chapter 9: teams and teamwork psyc 352. terminology dyad: two-person unit group vs. team no real...
Post on 20-Dec-2015
219 Views
Preview:
TRANSCRIPT
Chapter 9: Teams and Teamwork
PSYC 352
Terminology
Dyad: Two-person unit Group vs. Team
No real distinction Team: A social aggregation in which a limited number
of individuals interact on a regular basis to accomplish a set of shared objectives for which they have mutual responsibility.
Origins of Work Teams
Factors that led to the use of teams: Information age Educated and trained population Rate of change in work activities
Teams are not always better than individuals
Level of Analysis
Individual vs. Team vs. Organization
Micro vs. Meso vs. Macro
Organization
Work Groups
Individuals
Types of Teams (Larson & LaFasto, 1989)
Problem Solving Team: A type of team created for the purpose of focusing on the resolution of a particular problem or issue.
Creative Team: A type of team created for the purpose of developing innovative possibilities or solutions.
Types of Teams (Larson & LaFasto, 1989)
Tactical Team: A type of team created for the purpose of executing a well-defined plan or objective.
Ad Hoc Team: A type of team created for a limited duration that is designed to address itself to resolving one particular problem.
Types of Teams (Larson & LaFasto, 1989)
Broad Objective
Dominant Feature
Process Emphasis Example
Problem Resolution
Trust Focus on Issues CDC
Creative Autonomy Explore possibilities and alternatives
IBM PC Team
Tactical Clarity Directive, highly focused tasks, role clarity, well-defined operational standards, accuracy
Cardiac Surgery Team
Principles of Teamwork
1. Feedback provided and accepted
2. Backing up team members
3. Collective group
4. Within-team interdependence
5. Leadership makes a difference
Team Structure
Structure of a team includes: Number of members Demographic composition Experience of members
Diversity in teams: Information diversity Value diversity
Team Processes: Stages of Development
Forming Storming
Norming Performing Adjourning
Team Structure: Roles
Leader
Shaper
Worker
Completer-Finisher
Creator
Resource investigator
Team Facilitator
Monitor-evaluator
Leadership
Work Producer
Team
Mainten
ance
Liaison
Diversity within a team is reflected in the members filling different roles.
Effective teams are composed of members who serve different roles on the team and their roles are defined by possession of selected mental abilities and personality characteristics.
Belbin, 1981
Team Processes: Socialization
Socialization: process of mutual adjustment that produces changes over time in the relationship between a person and a team.
How socialization works (Moreland & Levine, 2001):
Evaluation Commitment Role transition and phases of membership
(investigation, socialization, maintenance, resocialization, remembrance)
Team Processes:Interpersonal Processes
Communication Conflict Cohesion Trust
Team Processes:Shared Mental Models
Shared Mental Model:the cognitive processes held in common by members of a team regarding how they acquire information, analyze it, and respond to it.
What is shared (Cannon-Bowers & Salas, 2001)? Task-specific knowledge Task-related knowledge Knowledge of teammates Shared attitudes and beliefs
Team Processes:Shared Mental Models
Groupthink:a phenomenon associated with team decision making in which members feel threatened by forces external to the team, resulting in a deterioration in the cognitive processing of information.
3 Causes: High level of cohesion Structural organizational flaw Proactive situational context
Groupthink Example
A board of directors of an international air freight service must decide whether the company should enter a cost-cutting war with their competitors. The board begins its decision-making meeting with the chairperson’s loaded questions: “Should we enter into this foolish price war or just keep rates the way they are?”
Team Processes:Decision Making
Multi-level theory of team decision making (Hollenbeck, LePine, & Ilgen, 1996): Team informity Staff validity Dyadic sensitivity
Improving Team Decision Making
Assign the devil’s advocate role Be open to dissenting points of view Seek outside opinions Break up into smaller groups Rethink issues before making final decision Use brainstorming
Virtual Teams
Virtual teams: Task-focused teams that meet without being physically present or working at the same time.
Defining Characteristics (Avolio et al., 2001): Communication takes place electronically Team members are dispersed geographically Members may interact synchronously or
asynchronously
Virtual Teams
Challenges: Development of shared mental models Evaluation of team results Achievement of team cohesion Problems with leadership
Intergroup Conflict
Causes: Lack of resources Goal incompatibility Time compatibility Influence tactics
Intergroup Conflict
Consequences: Conflict changes group members’ perceptions of
each other Group becomes more cohesive Strained interaction between the two groups Argumentative behavior Attitudes passed on to new members Goals focus inward, away from organization as a
whole
Overcoming Intergroup Conflict
Superordinate Goals: goals that both groups endorse and that often require cooperative intergroup behavior to be achieved Getting 2 conflicting groups together by itself
will not reduce conflict Conflict can be reduced if members cooperate to
achieve superordinate goals.
Overcoming Intergroup Conflict
One problem occurs in conflicting groups is that they do not communicate.
One strategy to overcome the conflict is to plan a negotiation between the 2 groups.
Negotiation:facilitates communication and is usually seen a a fair method of dispute resolution.
Overcoming Intergroup Conflict
Member exchanges: members of conflicting groups role play each other.
Intergroup team development: team activities to improve relationships between groups.
Overcoming Intergroup Conflict
Reducing need for intergroup interaction: Create conditions in which two groups have little
or no need to interact Reduce interdependence among groups
The resource allocation process: Ensure groups have similar resources Allocate resources fairly
Special Issues in Teams
Personnel Selection Training Performance Appraisal
Personnel Selection in Teams
Traditional individual personnel selection methods may not take the social context of teams into consideration.
Selection of team members requires best mix of personnel.
Establishing team requirements involves identifying and assessing the congruence among members with regard to personality and values.
Personnel Selection in Teams
Prieto (1993) asserts that 5 social skills are critical for an individual to enhance group performance:
1. Gain group’s acceptance
2.Increase group solidarity
3.Be aware of group consciousness
4.Share group identification
5.Manage others’ impressions
Team Training
Logic of team training is similar to individual training, although mechanism is somewhat different.
Team task analysis provides information about knowledge, skills, and attitudes the team members must possess to be successful.
Team Training
Team Performance
Cognition
Knowledge
Behaviors
Skills
Attitudes
Affect
Think Do Feel
Team Performance Appraisal
Major issue: extent to which individuals will slacken their performance within the team.
Social loafing: a phenomenon identified in groups or teams in which certain individuals withhold effort or contributions to the collective outcome.
Team Performance Appraisal:Social Loafing
Three types of social loafing:
Free riding
Sucker effect
Felt dispensability
Share the same characteristics:
• Concern with impact of individual contributions on team performance.
• Expectation of return on effort
• Teamwork can weaken individual effort-team success-individual outcome link
Team Activity
top related