Organizational Behavior Module 5: Group behavior Vinay Kumar, Ph.D Vidisha Garg, MBA ICBM-SBE, 2014

Activity Objective To let you go through a short but intense experience of working with a group in conditions that you have perhaps not faced earlier Notes You will be divided into groups, randomly Each group shall have six students (two from each section, wherever possible) The group constitution is non-negotiable This is a group-based field task Participation in this activity is mandatory You will make a presentation of your work and experience In the class at the end of this module (approximately, third session from now) You shall also document your experience in your course assignment record book Remember: This activity is graded. Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 2

Activity Task Choose any two categories here Advocates Priests High school teachers Salesman in organized retail outlets Domestic engineers Bank tellers Independently practicing doctors Apartment-associations presidents Your task involves finding at least three different people in each of the two chosen categories, and talking to them about their work and general life Requirements You are required to video tape your conversations and compile them into one video file with bits from different conversations which you thought really gave you fresh and useful insights Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 3

Activity Instructions Remember that this is an academic activity, not interrogational or investigative Approach the people in your chosen profession in a civil manner Be courteous and polite Tell them about your activity and seek their permission to interview them If they are not willing to cooperate, it could be because they are busy; so, you have to just move on to find someone else who can cooperate Try to spend as much time as you can with those who are willing to speak with you Your interview should be centered around understanding their work and general life; but that does not mean you can ask them delicate questions and breach their privacy Try to have every group member asking his/her questions In any case, groups have to find their interviewees within two kilometers of the college In any case, groups are not allowed to use vehicles to move around In any case, all members in a group shall always be together In any case, all interviews should be done as a group Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 4

Activity Answers to questions you may want to ask Will the college give permission to leave the premises for this task? No. This is what we expect you to plan and do in the after college hours. How do we manage working together as a group? There are both hostellers and day-scholars in group. That is part of the challenge in activity. You have to device your own strategy to handle it. We believe that the demands of this activity are close to corporate reality. How many days do we have? Your presentations will happen on the afternoon of this Saturday. Your video should be ready by then. We do not know how to make a video? Dont worry too much, because grading is not only on your technical expertise in making videos. You could submit raw videos compiled using movie maker too. We dont have a video camera? Simple Use a cell phone. The activity is outside the campus. How do I know who is in my group? Easy. Look at the notice board. Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 5

When would you consider yourself a member of a group? Social identity theory says Reduce uncertainty about individuals identity People who are similar flock together, and identify themselves based on similarities Within groups, however, individuals seek distinctiveness to define how they may be different from others Self-esteem of individuals is tied to group performance Individuals, therefore, want to be associated with high performing groups Hence, there is a tendency to quit low performing groups Note: If you think about your contribution to success or failure of the group, judiciously, this situation might changesetting a platform for your leadership Groups reinforce their identity The shared worldview forms the core content of discussion in group Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 6

Group life cycle Forming - Highly uncertain situation; Each individual testing another in the group to find out what to expect Storming - Intra-group conflict; Individuals tend to resist the imposition of group structure on their preferences Norming - Solidification stage; Group solidifies by developing a mutual understanding and common expectations (Recall Module 2, Strategies to handle discrimination) Performing - Real action; This is when the group is fully functional and is producing its best outcomes Adjourning - Disbanding; This is when individuals are readying for separation, and begin searching for new groups Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 7 Source: Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2013). Organizational Behavior,15th Edition. Pearson: New Jersey.

Exceptions in group life cycle Permanent groups (think of families) Disbanding never happens (at least in principle, though not by law) Performing, then, becomes the last stage; and the links between performing, norming, and storming shall be visited several times Temporary groups (think of project-based groups, such as EDP) There isnt sufficient time to storm (e.g.: fight over who is the boss) Therefore, the cycle is fused from forming through to performing The performance of a group here is thus dependent on clarity in job expectations, and each individuals capacity to be non-intrusive in doing their bit of the job and in cases of creative work that needs cooperation/coordination each individual is expected to demonstrated high degree of professionalism Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 8

Managers concern with group life cycle How quickly can we bring the group to performing stage? This time depends on several factors such as Diversity in the background of individuals making up the group Individuals tolerance for each others differences Focus on task at hand, rather than whose views drive the task Alignment of personal goals with group goals How long can we sustain the group in performing stage? This time depends on several factors such as Congruence between individuals identity and group identity Alignment of individuals values with others in the group Performance of this group relative to other groups Handling external but induced differences into the group (refer to cohesiveness) Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 9

Alternative model for temporary groups Punctuated-equilibrium model Begin - Set group direction First phase of activity - Inertia, 1 Around half-time - Transition Post-transition - Major changes Second phase of activity - Inertia, 2 End - Accelerated activity Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 10 Source: Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2013). Organizational Behavior,15th Edition. Pearson: New Jersey. Observe: Performance never reaches full potential in this model.

