Chapter 9, 10

Team Dynamics II
Christy Zhou Koval
Spring 2017 1
Housekeeping
• Fire drill on April 19 around 10am, approx. 30
minutes
– Implication for group project presentations
• Water bomb pictures!
• Research participation sign-up
Research Participation (Study 2)

• Research Participation Sign-up

• One hour of research participation (2%)!
– Sign-up period: NOW – April 5th
– Sign-up asap: First come first serve!
– Study date: March 27th to April 6th
– No make-up
• After April 6th, or
• Miss two sessions
• Contact Susie Lee via sjleeac@connect.ust.hk
 Organization level
Organizational
culture Human resource
management
Organizational
structure

Group level
Group
Power
structure Output
Input
(productivity,
(resources,
information)
Communication Leadership satisfaction,
turnover)
Conflict Social influence

Individual level
Ability
Perceptions
Motivation
Personality Learning
Attitude Decision
Value Emotion making 4
Learning Objectives

• Team basics
– What are teams?
– Types of teams

• Team decision making

– Strengths and weaknesses
– Improving team decision making
Is group performance
a sum of individuals’
best efforts?

6
Weakness of Team Decision
Making

• Social loafing
– The tendency for people to exert less effort when
they pool their efforts toward a common goal and
where individuals are not accountable for their
effort
 Studies on Social Loafing

• Hardy & Latane (1986)

– Blindfolded participants with headphones on
– “Shout as hard as you can”
– 3 times harder when they knew they were
shouting alone than when they believed five
others were also shouting

8
Weakness of Team Decision
Making

• Why social loafing?

• Effort is pooled
• Individuals are not accountable
• Responsibility is diffused

9
How to minimize social loafing

• Make individual performance more

visible
– Form smaller teams
– Specialize tasks
– Measure individual performance
• Increase employee motivation
– Increase job enrichment
– Select motivated employees
10
Learning objectives

• Team Effectiveness Model

• Improve Team Decision Making

11
Team Effectiveness Defined

• Team Effectiveness
– Fulfills objectives assigned to the team
– Fulfills satisfaction & well-being of team
members
– Maintains team’s survival

What affected your waterbomb

team’s effectiveness?
12
Team Effectiveness
• South Thailand Soccer Team:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continu
e=307&v=jU4oA3kkAWU
Team Effectiveness Model

Organizational and Team

Team Design
Team Environment Effectiveness

•Task characteristics
• Reward systems
•Team size • Achieve
• Communication
•Team composition organizational
systems
goals
• Physical space
• Satisfy member
• Organizational needs
Team Processes
environment
• Maintain team
• Organizational
•Team development survival
structure
•Team norms
• Organizational
•Team roles
leadership
•Team cohesiveness
14
 Team Design

Task Characteristics •Task characteristics

•Team size
•Team composition

• Task structure and complexity

– Task structure: the extent to which tasks
are clearly defined

• Task interdependence
– Degree of mutual dependence on each
other
Task Characteristics
Team Design

•Task characteristics
•Team size
•Team composition
Task Interdependence:
= Extent that team members
– share common inputs to their individual tasks
– need to interact in the process of executing their work, or
– receive outcomes (such as rewards) that are partly determined by
the performance of others

Task interdependence Need for Team

16

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=158&v=4Rd9zQborx
 Team Design

Task Characteristics •Task characteristics

•Team size
•Team composition

• Task interdependence
– Pooled, sequential, reciprocal

Sequential

Pooled Reciprocal
 Team Design

•Task characteristics
•Team size

Task Characteristics •Team composition

– Better when tasks are clear, easy to implement

– Share common inputs, processes, or outcomes
– Task interdependence

18
 Team Design
Team Size
•Task characteristics
•Team size

– Optimal size •Team composition

– Between 5 to 7 people
– A popular rule but untested!
• Too large
– Difficult to coordinate, less effective
• Too small
– Difficult to accomplish the team’s objectives
• Large enough to accomplish task
 Team Design

Team Composition •Task characteristics

•Team size
•Team composition

• Team diversity

– Is it better to have a homogenous or heterogeneous

team?

