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COURSE UNIT:
LECTURER:
Presenters
1.
Kyobe Godfrey
2.
Nekesa Carol
3.
4.
Okoth Joseph
Kyambadde
Bogere Keneth
Submission Date:
There are many different types of groups which can be broadly divided into two categories,
depending on whether the task or the experience of the group is the central concern.
Because of the various reasons for setting up or disbanding groups, groups are continuously
created, they continue evolving in structure and process, and get adjourned from time to time,
making them quite a dynamic but vital component in task accomplishment, support or even
identity in an organisation.
As dynamic structures, there are several group attributes, which when paid attention to
significantly provide the knowledge of achieving the best results possible from group activity,
which include group cohesiveness and norms.
Usually group cohesiveness and group norms develop to enable the group to achieve more than
individuals would be able to on their own.
GROUP COHESIVENESS
Group Cohesiveness is the extent to which the members of a group find staying together to be in
mutual interest. (businessdictionary.com; 2015).
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Cohesion refers to a tendency for a group to be in unity while working together towards a goal
or to satisfy the emotional needs of its members.
Most researchers define cohesion to be task commitment and interpersonal
attraction to the group (Beal, D. J., Cohen, R., Burke, M. J. & McLendon, C. L.
2003)
Jayoti Bala, further categorises group cohesion into two.
Task cohesion
Social cohesion.
Small group size has a greater probability of being cohesive than large
group sizes in an organization. When team size increases, possibility of
agreement towards the common goal and mutual interaction decreases.
When group size increases, it restricts inter group and intra group
communication and encourages the formation of sub groups.
Degree of Dependency
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Physical Distance
people working together at a very close distance are likely to have greater
opportunity for interaction. It enhances the free exchange of ideas,
sharing the problems and prospects of the organization, and therefore
developing closeness among the team members, leading to greater
cohesiveness.
Time spent Together Time spent together and cohesiveness are positively related. People who
meet frequently and spend time together, develop mutual attraction and
interpersonal interaction, enhancing the cohesiveness.
Severity of Initiation Dr. B. Hiriyappa, defines severity of initiation as the level of strictness
of admission procedures into a group. He notes that, severity of
initiation is positively related with cohesiveness. When strict admission
procedures are prescribed for entry into a group it implies that the
severity of initiation is high. With higher severity, the group becomes
unique and elite in the eyes of other groups in an organization.
Cooperation
Group cooperation refers to the team spirit that is developed by all team
members in the team. It helps to share personal opinions, suggestions,
and recommendations relating to group tasks, the reward system in a
team and teamwork. Well-designed organization structures promote
greater cooperation within task bonded groups, which enhances
cohesiveness.
Status
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Threat
Group History
Task commitment.
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Personal attraction.
Some individuals are good at attracting others. Such people will make
others commit themselves to a certain group and therefore increase group
cohesiveness.
More Participation: The higher the degree of group cohesiveness, the closer will be the
interpersonal relationship among the members. As a result members will
participate actively in group affairs and activities. As the members
consider the group as their own, they will help other members of the
group in times of need which will further strengthen their bonds. The
turnover of members will be very low. All the members attend the group
meetings and group activities and take active part in discussions relating
to preparing of strategies for achieving group goals.
Conformity:
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Success:
Communication:
Members of cohesive groups communicate with each other more than the
members of non-cohesive groups. Because the members share common
ideologies, goals, backgrounds or attitudes, they are inclined to greater
communicativeness. Such communication is reinforcing as it tends to
foster and cement positive social relation as well as depth in personal
relationships.
Personal Satisfaction: The interpretation of satisfaction underlies the theory that if members are
not satisfied, they will make efforts to leave the group and join another,
so by staying in a group especially with social cohesion the members are
satisfied. Members of cohesive groups are more satisfied as compared to
members of non-cohesive groups. The satisfaction is derived from
friendliness, respect, support, achievement, protection and a feeling of
security. This results into higher proceeds from the group.
Productivity:
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Figure 1.
Source P. Robins, S. (2015). Organizational behaviour chapter 09
Evidences such as Hawthorne studies1; indicate that highly cohesive groups are more effective
than those with less cohesiveness. It is also reported that a high degree of cohesiveness is both a
cause and effect of high productivity. However, the relationship between the two is moderated
by the degree to which the group attitudes are aligned with the organizational goals.
