Chapter 10: Small Group Communication

Ethics + Improving Small Group Comm

-Comm authentically -Listen w/ an open mind -Focus on strengths of all group members -Encourage participation -Highlight commonalities Improving: -Cultivate a collectivist attitude -Strive for cohesion w/ group members -Build trust + cohesion -Acknowledge all group achievements -Remind the group of common interests + backgrounds -Notice when a member might be feeling unappreciated

Balancing Task/Relational Interaction

-Equal participation -Consensus decision-making style -Cooperative conflict style -Respectful communication style

The Importance of Small Group Communication

-Fact of life -Grouphate is common -Primary and secondary groups -Inevitability of groups -College performance -Career success -Personal life

Advantages of Small Group Work

-Higher quality decisions -Stimulates creativity -Social facilitation (work harder when others are around) -Promotes critical thinking

Leadership

-Leaders are made, not born -"An influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes and outcomes that reflect their shared purposes" Theories: Trait, functional, style, transformational

Individual, Small Group + Society

-Power -Cultural Diversity + Small Groups (less likely to fall into group think) 1. Innovation 2. Performance (efficacy) 3. Group processes (who looks like a leader?) 4. Group enjoyment

Technology + Group Communication

-Tech can enhance positive comm -Types of group-oriented technology: Virtual Meetings Group Support Software Combinations

Disadvantages of Small Group Work

-Time consuming -Might result in premature decisions (just want to finish) -Silences divergent opinions -Not satisfying when group members dominate or withdraw

Use the Problem-Solving Agenda

1. Define/delineate the problem 2. Analyze the problem 3. Identify alternative solutions 4. Evaluate proposed solutions 5. Choose the best solution

Decision Making Phases

1. Orientation and Primary Tension 2. Conflict and Secondary Tension 3. Emergence 4. Reinforcement

Charismatic Leadership

A leadership style in which extremely self-confident leaders inspire unusual dedication to themselves by relying on their strong personalities and charm

Transformational Leadership

A leadership style that empowers group members to work independently from the leader by encouraging group cohesion

Servant Leadership

A leadership style that seeks to ensure that other people's highest priority needs are being served to increase teamwork and personal involvement

Groupthink

A negative, and potentially disastrous, group process characterized by "excessive concurrence thinking"

Trait Theory

A theory that assumes leaders are born, not made

Functional (situational) Theory

A theory that assumes leadership behaviors can be learned SHARED LEADERSHIP: a type of leadership style in which functional leadership is extended to an organizational level; all members are = and share responsibility

Small Group Communication

Communication among a small number of people who share a common purpose or goal, who feel connected to each other, and who coordinate their behavior -Can influence each other -(5-7) or (3-16)? -A group where everyone knows everyone else

Secondary Tension

Conflict or tension found in the second or conflict phase of the decision-making process

Secondary Groups

Groups that meet principally to solve problems (jury)

Primary Groups

Groups that provide members w/ a sense of belonging and affection (family)

Analysis Paralysis

Potential pitfall in small group interaction; occurs when excessive analysis prevents a group from moving toward a solution

Individual Roles

Role that focuses more on individual's own interests and needs than on those of the group -Dysfunctional to the group process

Task Role

Roles that are directly related to the accomplishment of group goals -Seeking, processing, and evaluating info

Relational Roles

Roles that help establish a group's social atmosphere

Grouphate

The distaste and aversion that people feel toward working in groups

Reinforcement Phase

The final phase of the decision making process when group members reach consensus, and members feel a sense of accomplishment

Group Processes

The methods, including communication, by which a group accomplishes a task

Group Roles

The shared expectations group members have regarding each individual's communication behavior in the group

Emergence Phase

The third phase of the decision making process; occurs when group members express a cooperative attitude

Primary Tension

The uncertainty commonly felt in the beginning phase of decision making

Style Theory

Theory that asserts that a leader's manner or style determines his or her success 1. Authoritarian: leader who takes charge, makes all the decisions, and dictates strategies and work tasks 2. Democratic: leader whose style is characterized by considerable input from group members 3. Laissez-faire: a leadership style characterized by complete freedom for the group in making decisions

Brainstorm

To generate as many ideas as possible w/ out critiquing them