Foundation of Group Behavior

Group:
- A group consists of two or more persons who interact with each other, consciously for the
achievement of certain common objectives.
- Group can also be defined as two or more persons who are interacting with one another in such a
manner that each person influences and is influenced by each other person.
Types of Group:
Groups can be either formal or informal.
Formal Group:
- A group that is created by the organization, for the purpose of accomplishing a specific task is
known as formal group.
- It is a designated work group defined by an organizations structure.
Informal Group:
- A group that is created by the employees themselves, for their own sake is known as informal
group.
- Informal group is group that
Is neither formally structured nor organizationally determined
Appears naturally in response to the need for social contact
Deeply affects behavior and performance.

Types of Formal and Informal Group:

Formal Group
Command Group
- A group composed of the individuals
who report directly to a given manager.
- It is determined by organization chart.
- Example: A school principle and his
18teacher form a command group.
Task Group
- A group composed of the individuals who work
together to complete a job or task in an organization
but not limited by hierarchical boundaries.
- It can cross command relationship.
- Example: ad hoc committees, project groups,
standing committees etc.
Why People Join Groups?
1. Security: By joining a group individuals can reduce the insecurity of "standing alone". When
people are a part of group,
They feel stronger,
They have fewer self-doubts, and
They are more resistant to threats.
Informal Group
Interest Group
- Interest groups are composed of individuals
who may not be members of the same
organization (command or task groups), but
they are united by their interest in a common
issue.
- Example: a group of University Professors.
They organize a seminar on Law and Order
Problems in their country.
Friendship Group
- Friendship groups are associations of people
who like each other and who like to be
together.
- Such groups are formed because members
have one or more common characteristics,
such as age or ethnic heritage, political
beliefs, religious values and other bonds of
attraction.
- Example: A group of employees who form a
friendship group may have an exercise group.

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2. Status: Inclusion in a group viewed by outsiders as important; provides recognition and status for
group members.

3. Self-esteem: Group can provide feelings of self-worth to group members. In addition to conveying
status to outsiders, membership can also give increased feelings of worth to the group members
themselves.

4. Affiliation: Groups can fulfill social needs. People enjoy regular interaction that comes with group
members. On-the-job interaction can be primary source for fulfilling need for affiliation.

5. Power: What cannot be achieved individually often becomes possible through group action. There is
power in numbers.

6. Goal achievement: Some tasks

Require more than one person;
Need to pool talents, knowledge or power to complete the job.
In such instances management may depend on the use of a formal group.

Five Stages of Group Development Model

Psychologist Bruce Tuckman first came up with the stages of group development model in his 1965
article, "Developmental Sequence in Small Groups."

Forming Stage:
The first stage is forming, is characterized by a great deal of uncertainty about the groups
purpose, structure, and leadership.
Members are trying to determine what types of behavior are acceptable.
Stage is complete when members have begun to think of themselves as part of a group.

Storming Stage:
The second stage is storming, is characterized by intragroup conflict.
Members accept the existence of the group, but there is resistance to constraints imposes on
individuality.
There is conflict over who will control the group.
Stage is complete, when there will be a relatively clear hierarchy of leadership within the group.

Norming Stage:
The third stage is norming in which close relationships develop and the group demonstrates
cohesiveness.
There is now a strong sense of group identity and brotherhood/ friendliness.
The stage is complete when the group structure become stronger and more certain, and the
group has learnt a common set of expectations of what defines correct member behavior.

Performing Stage:
The fourth stage is performing in which the structure is fully functional and accepted.
Group energy has moved from getting to know and understand each other to performing the
task at hand.
For permanent work groups, performing is the last stage in group development.

Adjourning Stage:
Adjourning stage is the final stage in group development for temporary groups, when the group
dissolve itself after achieving the objectives for which it was created, starts gradually.
This stage is characterized by concern with wrapping up activities rather than performance.

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Critique of the Five-Stage Model
Assumption: The group becomes more effective as it progresses through the first four stages
This assumption is not always true because group behavior is more complex.
Under some conditions, high levels of conflict may be helpful for high performance.
The process is not always linear.
Several stages may occur simultaneously.
Groups even occasionally return to previous stages.
The five stage model ignores the organizational context in term of work related behavior.
An Alternative Model for Group Formation
Temporary groups with deadlines don't follow the five-stage model. They follow punctuated equilibrium
model.
Punctuated equilibrium model: Temporary groups under deadlines go through transitions between inertia
and activityat the halfway point, they experience an increase in productivity.
Studies indicate that they have their own unique sequencing of actions or inactions. Sequence of Actions
are following:
1. Setting group direction- Their first meeting sets the group's direction
2. First phase of inertia- This first phase of group activity is one of inertia
3. Halfway point transition- A transition takes place at the end of this first
phase, which occurs exactly when the group has
used up half its allotted time.
4. Major changes- A transition initiates major changes.
5. Second phase of inertia- A second phase of inertia follows the transition.
6. Accelerated activity- The group's last meeting is characterized by
markedly accelerated activity.
This pattern is called the punctuated equilibrium and is shown below

