Group Dynamic

Dr. Vinod Kumar Patel Assistant Professor HSS ITNU

Group

A group is a collection of individuals who interact with each other such

that one person’s actions have an impact on the others. In other words,
a group is defined as two or more individuals, interacting and
interdependent, who have come together to achieve particular
objectives.
• Groups where people get along, feel die desire to contribute to
the group, and are capable of coordinating their efforts may
have high-performance levels.
• Group can be defined as a collection of individuals who have
regular contact and frequent interaction, mutual influence, the
common feeling of fellowship, and who work together to achieve
a common set of goals
Stages in Group formation

The Group Development means, forming the association of

people to work as a group and direct their actions towards the
accomplishment of a common goal.
The jobs of each group member are interdependent and hence the
performance of one will affect the entire group’s performance. It
is often called as a group building or group development.
Forming: At this stage, the formation of a new group begins, wherein the members come
together and get to know each other through the interactions. Here the individuals are
excited and anxious to know about the scope of the task and the ways to
approach it. Generally, the individuals come with a desire to get accepted by others and
avoid controversy or conflicts.

Storming: Once the forming stage is over, the individuals will start interacting with each
other in the context of the task to be achieved. The conflict and competition among the
group members will be highest at this stage. The most dominant group members come in
the front while the confrontational members remain silent and continue to be in the
security or calm stage (forming). The issues related to the leadership, responsibility,
strategies, rules, authority, evaluation, reward system, etc. arises at the storming stage.
Norming: Once the role of every member is cleared along with the authority and
responsibility of each, the team members start settling in a group. Here, everybody works
cohesively towards the target and appreciate each other’s experience and skills.

Performing: At this stage, synergy gets created between the team members, where
everyone works towards the accomplishment of a goal. This stage is characterized by
flexibility and interdependence. The team members know each other so well that they can
handle any complex problem that comes before the group. Also, the roles and
responsibilities of member changes according to the situation frequently, because at this
stage everyone is equally a task-oriented and people-oriented and thus can perform
efficiently
Adjourning: This is the last stage of group development, where the group is
terminated, and the group members are separated from each other. Every group is
created for a purpose, and once the purpose is fulfilled the group is adjourned.
Some authors call this stage as “mourning or deforming,” because, the sense of
loss is felt by the group members, at the time of separation from each other.
Group Behaviour

Group Behaviour refers to people with a similar goal behaving in the same way,
which might be different from how they would normally behave if they were alone
or as individuals. It is the type of behaviour that takes place when individuals act
together or collectively.
Types Of Group Behaviour
There are two major types of group behaviour and they are collective
behaviour and community services. Other forms of group behaviour include
crowd behaviour, herd behaviour and public or mass behaviour.
(1) Collective Behaviour: This includes social behaviour such as action and
industrial action. It is defined by the fact that individuals come together to express a
preference for, or a grievance against, a given social situation.
Characteristics of Collective Behaviour

• Collective behaviour such as mass action is often based on a grievance or

preference for change shared by members of a social group.
• The mass action may be spontaneous, in the sense that it may not have been
planned in advance but may have been based on a perceived injury.
• Collective behaviour sometimes requires a formal organisational and
administrative or leadership structure that organizes the diverse interests of
members.
• Collective behaviour is the means by which individuals make their ideas, opinions
and feelings known in a group situation.
• Collective behaviour (such as mass action) is always undertaken primarily for the
interests of members of a given group
Community Services:

These are actions taken by corporate groups or individuals to improve the lots of
communities.
Usually, community services are directed at areas of need and very often, they take
the form of corporate social responsibility or philanthropy.
Characteristics Of Community Services
• Community services, whether provided by a social group or by an ad hoc group of
individuals, are usually based on a felt need of the community.
• Community services are usually planned in advance.
• Community services are often provided by formal organizations, although they
could also be provided by an ad hoc group of individuals who come together
specifically to provide the given service. Examples of such services may be to build
an access road to a remote village or a laboratory for a community secondary
school.
• Community services can also be provided within the community itself by
individuals who maintain their community roads or clean up the environment so
as to promote health.
• Community services are provided for the benefit of the society and not for
personal or group profit.
DETERMINANTS OF GROUP BEHAVIOR

Group work or group behavior is reflected when the members know their objectives,
contribute responsibly towards the tack allotted to them and support each other.
The determinants of group behavior. are :-
• A supportive environment
• Association of skills and role requirements
• Application of goals
• Application through team rewards.
Difference Between Group and Team

BASIS FOR COMPARISON GROUP TEAM

Meaning A collection of individuals who work A group of persons having collective

together in completing a task. identity joined together, to accomplish
a goal.

