Group Communication - Working in teams (by Elizabeth Kernohan)

Group CommunicationThis session explores - Working in teams

• The nature of Group Communication• How groups develop and function• Effective roles / interactions in groups

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Unitec Elizabeth (Betsy) Kernohan 2011

unitec EKernohan 2011 2

unitec EKernohan 2011

In-class activity:

Talk to the person next to you …

1. Think about teams you have been in – SPORT / SCHOOL /

WORKPLACE

2. WAS it a functional team?

3. What made it so?

4. What got in the way of it functioning well as a team?

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Areas of Communication Studies

Intrapersonal communication - within oneselfInterpersonal communication - between two people

Group communication – among several people

Organisational Communication - within an organisationPublic Communication – speaker(s) to an audienceMass Communication - to a large, remote audienceIntercultural - between individuals/groups with different

backgrounds/values/beliefs

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A reminder - Why we study communication!

Communication processes are fundamental to human society, social relationships and personal identity.

Understanding what makes communication effective (or not) enhances our competence in interactions with other people.

Becoming a more effective communicator can improve our relationships with other people, whether at home or in the workplace.

Communicative competence is becoming increasingly important in a global/multicultural society - for employment and citizenship.

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Poor Communication Can Kill

Let me read you a NEWSPAPER item

(NZ Herald October 2004)I apologize if anyone here was related to the man in the story.

4WD WINCH MANUAL CITED IN FATAL ACCIDENT HEARING (NZ Herald

October 2004)A Wellington man was killed in 2003 in a workplace accident

because of poorly written instructions in a winch manual.Christopher Corner died form a blow to the head when his 4-

wheel drive vehicle shot out of control, down a sloping driveway and he was thrown to the ground. Mr Comber was an electrical engineer with a good knowledge of machinery and he was fastidious about safety. Mr Comber had just had the winch professionally fitted to his 4WD vehicle and was following the supplier’s instructions to “…play out and rewind the cable under tension.”

….continued

Constable Moore stated that he was ‘quite surprised at the lack of information that there is in the instruction booklet with regard to setting out the steps required [for safe use of a winch]’.

Mechanic and 4WD specialist Grant Guy said the instruction booklet was inadequate. Winch owners should stretch a new cable on flat ground.

He [Mr Comber] had attached the winch-wire to a post at the top of the drive, intending to winch up the vehicle (in neutral with the handbrake off) but he failed set the winch into engaged gear. The winch ‘free-spooled’ and the vehicle rolled backwards. When it reached the end of the cable the wire ripped from the winch-drum and the 4WD continued down the hill. It is believed that Mr Comber attempted to prevent the vehicle rolling.


In the ‘real world’

Larger groups will sub-divide into smaller groups

In business = team units.

Business group structure - divisions of labour / hierarchical differentiation to perform different functions.

Groups do not suddenly manifest themselves as well-integrated, fully-functioning and task-efficient teams.

Effective teams evolve over time, and need effort and direction in order to perform achieve their goals.

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Is this class a group?Is the class a team?

TEAMS are formed to achieve goals.Teams function through effective communication.

TODAY You will be required to form a team.

3 – 4 people to achieve a goal.

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Teams are defined as groups of people who …

Share a common goal Interact together to achieve that goalMaintain stable patterns of relatingPerceive themselves as a [cohesive] group.

Group communication refers to meaningful interaction among several individuals, all of whom can act as senders and receivers.

Groups consist of three or more people who share a mutually acknowledged rationale for interacting together, usually toward some kind of shared purpose/goal. 11


The sum of the parts is greater than the parts.Teams working and learning together can achieve SYNERGY.

Synergy – making teamwork work.Synergy is the co-ordinated actions [of muscles].

Shared Meaning1

2

3

The area of shared meaning is small when the team first comes together.

Persons 1 and 3 may share understandings that they do not have in common with person 2.

Team members

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SYNERGY is achieved by increasing the area of shared meaning together, through communication – to function better than any one team member would have achieved by working alone.

1 + 1 + 1 + 1 = 7 SYNERGY

Synergy: the combined effect of the parts exceeds their individual effects.

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4-step process to effective teamwork:

1. Identify the purpose

2. Hold effective meetings - times &

attendance take

notes

3. Be effective team members -

communication

& Roles

4. Get the job done - individual & group

goals

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Norms – ground rules for teams.Norms encourage openness in team communication.

Openness and trust are essential for an effectively functioning team.

Norms are the expectations for behaviour of all members working within a team.

The way we do things’ for the life of this team.

Norms are present whether they have been discussed (EXPLICIT)

or not discussed (IMPLICIT).

CONFLICT can be avoided if the norms are made explicit – discussed and committed to, at the time the team is formed.

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TEAMWORK 1 – quality talking

DEBATE = attacking (‘you are wrong’) behaviour. Power struggle/ competitive

DISCUSSION = (‘Yes, but …’ ) persuading behaviour. Appropriate when the issue is straightforward (used most of the time in teams) / compromise

DIALOGUE = listening exploring and UNDERSTANDING ideas and people’s thinking. It takes TIME and works well for complex issues (many heads are better than one = synergetic)/ collaborative

Moving from debate to discussion to dialogue Dialogue = a deeper style of communication

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TEAMWORK 2 - Making Decisions

MAJORITY VOTE

BenefitsSimpleFast

Disadvantage55% for =45% against means there is a large group not committed to the team’s actions

CONSENSUS

Benefits

Solution satisfies needs of all

Discussion may lead to new solution

Greater team commitment

Develops team spirit

Disadvantage

Time consuming

Other

Brainstorming

Mind mapping

Plus Use a combination of vote and consensus

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TEAMWORK 3 - Different Cultural Values

The principles of effective teamwork are universal.

