction to a perception that another person is keeping you from reaching a goal

Dysfunctional Conflict

a type of conflict that keeps people from working together, lessens productivity, spreads to other areas, and increases turnover

Functional Conflict

moderate levels of conflict can stimulate new ideas, increase friendly competition, and increase team effectiveness

Avoiding Style

a conflict style that involves ignoring or withdrawing from the conflict rather than addressing it directly, hoping the issue will resolve itself or simply go away over time.

Withdrawal

An approach to handling conflict in which one of the parties removes him/herself from the situation to avoid the conflict.

Accommodating Style

a conflict style where a person gives in to the other party's needs or desires, often at the expense of their own. This style prioritizes maintaining harmony and relationships over winning the argument.

Forcing Style

handles conflict in a win-lose fashion and does what it takes to win, with little regard for the other person

Collaborating Style

a conflict style that aims to find a win-win solution where both parties’ needs and concerns are fully addressed.

Compromising Style

nvolves both parties giving up something to reach a mutually acceptable solution. It is a balanced approach that seeks fairness, although it may not fully satisfy either party.