Group properties Roles Norms Status Size Cohesiveness Diversity Role Set of expected behavior patterns attributed to someone occupying a given position in a social unit Role perception Individuals view of how he/she is supposed to act in a given situation Role expectation The way others believe you should be acting in a given situation Role conflict Differences between role perception and role expectation Psychological contract Unwritten agreement Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 11 Recall: Zimbardos prison experiment!

Group properties Roles Norms Status Size Cohesiveness Diversity Norms Acceptable standards of behavior shared by members that express what they ought and ought not to do under certain circumstances Examples: Performance norms Appearance norms Social arrangement norms Resource allocation norms Conformity Adjustments of ones behavior to align with the norms of the group Deviant behavior Voluntary behavior that violates the norms of the group, and in doing so threatens the identity and well-being of the group Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 12 Recall: Mayos Hawthorne Studies!

Group properties Roles Norms Status Size Cohesiveness Diversity Status Socially defined position or rank given to the group by others, or given by group to individuals within Status characteristics theory Status is one reason for formation of hierarchies, and they are based on: Power a person wields over others Persons ability to contribute to groups goals Individuals characteristics (e.g.: charisma) Tolerance to deviation varies with status of an individual within the group Causes troubles in group interaction Either the groups fail to use the full potential of high-status individuals Or the high-status individuals fail to recognize useful contributions from others Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 13

Group properties Roles Norms Status Size Cohesiveness Diversity Smaller groups tend to produce results faster, whereas larger groups produce better results, slower Type of task is central in determining size Social loafing The tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than alone Ways to reduce social loafing Set group goals Increase inter-group competition Engage in peer evaluation Select people from collectivist cultures Have group rewards, and to some extent base these rewards within group on individual contributions Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 14

Group properties Roles Norms Status Size Cohesiveness Diversity Cohesiveness the degree to which members are attracted to each other and motivated to stay in the group Affects productivity Strongly cohesive groups may overlook performance failures Weakly cohesive groups may look deep into individual differences Ways to manage cohesion Make groups smaller (sometimes larger/different just to break strong but undesirable cohesion) Encourage agreement with group goals Increase time members spend together Increase groups status and perceived difficulty of getting membership Stimulate competition with other groups Give group rewards Physically isolate the group Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 15 Source: Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2013). Organizational Behavior,15th Edition. Pearson: New Jersey.

Group properties Roles Norms Status Size Cohesiveness Diversity Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 16

Decision-making in groups Merits Range of information Diversity of views Increased acceptance of solution More accurate Effective in creative decisions Reduced bias Demerits Domination by some individuals Pressures to confirm Dilution of responsibility Time consuming Less efficient in routine decisions Tendency to be political (More in Unit 5) Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 17

Group think Phenomenon in which the norm for consensus overrides the realistic appraisal of alternative courses of action Stems from pressures to confirm Commonly found in high-performing groups, in their decline Symptoms New information does not make a difference, indicating that there is resistance to initial assumptions made by the group New inputs are not debated, by applying pressure on members who express doubts or question validity of arguments Members want to speak but remain silent because they want to avoid being labeled as deviating from the group norms Illusion of unanimity in the group, i.e. if everything is well now, it should be well later too An special case of group think, where groups tend to take an extremist stance, is called group shift Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 18 Ask yourself: If you are the same today as you were yesterday, then what is the progress you made? Source: http://www.grantthornton.com.au/ima ges/graphics/ahr_succession_web.jpg

Decision-making techniques in groups Interacting groups - Face to face meeting to discuss and decide Brainstorming - An idea generation process that specifically encourages any and all alternatives while withholding any criticism Nominal group - Individuals meet face to face but use systematic and independent methods to pool their judgments to arrive at a decision Electronic meeting - Members meet online and interact via computers to arrive at decisions; the benefit here is the chance for an individual to remain anonymous in his contribution Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 19

Which method to choose? Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 20 Source: Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2013). Organizational Behavior,15th Edition. Pearson: New Jersey.

For discussion How would you handle if you found someone in your group not doing their part of the job, i.e. they are involved in what we call as social loafing? What could be the reasons for social loafing, and is it always unethical? What are the criteria you think are most important in deciding whether the group has to by its norm-based decisions, or consider a challenging perspective from an individual within the team? What in your view should be done to handle deviant behaviors? If members of an organization comply too much, then there is a problem we call as herd behavior. If they do not comply, then there is the problem of deviance. How should organizations cope up with these? Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 21

Exercise Write a reflective note on your experience in working with your group on the module task; and whether you see any relation with the theory learnt in this module. Submit your video to the instructor Either on a CD Or carry it on a pen drive and copy it on his/her system Vinay Kumar; Vidisha Garg 22

End of module 5. Please post your feedback for this session to vinay@icbm.ac.in / vidisha@icbm.ac.in Do not forget to mention the session date/section details Upcoming Activity: Presentation of your group work