1.
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The Hawthorne studies, which were conducted by Elton Mayo and Fritz Roethlisberger in the 1920s with
the workers at the Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Company, were part of an emphasis on sociopsychological aspects of human behaviour in organizations.
In general cohesiveness has a positive impact on the organisation in several ways, as summarised
in Fig 2 below
Consequences of Cohesiveness.
Figure 2.
Source P. Robins, S. (2015). Organizational behaviour chapter 09
Though group cohesiveness is largely attributed to success, it is important to note however that
group cohesiveness could have negative connotations as well. Some of the negative effects of
group cohesiveness include:
Groupthink:
When highly-cohesive groups make decisions they run the risk of group
thinking. Groupthink occurs when group members are reluctant to
express dissenting opinions to avoid causing disharmony within a
cohesive group. Opinions held by the majority or by key group members
are regarded as unanimous and alternative views are discouraged. Overly
cohesive groups are suspicious of contradictory opinions expressed by
outsiders. Information from outsiders that contradicts the group's opinion
may even be hidden by group members. Groupthink can lead to poor or
irrational decisions.
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Change Resistance
Administrative barrier
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Increase the status of the group and the perceived difficulty of getting membership of the
group.
GROUP NORMS
Group norms are acceptable standards of behavior within a group that are shared by the groups
members. (P.Robins, )
Group norms are the explicit and implicit rules that govern the values, actions and behaviour of
group members. Some norms enable the group to function more effectively, such as encouraging
everyone to participate in decision-making or good timekeeping. However, low performance
norms can be detrimental to group productivity. For example, in a cohesive group members will
be reluctant to put in extra effort to meet a deadline if the norm is to work at a steady pace.
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Types of Norms
There are several different types of generally understood norms. They include;Performance norms: Performance norms are centred on how hard a person should work in a
given group. They are informal cues that tell a person or help a person to
understand how hard they should work and what type of output they
should have. (Wengrzyn, 2015)
Appearance norms:
These are a type of norms that inform or guide group members on how
their physical appearance should be, what fashion they should wear or
how they should style hair or any area related to appearance. (Wengrzyn,
2015).
Corporate organisations and parastatals such as Centenary bank in
Uganda, Uganda revenue Authority, Quality Chemicals Industries and
several others instil such appearance norms by providing corporate wear
like shirts to their employees.
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.
Conclusion:
Group cohesiveness and group norms form an integral part of the organizations output in relation
to performance the goodwill built by the organization, the public image, and organizational
Culture.
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References
Bala, Jayoti. 'Group Cohesiveness'. Slideshare.net. N.p., 2012. Web. 24 May 2015.
BusinessDictionary.com,. 'What Are Group Norms? Definition And Meaning'. N.p., 2015. Web.
24 May 2015.
BusinessDictionary.com,. 'What Is Group Cohesiveness? Definition And Meaning'. N.p., 2015.
Web. 24 May 2015.
M.academlib.com,. 'Consequences Of Group Cohesiveness - Organizational Behaviour Academic Library - Free Online College E Textbooks'. N.p., 2015. Web. 24 May 2015.
M.academlib.com,. 'How To Increase Group Cohesiveness, Managerial Actions For Increasing
Or Encouraging Cohesiveness, Managerial Action To Decrease Or Discourage
Cohesiveness, Relationship Between Group Cohesiveness And Productivity, Group
Development, Stages Of Group Development - Organizational Behaviour - Academic
Library - Free Online College E Textbooks'. N.p., 2015. Web. 24 May 2015.
McDonald, Lynne. 'Negative Effects Of Group Cohesiveness'. Small Business - Chron.com.
N.p., 2015. Web. 24 May 2015.
P. Robbins, Stephen. 'Organizational Behaviour Chapter 09 Stephen P. Robins'. Slideshare.net.
N.p., 2015. Web. 24 May 2015.
Wngrzyn, Rob. 'How Types Of Group Norms Influence Individual Behavior - Video & Lesson
Transcript | Study.Com'. Study.com. N.p., 2015. Web. 24 May 2015.
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