Leadership Only one leader More than one

Members Independent Interdependent

Process Discuss, Decide and Delegate. Discuss, Decide and Do.

Work Products Individual Collective

Focus on Accomplishing individual goals. Accomplishing team goals.

Accountability Individually Either individually or mutually

Inter Group Problems

The 4 main categories are:

• Intrapersonal – this is when a person experiences inner turmoil, such as
disagreeing with the values of the company or being a perfectionist.

• Interpersonal – this is conflict between two or more individuals; it may be an

isolated incident or an ongoing issue.
• Intragroup – this refers to the conflict between one or more people in the same
group or team.
• Intergroup – these involve several different teams and are often difficult to
handle without external support or preventative/corrective action
Functions of a Group

• Working on a complex and independent task that is too complex for an

individual to perform and that cannot be easily broken down into
independent tasks.

• Generating new ideas or creative solutions to solve problems that require

inputs from several people.

• Serving liaison or coordinating functions among several workgroups whose

work is to some extent independent.
• Facilitating the implementation of complex decisions. A group
composed of representatives from various working groups can
coordinate the activities of these interrelated groups.

• Serving as a vehicle for training new employees, groups teach

new members methods of operations and group norms.
Types of Groups

• Formal Groups

• Formal groups are created to achieve specific organizational objectives.

Usually, they are concerned with the coordination of work activities.

• People are brought together based on different roles within the structure of
the organization. The nature of the task to be undertaken is a predominant
feature of the formal groups.
• Goals are identified by management and short and rules
relationships and norms of behavior established. Formal groups
chain to be related to permanent although there may be changes
in actual membership.

• However temporary formal groups may also be created by

management, for example, the use of project teams in a matrix
organization
Informal Groups
Within the formal structure of the organization, there will always
be an informal structure.
The formal structure of the organization and system of role
relationships, rules, and procedures, will be augmented by
interpretation and development at the informal level.
Informal groups are based more on personal relationships and
agreement of group members than on defined role relationships.
They serve to Satisfy psychological and social needs not related
necessarily to the tasks to be undertaken.
Groups may devise ways of attempting to satisfy members’
affiliations and other social motivations that are lacing in the
work situation, especially in industrial organizations.
Process Group
The process group acts together to enact a process, going through a relatively
fixed set of instructions. The classic environment is a manufacturing
production line, where every movement is prescribed.
There may either be little interaction within process groups or else it’ is
largely prescribed, for example where one person hands something over to
another.
Semi-Formal Groups
Many groups act with less formality, in particular where power is
distributed across the group, forcing a more collaborative
approach that includes- negotiation rather than command and
control.
Families, communities and tribal groups often act as semi-formal
ways as they both have nominal leaders yet members can have a
high degree of autonomy.
Managed Group
Groups may be formed under a named manager, even though they may not
necessarily work together with a great deal. The main thing they have in
common, at least the manager and perhaps a similar type of work.
Goal Group
The goal group acts together to achieve a shared objective or
desired outcome.
Unlike the process groups, there is no clear instruction on how
they should achieve this, although they may use some processes
and methods along the way.
As there is no detailed instruction, the members of the goal group
need to bring more intelligence, knowledge, and experience to the
task.
Problem-Solving Group

Problem-solving groups come together to address issues that have arisen.

They have a common purpose in understanding and resolving their issue,
although their different perspectives can lead to particular disagreements.
Problem-solving may range along a spectrum from highly logical and
deterministic, to uncertain and dynamic situations there creativity and
instinct may be better ways of resolving the situation.
Friendship Group
Groups often develop because individual members have one or
more common characteristics. We call these formations of
friendship groups.
Social alliances, which frequently extend outside the work
situation, can be based on similar age or ethnic heritage, support
for a cricket team, or the holding of similar political views, to
name just a few such characteristics.
Interest Group
People who may or may not be aligned into a common command or task
group may affiliate to attain a specific objective with which each is
concerned. This is an interest group.
Employees who band together to have their vacation schedules altered, to
support a peer who has been fired, or to seek improved working conditions
represent the formation of a united body to further their common interest.
Learning Group
The learning group comes together to increase their net
knowledge. They may act collaboratively with discussion and
exploration, or they may be a taught class, with a teacher and a
syllabus.