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Reviews of Literature
Impact Factor : 1.4716 (UIF)
Volume 2 , Issue 8 / March 2015
ISSN:-2347-2723
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
UNDERSTANDING GROUP BEHAVIOUR – A KEY TO
EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT
Megha Dixit
Associate Professor and Head, Dept. of Commerce, KRP Kanya Mahavidyalay, Islampur.
Abstract - Group consists of two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who come
together to achieve particular objectives. Groups may be either formal or informal. People join
groups for Security, Status, Self-esteem, Affiliation, Power and finally for Goal achievement.
Behaviour of group strongly affect on the working of organisation. Many times a person works
efficiently in isolation, but fails to work in a group. How to encourage group co-hesiveness is
the biggest challenge before the management in 21st century. The present paper is an attempt in
this direction. It focuses on studying five stages and properties of group development, strengths
and weaknesses of group decision making and implications for managers.
Key words – affiliation, self-esteem, informal, co-hesiveness.
1.0 INTRODUCTION –
Group consists of two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who come
together to achieve particular objectives. Groups may be either formal or informal. People join
groups for Security, Status, Self-esteem, Affiliation, Power and finally for Goal achievement.
Behaviour of group strongly affect on the working of organisation. Many times a person works
efficiently in isolation, but fails to work in a group. How to encourage group co-hesiveness is
the biggest challenge before the management in 21st century. The present paper is an attempt in
this direction. It focuses on studying five stages and properties of group development, strengths
and weaknesses of group decision making and implications of group decision making for
managers.
1.1 Objectives of the Study




To Identify the five stages of group development.
To define the properties of groups and effectiveness of group behaviour
To understand the implications of group decision making for managers
To offer conclusions and suggestions
Reviews of Literature • Volume 2 Issue 8 • March 2015
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Reviews of Literature
Impact Factor : 1.4716 (UIF)
Volume 2 , Issue 8 / March 2015
ISSN:-2347-2723
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
1.2 Stages of Group Development
Sr.
I
II
III
IV
V
Stage
Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing
Adjourning
characteristics
Uncertainty about purpose, structure, and leadership
Intragroup conflict as members resist constraints
Group is cohesive with strong group identity
Group fully functional and working toward goals
For temporary groups, breaking up
1.3 Properties of Group
Property No. 1 – Roles
As per property one, The set of expected behavior patterns that are attributed to occupying a
given position in a social unit are –
•
•
•
•
Role Identity – role’ s associated attitudes and behaviors
Role Perception – our view of how we’ re supposed to act in a given situation
Role Expectations – how others believe you should act in a given situation
Role Conflict – conflict experienced when multiple roles are incompatible
Property No. 2 – Norms
As per property no. two, acceptable standards of behavior within a group that are shared by the
group’s members are –
• Powerful means of influencing behavior
• Performance Norms
Group Property 3: Status
A socially defined position or rank given to groups or group members by others determined by:
- The power a person wields over others
- A person’s ability to contribute to a group’s goals
- An individual’s personal characteristics
Reviews of Literature • Volume 2 Issue 8 • March 2015
2
Reviews of Literature
Impact Factor : 1.4716 (UIF)
Volume 2 , Issue 8 / March 2015
ISSN:-2347-2723
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Group Property 4: Size
As per property no. four, smaller groups are faster at completing tasks – members perform better.
large groups are consistently better at problem solving and social loafing - tendency to expend
less effort working in a group than as an individual.
Group Property 5: Cohesiveness
The degree to which members of the group are attracted to each other and
motivated to stay in the group. Performance-related norms are the moderating variable for
productivity and cohesiveness. High cohesiveness with high norms gives higher productivity. To
encourage cohesiveness in group it becomes necessary to make the group smaller and encourage
agreement with group goals. It is necessary to increase the time spent together and increase the
status and perceived difficulty of group membership. Rewards should be given to the group
rather than to individual members. Barriers in cohesiveness are clashes of personalities, conflict
of social roles, breakdown in communication, struggle for power, frequent turnover etc.
1.4
Effectiveness and efficiency of group behavior
The main strengths of group decision making are generatation of more complete
information and knowledge, Increased diversity of views and Increased acceptance of a solution.
The weaknesses are Conformity pressures, Discussions can be dominated by one or a few
members and ambibious responsibility for the final outcome. Effectiveness and efficiency of
group behaviour can be stated as underEffectiveness:
 Accuracy – group is better than average individual but worse than most accurate group
member
 Speed – individuals are faster
 Creativity – groups are better
 Degree of Acceptance – groups are better
Effficiency : Groups are generally less efficient
1.5 Implications for Managers –
Cultural differences affect the importance, display, and derivation of status.
Social loafing occurs mostly in individualistic cultures motivated by self-interest.
Reviews of Literature • Volume 2 Issue 8 • March 2015
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Reviews of Literature
Impact Factor : 1.4716 (UIF)
Volume 2 , Issue 8 / March 2015
ISSN:-2347-2723
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
In the globalised scenario diversity leads to greater conflict but the surface-level recognition may
make members more open-minded and accepting – leading to better decisions.Following are the
implications of group behaviour for managers.





Positive relationship between role perception and performance evaluation
Group norms can affect individual performance either positively or negatively
Status inequities adversely impact productivity and performance
Group size impacts effectiveness
Cohesiveness can influence productivity
1.6 Conclusions and suggestions –
Group norms, roles, and identities have powerful affects on individual behavior.
Conformity can be a problem and have leaders minimize initial inputs. Group decision making is
not always better than individual decision making.



-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Pearson education Inc. – 2010
Principles and Practices of Mgt. – Tripathy and Reddy
Management – George Terry
Reviews of Literature • Volume 2 Issue 8 • March 2015
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