Group

and Team Cohesi

on

What Is a Group?

Group: A collection of interacting individuals who sharea collective identity,

a sense of shared purpose or objectives,

structured ways of communication,

personal or task interdependence (or both)All teams are groups, but not all groups are teams.

How a Group Becomes a Team: Linear Model

Familiarization; interpersonal relationships formed; team structure developed.

Forming

Rebellion; resistance to the leader and control by the group; interpersonal conflict.

Storming

How a Group Becomes a Team

Solidarity and cooperation develop.

Norming

Energies channeled for team success.

Performing

Other Models

Cyclical - “Life Cycle”

Pendular

Group Structure

Behaviors required or expected of a person occupying a certain position.

Group roles

Group Structure

are dictated by the nature and structure of the organization.

Formal roles (e.g., coach, captain)

evolve from the interactions among group members.

**Role clarity and role acceptance are critical for team success.**

Informal roles (e.g., enforcer, mediator)

Group Structure

A level of performance, pattern of behavior, or belief.

Leaders need to establish positive group norms or standards (especially standards of productivity).

Group norms

Creating an Effective Team Climate

Social support: Mutual respect and support enhances team climate.

Proximity: Closer contact promotes team interaction.

Distinctiveness: The more distinctive the group feels, the better the climate.

Fairness: Fairness—or a lack of it—can bring a group closer together.

Similarity: Greater similarity = closer climate.

T.O.

• Status was just upgraded from Suicidal to Questionable…

• Would you, or would you not, want him on your TEAM?

Defining Cohesion

The degree to which group members work together to achieve common goals and objectives.

Taskcohesion

Social cohesion

The interpersonal attractions among group members.

Task Demands and the Cohesion–Performance Relationship

Guidelines for Building Team Cohesion

Leader-Coach Strategies

Communicate effectively.

Develop pride within subunits.

Set challenging team goals.

Explain individual roles in team success.

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Guidelines for Building Team Cohesion

Leader-Coach Strategies

Encourage team identity.

Avoid excessive turnover.

Discourage formation of social cliques.

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Guidelines for Building Team Cohesion

Leader-Coach Strategies

Conduct periodic team meetings.

Know relevant, personal things about each team member. Treat as individuals; know how far each can be pushed...

Know the team climate.

While individual ability is important, the individual abilities of team members alone are not good predictors of how a team will perform.

Basic principle

Individual and Team Performance in Sport

Individual and Team Performance in Sport

Actual productivity = potential productivity – losses due to faulty group processes

Losses:

Steiner’smodel

(1) motivation

(2) coordination

How Individual Skills Relate to Group Performance

The more that cooperation and interaction are necessary in a task, the more that the importance of individual ability decreases and the importance of group productivity increases.

Teams with players of equal ability tend to play best.

The phenomenon where individual performance decreases as the number of people in the group increases.

Ringlemanneffect

Socialloafing

Individuals within a group or team giving less than 100% effort due to motivational losses.

EliminatingSocial Loafing

Emphasize the importance of individual pride and unique contributions.

Increase identifiability of individual performances.

Determine specific situations where social loafing occurs.

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EliminatingSocial Loafing

Conduct individual meetings to discuss social loafing.

Walk a mile in a teammate’s shoes; switch off assignments.

Break down the team into smaller units.

Team Building

Action research model

Initial discussions with coachesEducation and contracting

Data collection and analysis

Presentation of data to coaches and players

Designing and implementing step-by-step intervention…leading to final action plan and “exit” interviews Ongoing monitoring and support