Figure: Punctuated equilibrium Model

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 Group Properties
1. Roles: All group members are actors, each playing a role. Role refers to a set of
expected behavior patterns attributed to (belonging to or related to) someone occupying
a given position in a social unit.
2. Norms: Norms refers to the acceptable standards of behavior within a group that are
shared by the groups members.
Norms tell members what they should and should not to do under certain circumstances.
3. Status: Status is a socially defined position or rank given to groups or group members by
others permeates every society.
It differentiates group members.
Status is an important factor in understanding behavior because it is significant
motivator,
4. Size: Group size affects behavior.
A group consists of twelve or more members is a large group and
A group consists of seven or fewer is a small group.
5. Cohesiveness: Cohesiveness refers to how much group members are attracted to each
other and are motivated to stay in the group.
Group Property 1: Roles:
How role requirements changes in different situations?
Every group member has multiple roles and each one imposes different requirements on him.
Role Identity
Certain attitudes and behaviors consistent with a role and they create role identity.
People have the ability to shift role rapidly when they recognize a situation and its demands
clearly require major change.
Role Perception
Role perception refers to an individuals view of how he or she is supposed to act in a given
situation.
We get these perceptions from external stimuli all around us (friends, family, TV, etc.)
Role Expectations
Role expectations are defined as how others believe a person should act in a given situation.
In the workplace, we look at role expectation through the psychological contract. Psychological
Contract is an unwritten agreement that sets out what management expects from an employee
and vice versa. In effect this contract defines the behavioral expectation that go with every role.
Role Conflict
Role conflict can be defined as a situation in which an individual is challenged by different role
expectations.
It exists when an individual finds that compliance with one role may make it difficult to comply
another.
Research shows that conflict between family and work roles is one of the most significant sources
of stress for most employees.
Zimbardos prison experiment: One of the most illuminating role experiments was done a number of years
ago by Stanford University psychologist Philip Zimbardo and his associates.

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 - To study the roles people play in prison situations, Zimbardo converted a basement of the
Stanford University psychology building into a fake prison. He advertised for students to play the
roles of prisoners and guards for a fortnight.
- More than 70 applicants answered the ad and gave diagnostic interviews and personality tests to
eliminate candidates who had psychological problems, medical disabilities, or a history of crime
or drug abuse. The study comprised 24 male college students (chosen from 75 volunteers) who
were paid $15 per day to take part in the experiment.
- Participants were randomly assigned to either the role of prisoner or guard in a simulated prison
environment. The prison simulation was kept as real life as possible.
- Within six days the experiment was stopped due to concerns:
o Guards had dehumanized the prisoners.
o Prisoners were subservient.
o Fell into the roles as they understood them.
o No real resistance felt
People will readily conform to the social roles they are expected to play.
Group Property 2: Norms
Classes of Norms
1. Performance norms: Performance norms are focused on how hard a person should work in a
given group.
- How to get the job done
- What their level of output should be
- What level of tardiness is appropriate and the like.
2. Appearance norms: Appearance norm informs or guides us as to how we should look or what our
physical appearance should be
- What fashion we should wear or how we should style our hair or any number of areas related to
how we should look.
For example: dress codes, unspoken rules about when to look busy.
3. Social arrangement norms: This norm is focused on how we should act in social settings-
friendships and the like. For example: with whom group members eat lunch, whether to form
friendship on and off the job.
4. Allocation of resources norms: This norm is focused on distribution and assignments of jobs and
material like pay and equipment.

Group Norms and the Hawthorne Studies:

A series of studies undertaken by Harvard University professor Elton Mayo at Western Electric
Companys Hawthorne Works in Chicago between 1924 and 1932.
Originally began by Western Electric officials and later overseen by Professor Elton Mayo.
- The Hawthorne researchers began by examining the relationship between the physical
environment and productivity. Illumination and other working conditions were selected to
represent this physical environment.
- The second set of experiments in the relay assembly test room at Western Electric. Researchers
chose two women as test subjects and asked them to choose four other workers to join the test
group. Together the women worked in a separate room over the course of five years (19271932)
assembling telephone relays.
- The third study in Bank wiring observation room. The purpose of this study was to find out how
payment incentives would affect productivity.
Research Conclusions:
Worker behavior and sentiments were closely related.
Group influences (norms) were significant in affecting individual behavior.

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 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.
Norms and Behavior

Demonstrate how norms influence on an individual's behavior?

