Performance in Groups

1. Performance in Groups

2. Outline • Types of tasks • Additive • Compensatory • Disjunctive • Conjunctive • Discretionary

3. Additive • When all group members perform the same job and group performance is a sum of individual performance • Examples: • Stuffing envelopes, relay race, brainstorming

4. Compensatory • Judgments of individuals are pooled; errors by some can be corrected by others • The group average is the group product—again everybody has something to contribute • Examples: • Estimating costs, money market forecasts

5. Disjunctive • Tasks which require the group to select a single correct answer • The achievement of the group is defined by its most able member • Only one correct answer, getting answer depends on: • someone getting the right answer • others recognizing it as being correct! • Examples: • Problem solving, math calculations, college quiz bowl

6. Conjunctive • Group tasks which require every group member to complete the task • The achievement of the group is defined by its least able member • Examples: • Mountaineering team, group presentation, software projects

7. Discretionary • Group tasks in which groups can combine individual contributions as it chooses • Examples: • Juries deciding how to appropriately weigh information, a group deciding to take a vote or let the leader choose

8. Additive: Performance exceeds best member Compensatory: Group performance should be better than most members Disjunctive: Performance should match the best member Conjunctive: Performance determined by worst member Discretionary: Group determines how inputs are combined Performance depends on how they're combined How are Inputs Related?

9. Activity • Get into groups of 4-5 • Complete the types of tasks activity 10-1 (p. 301)