Group Behaviour - Factors Affecting Group Dynamics
The
following four eminent aspects influence the group dynamics significantly:
Psychological
Forces: The psychology or
desires of the individuals revolve around their need for status, security,
recognition, experience and belongingness. All this affects their adaptability
to the group.
Past
Experience: An individual’s
behaviour in a group depends upon his/her learning from the past events of life
comprising of the habits, values, attitude, perception etc.
Goals and
Ideology: Another essential
component is the individual’s goals and beliefs which may or may not align with
that of the whole group, leading to disagreement and unwillingness to perform.
Associational
Forces: The associational
factors, i.e., the impact of family, geographical habitation, peers’ group,
traditions, customs and religion on the individual; direct his/her actions in a
group.
The
fundamental factors affecting group cohesion include the following:
· Similarity. The more
similar group members are in terms of age, sex, education, skills, attitudes,
values, and beliefs, the more likely the group will bond.
· Stability. The
longer a group stays together, the more cohesive it becomes.
·
Size. Smaller
groups tend to have higher levels of cohesion.
· Support. When
group members receive coaching and are encouraged to support their fellow team
members, group identity strengthens.
· Satisfaction. Cohesion
is correlated with how pleased group members are with one another’s
performance, behaviour, and conformity to group norms.
4 Factors That Can Poison Your Group
Dynamic
1.
Competition Gets Too Serious
Competition is typically healthy among co-workers and
may stimulate a healthy work environment. However, too much competition
may create different alliances among people in the organization and lead
to a toxic workplace.
2. Loyalty is
Extreme to a Specific Group
Managers should be aware of "extreme group
conformity" since it runs the risk of stifling "creativity,
innovation, critical thinking, decision making and problem solving."
This happens when people feel so loyal to a specific
group in the organization that they will turn a blind eye to any wrongdoing for
fear of disapproval.
3. Personal
Effort Isn't Recognized
When personal efforts aren't recognized, it will
likely result in "social loafing," a term used to describe the
reduced effort individuals will put into a task when working with a group. This
typically happens because the individual doesn't believe his or her own effort
will be recognized or will make much of a difference to the end result.
4. Having a
Bad Attitude
"In the workplace, people's moods tremendously
impact decision making, problem solving, attention/focus, interpersonal
interactions, performance, productivity, and the whole organizational culture."
Principles of Group Dynamics
The
group dynamics is all about how a group behaves and acts in a specific
situation. Let us now enlist some of the crucial requirements for standardizing
the actions of a group:
1.
Each of the
group members should regard and value the thoughts, status or
prestige of the other members.
2.
The members of
a group should develop a feeling of unanimity (agreement) and
maintain coordination within the team.
3. A group
encounters the entry and exit of members and also reformations and
dissolution to meet the purpose of the organization.
4.
The group
members need to stick to the norms or rules formed by them
collectively.
5.
Together as a
group, the members have the power to achieve the goals more
efficiently.
6.
Everyone in a
group aims at a collective objective of task accomplishment,
i.e., the group goal.
7.
The group
norms, composition, authority and objectives are altered and redefined to
implement the change.
8.
The group
members should ensure that the activities are performed uninterruptedly.
9.
The actions
and duties of the members are directed towards the group goal or
objective.
Important
Principles of Group Dynamics
Some of the most critical
principles of group dynamics are as follows:
1. The Principle of Belongingness
An essential group dynamic is
for the group members to have a strong sense of togetherness. Moreover, a group
will not be able to function to its fullest without the coordination and
belongingness that the members feel. It is very important for the group members
to feel like they belong to the right group.
Moreover, this feeling of
belongingness is what drives the group to perform their best, in turn boosting
the group morale. Therefore, the principle of belongingness is a rather
important principle of group dynamics.
2. The
Principle of Perception
This principle focuses on the
prestige of group members and how the group members perceive this prestige. It
is very similar to the principle of status. However, this principle of group
dynamic states that the greater the prestige, the greater is the influence.
In addition, the principle of
perception throws light on the importance of group perception. Moreover, this
ensures coordination, a common direction and the successful completion of the
objectives.
3. The Principle of Conformity
This principle of conformity
states the importance of the group members to conform to the general group
norms. However, this principle is one of the most essential rules which is the
most difficult to achieve.
4. The Principle of Change
The principle of change is one
such important principles of group dynamics that state the significance of the
change. Every decision in a group is bound to change at a specific point in
time.
A well-balanced and coordinated
group would not suffer from this change. Moreover, this group dynamic principle
stresses the importance of handling a change well.
5. The Principle of Readjustment
This principle is a result of
the principle of change. Due to changes made in a group, the group norms, the
group objectives or the group member delegation, readjustment of the entire
group dynamics is crucial.
Therefore, this principle of
readjustment emphasizes on the essentiality of readjusting the group dynamics
after implementing a change. The readjustment should be in sync with the
achievement of the group goal.
6. The Principle of Common Motives
The main purpose behind the
creation of groups is to aid the process of goal achievement. The group members
have a common motive which involves the successful attainment of the
pre-determined goal.
7. The
Goal Orientation
Every group is created with the
aim to achieve the goal with the help of their common motive. The primary
principle of the group is that they are goal oriented and focus all their
activities towards the successful completion of the task.
8. The Principle of Power
Being a part of a group can let
a group member believe that they have powers vested in them. One of the more
critical principles of group dynamics is the existence of power among the group
members.
9. The Continuous Process Principle
Last but not least, group
functioning is a continuous process. This principle states that every group so
formed and every member who is a part of such a group is responsible for the
continuous functioning of the same group.
Importance of Group Dynamism:
1. The group can influence the thinking
of its members. The members are always influenced by the interactions of other
members in the group.
2. A group with a good leader performs
better as compared to a group with weak leader.
3. The group
can give the effect of synergy, that is, if the group consists of positive
thinkers then its output is more than the double every time.
4. Group
dynamism can give job satisfaction to the members.
5. The group
can also bring team spirit among the members.
6. Even the
attitude, perceptions, and ideas of members depend on group dynamism. For
example, the negative thinkers can be converted to positive thinkers with the
help of the facilitator.
7. If the
group works as a cohesive group, the cooperation and convergence can result in
maximization of productivity.
8. Group
dynamism can reduce the labour unrest and labour turnover due to emotional
attachment among the group members.
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