In order to fit into different groups, we will go through some process of conformity.
Conformity: Conformity means the adjustment of ones behavior to align ( ) with the norms of the
group.
As a member of a group, one desire acceptance by the group, so one is capable to conforming to the
group's norms. But people belong to many groups, and some of them even have inappropriate or
conflicting norms, normally people choose to conform to the reference group.
To understand how norms influence on an individual's behavior we must first understand what is meant
by a reference group.
Reference Groups: A reference group is a group that individuals use as a comparison when looking at
other groups.
Reference groups are important groups to which individuals belong or hope to belong and with whose
norms individuals are likely to conform/agree.
Reference groups are characterized by as ones in which a person
- Is aware of other members
- Defines himself or herself as a member
- Or would like to be a member and
- Feels that the group members are significant to him or her.
Asch Studies
Group pressure for conformity can have on an individual members judgment and attitudes was stated in
the now-classic studies by Solomon Asch
- Asch studies demonstrated the power of conformance.
- Aschs findings are culture bound.

Example of cards used in Aschs study

Deviant Workplace Behavior

Deviant Workplace Behavior is voluntary behavior that violates significant organizational norms
and, in doing so, threatens the well-being of the organization
It also called antisocial behavior or workplace incivility.

Typology: According to Robinson and Bennetts (1995) typology of workplace deviance, deviant behavior
varies along two dimensions, minor versus serious and interpersonal versus organizational. The first

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dimension deals with the seriousness of the offense while the second dimension focuses on the target of
the deviant behavior.

1. Production deviance occurs when employees violate working speed, the standards of quality and
quantity while producing goods or services. Although production deviance considered a minor
form of deviance, it may be quite costly to an organization. Example: wasting resources, leaving
early, or intentionally working slowly.
2. Political deviance occurs when employees show favoritism for certain stakeholders (e.g.,
customers, co-workers, suppliers) thus placing others at a disadvantage. Example: Blaming
coworkers, compromising company secrets, and gossiping and spreading rumors etc.
3. Property deviance involves the acquisition or destruction of property without company approval.
Employees may engage themselves in property deviance by stealing products, padding expense
accounts, or expending sales support resources on unqualified customer prospects.cProperty
deviance has obvious negative effects on an organizations bottom line.
4. Personal aggression involves hostile or aggressive behavior. Personal deviance can harm an
organizations reputation and have serious negative consequences for the targeted individuals.
Example: sexual harassment, verbal abuse, and threats of physical harm etc.
Group Influence on Deviant Behavior
Group norms can influence the presence of deviant behavior.
Simply belonging to a group increases the probability of deviance.
Being in a group allows individuals to hide and creates a false sense of confidence that they wont
be caught.
Group Property 3: Status

Status Characteristics Theory

- Status characteristics theory states that differences in status characteristics create hierarchies
within groups.
- Status derived from one of three sources:
1. Power a person has over others: People who control the outcomes of a group through their power
tend to be perceived as high status.

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 2. Ability to contribute to group goals: People whose contribution are critical to the group success
tend to have high status.
3. Personal characteristics: Someone whose characteristics are positively valued by the group (for
example. Good looks, intelligence, money, or friendly personality) typically has higher status.
Status Effects
On Norms and Conformity
High-status members are less limited by norms and pressure to conform. They are often given
more freedom to deviate from norms. They are also better able to resist conformity pressure than
their low status peers.
Some level of deviance is allowed to high-status members so long as it doesnt affect group goal
achievement.
On Group Interaction
High-status members are more assertive. They speak out more often, criticize more, state more
commands, and interrupt other more often.
Large status differences limit diversity of ideas and creativity.
On Equity:
It is important to for group members to believe that the status hierarchy is equitable.
If status is perceived to be inequitable, it will create disequilibrium, which will result in various
forms of corrective behavior.
Group Property 4: Size

How group size affects group performance?

Attribute Best use of a group

Speed The smaller groups are faster at completing tasks

than are larger ones.
Individual Performance Individuals perform better in smaller groups than in
larger ones.
Problem Solving For groups engaged in problem solving, large
groups consistently get better marks than their
smaller counterparts.
Diverse Input Larger groups with dozen or more member are
good for gaining diverse input.
Fact-Finding Goals If the goal is fact-finding, larger groups are more
effective.
Overall Performance Smaller groups are better at doing something
productive. They tend to be more effective for
taking action.
Issues with Group Size
One of the most important findings related to the size of group is social loafing.
Social Loafing: Social Loafing can be defined as the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when
working collectively than when working individually.
German psychologist Max Ringelmann compared the results of individual and group performance on a
rope pulling task. According to his finding-
Group performance increases with group size, but the addition of new members to the group has
diminishing returns on productivity.
Social loafing is caused by either equity concerns or a dispersion of responsibility.