20
Homogeneous vs. Heterogeneous Teams

Homogeneous Teams Heterogeneous Teams

Less conflict More conflict

Faster team Longer team
development development
Performs better on
Performs better on
cooperative tasks
complex problems
Better coordination
More creative

21
Team Effectiveness Model

Organizational and Team

Team Design
Team Environment Effectiveness

•Task characteristics
• Reward systems
•Team size • Achieve
• Communication
•Team composition organizational
systems
goals
• Physical space
• Satisfy member
• Organizational needs
Team Processes
environment
• Maintain team
• Organizational
•Team development survival
structure
•Team norms
• Organizational
•Team roles
leadership
•Team cohesiveness

22
Team Development – Five Stages

Performing

Norming

Storming

Forming Adjourning
Team Development in Action
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJTFaJ1-
Ul0
Team Effectiveness Model

Organizational and Team

Team Design
Team Environment Effectiveness

•Task characteristics
• Reward systems
•Team size • Achieve
• Communication
•Team composition organizational
systems
goals
• Physical space
• Satisfy member
• Organizational needs
Team Processes
environment
• Maintain team
• Organizational
•Team development survival
structure
•Team norms
• Organizational
•Team roles
leadership
•Team cohesiveness

25
Team Norms

• Norms are behavioral guidelines

– Informal, often unspoken
– WILL develop organically in teams
– Not easy to change once established
• Norms develop through
– Initial team experiences
– Critical events in team’s history
– Experience/values members bring to the team
Team Norms

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcwyrLD
wFSM
 Multigenerational Norms

A story about Apes & Banana

“Because that’s the way it’s always been around here.” 28

Team Effectiveness Model

Organizational and Team

Team Design
Team Environment Effectiveness

•Task characteristics
• Reward systems
•Team size • Achieve
• Communication
•Team composition organizational
systems
goals
• Physical space
• Satisfy member
• Organizational needs
Team Processes
environment
• Maintain team
• Organizational
•Team development survival
structure
•Team norms
• Organizational
•Team roles
leadership
•Team cohesiveness

29
Team Development – Team Roles

• Role: a set of behaviors people are expected

to perform by holding certain positions

• Formally assigned or informally acquired

based on personal preference
Team Effectiveness Model

Organizational and Team

Team Design
Team Environment Effectiveness

•Task characteristics
• Reward systems
•Team size • Achieve
• Communication
•Team composition organizational
systems
goals
• Physical space
• Satisfy member
• Organizational needs
Team Processes
environment
• Maintain team
• Organizational
•Team development survival
structure
•Team norms
• Organizational
•Team roles
leadership
•Team cohesiveness

31
Team Cohesion
• The degree of attraction people feel
toward the team and their motivation to
remain members
– Calculative: members believe the team will
fulfill goals and needs
– Emotional: team is part of person’s social
identity
Influences on Team
Cohesiveness

Member
Similarity

External Team
Challenges Size
Increasing
Team
Team Cohesiveness Member
Success Interaction

Somewhat
Difficult Entry
33
Higher Team Cohesiveness:
– Want to remain members
– Willing to share information
– Strong interpersonal bonds
– Resolve conflict effectively
– Better interpersonal relationships

Is it good to be cohesive?
34
Cohesion and Performance

• Relationship between Productivity

team cohesion
and task performance
depends on the extent
to which team norms are
consistent with
organizational goals
Team cohesion
Learning objectives

• Team Effectiveness Model

• Improve Team Decision Making

36
Improving team decision making

• Team norms should encourage critical thinking

• Sufficient team diversity
• Ensure neither leader nor any member
dominates
• Maintain optimal team size
• Introduce effective team structures:
– constructive conflict
– brainstorming

37
Constructive Conflict

• Team members debate their different

perceptions about an issue in a way that
keeps the conflict focused on the task
rather than people
• Problem: constructive conflict easily
slides into personal attacks
Brainstorming
• Rules
– Speak freely
– Don’t criticize
– Provide as many ideas as possible
– Build on others’ ideas

• Encourage divergent thinking, reduce

evaluation apprehension, increase decision
acceptance, increase team cohesion, spread
enthusiasm
Nominal Group Technique

• Variation of traditional brainstorming

Individual Team Individual

Activity Activity Activity

Possible
Write down Vote on
Describe solutions
possible solutions
problem described
solutions presented
to others