WARWICK MBA

1. WARWICK MBA IB8020: Organisational Behaviour Lesson 4: Attributes of Groups Lesson 5: Group Decision Making

2. Lesson 4: Attributes of Groups (1) • Section 1:The Hawthorne studies • the group as an important force in the work setting; • the sources of individual job satisfaction and dissatisfaction; • different ‘styles’ of supervision, with a special emphasis on employee participation; • the need for managers to have good interpersonal skills; and • the importance of social relationships as a determinant of individual behaviour at work. • Section 2: The process of socialisation • Anticipation - assimilation of the values and behaviours required to survive and prosper. • Initiation - the price of admission. • Assimilation - development of new role, identity and value system. • Section 3: Types of groups • Work Groups; • Formal Groups; and • Informal Groups. • Section 4: The group as an open system • Group Process = Transformation of resource inputs into group outputs. • Section 5: Developing power and authority • Orientation; • Conflict; and • Cohesion.

3. Lesson 4: Attributes of Groups (2) • Section 6: Group values • As a group develops, its own particular ideology or complex of values emerges. Conformity to the norm is rewarded (reinforcements) and non-conformity is punished (sanctions). • Some variables that have been found to influence conformity to group norms include: • Personality of group members; • The stimuli which evoke the response; • Situational factors; and • Intra-group relationships. • Section 7: Roles • Each position in the group hierarchy has an associated role which consists of the expected behaviour of the occupant. • Section 8: Status • Status is a measure of worth conferred upon an individual or on a position by some social groups. Sociologists and psychologists found the following sources of status: • Reward power; • Receiving rewards; and • Personal investment. • Section 9: Cohesiveness • Formal and informal groups possess a closeness or commonness of attitude, behaviour and performance = cohesiveness.

4. Lesson 5: Group Decision Making (1) • Section 2: Individual decision making • Six decision making styles among managers and manual workers, namely: • Logical; • No thought; • Emotional; • Intuitive; • Hesitant; and • Compliant. • Overall, the logical style was used most often at work, with the no-thought style second and the emotional style third. • Section 3: Individual versus group decision making • Groups have the following major advantages over individuals in the making of decisions: • More complete information and knowledge; • Increased diversity of viewpoints; • Increased acceptance of decision; and • Increased legitimacy. • The major disadvantages associated with group decision making are: • Time-consuming; • Pressure to conform; • Domination by the few; and • Ambiguous responsibility.

5. Lesson 5: Group Decision Making (2) • Section 4: Group decision making • Communication barriers • Frame of reference • Selective listening • Value judgements • Source credibility • Semantic problems • Filtering • In-group language • Status differences • Time pressures • Communication overload • Groupthink • ‘the psychological drive for consensus at any cost that suppresses dissent and appraisal of alternatives in cohesive decision making groups’ (Janis, 1972). • Three moderating variables: • group cohesiveness • leadership behaviour • insulation from other groups • Group polarisation • Group discussions lead to a significant shift in the positions of members towards a more extreme position in the direction towards which they were already leaning before the discussion began. • Two possible explanations for the polarisation phenomenon (Isenberg, 1986): • 1. The social comparison explanation • 2. The persuasive argumentation explanation

6. Lesson 5: Group Decision Making (3) • Section 5: Guidelines for effective communication • First, improve messages. • Second, seek to improve own understanding of what other people are trying to communicate. • Techniques include: • Following up; • Regulating the information flow; • Utilising feedback; • Empathy; • Repetition; • Encouraging mutual trust; • Effective timing; and • Using the grapevine. • Section 6: Guidelines for overcoming groupthink and group polarisation • Douglas McGregor (1960) listed the following 11 characteristics of effective groups: • An informal, relaxed atmosphere in the group, which shows that members are involved and interested. • Full participation by all members in the discussion, which remains focused upon the task. • Acceptance of the group objective by all. • Members listen to each other and are not afraid to make creative suggestions. • Disagreements are fully discussed and either resolved or lived with. • Most decisions are reached by consensus. • Criticism is frank and frequent, without degenerating into personal attacks. • Group members are free to express their feelings about the way the group is functioning. • Actions are clearly assigned to group members and are carried out by them. • Leadership within the group shifts occasionally and tends to be based on expertise rather than formal status or position. • The group is self-conscious about its own operation and regularly reviews the way it goes about its business.