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Managerial Implications
Build in individual accountability
There are several ways to prevent social loafing :
1. Set group goals so that the group has a common purpose to strive toward.
2. Increase intergroup competition, which again focuses the group on the shared outcome.
3. Engage in peer evaluation so that each persons contribution to the group is evaluated by each
group member.
4. Distribute group rewards based on each members unique contribution.
Group Property 5: Cohesiveness
The relationship between cohesiveness and productivity depends on the performance related norms
established by group.

- If performance related norms are high (for example, high output, quality work, cooperation with
individuals outside the group), a cohesive group will be more productive than a less cohesive
group.
- But if cohesiveness is high and performance norms are low, productivity will be low.
- If cohesiveness is low and performance norms are high, productivity increases. But productivity is
moderate. That means it increases less than in the high cohesiveness/high norm situation.
- When cohesiveness and performance related norms are both low, productivity falls into the
moderate to low range.
What can manager do to encourage or increase group cohesiveness?
1. Make the group smaller.
2. Encourage agreement with group goals.
3. Increase the time members spend together.
4. Increase group status and admission difficulty.
5. Stimulate competition with other groups.
6. Give rewards to the group, not to individuals.
7. Physically isolate the group.
Group Decision Making vs. Individual Choice
Point of differences Group Decision Making vs. Individual Choice
Accuracy Group decisions are generally more accurate than the decisions
of the average individual in a group, but they are less accurate
than the judgments of the most accurate group member
Speed Individuals are superior in decision making.
Creativity Groups tend to be more effective in case of creativity than
individuals.
Degree of acceptance Degree of acceptance of group decisions is higher.
Efficiency Groups are generally less efficient than individuals because
group decisions are time-consuming

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Contrast the strength and weakness of group decision making.

Group Strengths:
1. Groups generate more complete information and knowledge.
2. By aggregating the resource of several individuals, groups bring more input into decision process.
3. Groups can bring heterogeneity to the decision process.
4. They offer increased diversity of views and greater creativity
5. They lead to increased acceptance of a solution.
6. Decisions are generally more accurate (but not as accurate as the most accurate group member).
Group member who participated in making decision enthusiastically support the decision and
encourage other to accept it.
Group Weaknesses:
1. Group decisions are time-consuming because a group typically takes more time to reach a
solution than an individual.
2. There are conformity pressures in the group.
3. Group discussion can be dominated by a few members.
4. Group decisions suffer from ambiguous responsibility.
Group Decision Making Phenomena
Groupthink
Group think can be defined as the practice of thinking or making decisions as a group in
a way that discourages creativity or individual responsibility.
Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people in which
the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an irrational decision-making
outcome
It is related to norms and hinders performance.

Symptoms:
- Group members rationalize any resistance to the assumptions they have made.
- Members apply direct pressure on those who express doubts about shared views or who
question about the alternative which is favored by the majority.
- Members who have doubts or different points of view keep silent about misgivings.
- There appears to be an illusion of unanimity.
To Minimize Groupthink:
- Managers can monitor groups size and should reduce the size of the group to 10 or less.
- They should also encourage group leaders to play an impartial role.
- They should appoint one group member to play the role of devils advocate.
- They can use exercises that influence active discussion of different alternatives without
threatening the group.

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 Group-shift:

Group-shift is a phenomenon in which the initial positions of individual members of a group are
exaggerated toward a more extreme position while discussing a given set of alternatives and arriving at a
solution. This causes a shift to more conservative or more risky behavior.

Group Decision-making Techniques

Interacting groups:

- In interacting groups members meet face-to-face and rely on verbal and nonverbal
communication.
- These groups often censor themselves and pressure individual members toward conformity of
opinion.

Brainstorming: Brainstorming can be defined as an idea-generation process that specifically encourages

any and all alternatives while withholding any criticism of those alternatives.

- Brainstorming is designed to overcome pressure for conformity.

- This technique involves a group of people, usually between five and ten, sitting around a table,
generating ideas in the form of free association. The primary focus is on generation of ideas
rather them on evaluation of ideas.
- Brainstorming may generate ideas-but not in a very efficient manner.

Nominal Group Technique (NGT): Nominal group technique is similar to brainstorming except that the
approach is more structured.

NGT works by restricting discussion during the decision-making process.

Members are physically present, meet face to face to pool their judgments in a systematic
manner but they operate independently.
It permits a group to meet formally but not restrict independent thinking as does an interacting
group.

Electronic Meeting

A meeting in which members interact on computers that facilitates creative problem solving and decision-
making of groups within or across organizations.

- Allow anonymity of comments and aggregation of votes.

- Use computers to hold large meetings of up to 50 people

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