Culture can influence team behaviour.

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The principles of effective teamwork are universal.Culture can influence team behaviour.

Team member or individual? – Collective cultures (strong tradition of working together).

Team Leadership – Some cultures rely on one strong leader (age or status) as decision-maker. Others prefer to share ideas / discuss / disagree / challenge.

Gender – little experience of working with the opposite sex – age / status / women’s communication styles (defer or assertive).

Speaking openly / disagreeing – may be accepted in some cultures, not others. Saying ‘no’ to requests may be culturally inappropriate.

Commitment to the team VS other commitments – differing values

In some cultures family must come first. Religion or Sport may impact on the team needs.

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TEAMWORK 4 - ROLES

Task-focused roles – What is required to meet the objectives

Group Maintenance roles (relationship roles or maintenance

actions) to develop team spirit.

HOW the team interacts can affect the outcome of the goal.

3. INDIVIDUAL Roles - Self-centered / distracting Focusing on the needs of an individual at the expense of the group’s

needs.The actions of one may prevent progress of the team (blocking

behaviour).

TWO main functions needed for the team to be effective.

1. TASK (the Pistons) and2. MAINTENANCE (the oil):

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In-class activity What role do you play?

Handout#1

Read the instructionsIn Each group of questions ( A – E) choose 2 statements that

apply to you.Place TWO ticks beside the statement MOST like you and ONE tick beside your 2nd choice.

When you have made your 2 choices in all five groups of questions – use the code* (I will supply) to analyse your results.

Convert the ticks to letters* - 2 ticks equals 2 of the letter code

- 1 tick equals 1 of the letter code

You should have 15 letters in total**22


I – generates ideas J - gets the job done, efficient

R – harmoniser, relationship focused

You may be a combination of all three.You may take different roles in different groups.

ORYou may engage in self-centered behaviour.

Be AWARE of your own behaviour and the behaviour of others.

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Functional Roles in Groups Handout #2

TASK ActionsInitiatorClarifierEvaluatorRecorder Co-ordinatorExplainerInquirer – information seekerInformation provider

RELATIONSHIP ActionsEncouragerSupporterHarmoniserConfronterTension-relieverListenerInterpersonal problem-solverObserver

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Functional Roles in Group (continued)

SELF-CENTRED Actions

Withdrawer - avoider

Attention-seeker

Joker

Blocker

Dominator

Sidetracker

Attacker

Self-centered actionsMay prevent progressMeet individual’s needs (conscious or unconscious) at expense of group

Overly Task-focusedSomeone may dominateNot all ideas heard

Over-emphasis on relationshipsTask not achieved

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TEAMWORK 5 – Group stages Fisher

model Handout #4

Stages do NOT necessarily follow one after the other

All teams develop and change

Teams CAN move on from conflict to unity commitment

HOW?

Effective Communication

Recognise the conflict (stage) – avoid getting stuck there or withdrawing.

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Fisher Model

Orientation - Group meets (forming)1. work out how the group is to function2. what the priorities are3. how/what each person will contribute to the group.

Confusion over tasks, roles, and norms of interaction is typical. Minimal progress towards group goals will be made.

Conflict - The second stage typically involves a degree of conflict as differences in role preferences, claims to status/leadership and expectations in means & ends emerge and require negotiating.

• Progress on tasks may be limited, as individual needs are pursued above team needs. • Tasks and barriers to accomplishing them will become clearer.

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Emergence – 1. shared sense of purpose2. mutual recognition of roles (including status/ hierarchy) 3. integration/belonging - individuals identify with the group.

• Personal needs are balanced with those of the group, allowing progress to be made toward goals.

Reinforcement - greater degree of cohesion 1. Roles fine-tuned and the groups’ goals become the

focus and priority. 2. shared identity and teamwork 3. members learn to interact effectively with each other4. individual strengths utilised.

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SIT IN THE GROUPS YOU FORMED PRIOR TO THE BREAK ...in class activity #2

PROBLEM-SOLVING taskCombine with the 2 other groups next to you – to make a team of 9 people.

The bigger the group the harder to gain consensus.

HandoutRead instructionsSolve the problemRemember what we discussed about the Fisher Model

stages

Guidelines for group / team work [NORMS]

LISTEN to each otherDON’T interruptASK questions – to generate informationPARTICIPATE with interest and enthusiasmENCOURAGE each otherREACT to ideas, not people ASSIGN work to each memberMAKE DECISIONS togetherSUPPORT and TRUST team-mates

A person’s ability to get along with others and work with others can be the ‘make or break’ quality of an effective team member.

An effective team requires effective team members.

Team performance can be bolstered by strong individual performance.

Go the Breakers

Documents

Group Communication - Working in teams (by Elizabeth Kernohan)