Team Cohesion in Sport

1. Team Cohesion in Sport Chapter 15

2. Defining Team Cohesion • A dynamic process which is reflected in the tendency for a group to stick together and remain united in the pursuit of goals and objectives.

3. Types of Team Cohesion • Task Cohesion • Social Cohesion

4. Task Cohesion • Degree to which members of a team work together to achieve a specific and identifiable goal.

5. Social Cohesion • Degree to which the members of a team like each other and enjoy personal satisfaction from being members of the team.

6. Two Basic Approaches to Measuring Cohesion • Indirect measurement approach • Direct measurement approach

7. Indirect Measurement Approach • Sociogram. • Team members are asked to indicate how they feel about other team members. • Summed scores represent a measure of team cohesion.

8. Direct Measurement Approach • Athletes are asked direct questions about how much they like playing on the team (individual attraction), and how well they feel the team functions as a unit (group integration).

9. A Conceptual Model of Team Cohesion • Athlete’s Perception of Team - Group Integration - Individual Attraction • Group Orientation - Social - Task

10. Measurement of Team Cohesion • Sport Cohesiveness Questionnaire • Team Cohesion Questionnaire • Sport Cohesion Instrument • Group Environment Questionnaire • Team Psychology Questionnaire

11. Group Environment Questionnaire (GEQ) • Primary inventory of choice among sport psychologists. • Composed of 18 items which measure four dimensions or sub-scales. • Based upon the Conceptual Model of Team Cohesion.

12. Determinants of Team Cohesion • Personal Factors • Team Factors • Leadership Factors • Environmental Factors • Communication among members

13. Consequences of Team Cohesion • Group Outcomes - Team Stability - Absolute and relative performance • Individual Outcomes - Behavioral outcomes - Absolute and relative performance

14. Research Support for Cohesion Performance Relationship • Meta-analysis (Carron et al., 2002) • Ethnographic study (Holt & Sparkes, 2001). • Expended effort mediates the relationship between social cohesion and performance. Social Cohesion Expended Effort Performance

15. Consequences of Team Cohesion (Continued) • Athletic Performance • Direction of Causality • Improving Group Self-Efficacy • Predicting Future Participation • Homogeneity of Team Cohesion • Moderator of Disruptive Effects • Psychological Momentum • Mood and Emotion

16. Direction of Causality for Performance/Cohesion Direction of Causality Relationship Team Cohesion Team Performance

17. Developing Team Cohesion • Team Cohesion as a Process • Team Building • Specific Interventions Designed to Enhance Team Cohesion

18. Team Cohesion as a Process • Forming • Storming • Norming • Performing

19. Team Building • Direct intervention approach – Sport psychologist works directly with athletes for team building activities. • Indirect intervention approach – Sport psychologist teaches coaches and managers team building principles who then work with athletes.

20. Specific Interventions Designed to Enhance Team Cohesion • Review 10 interventions designed to build team cohesion among team members.

21. Team Cohesion in Sport Chapter 15