Foundations of

Group Behavior

Groups
Two or more individuals working
together (interdependent) as a
team for achieving a shared
(mutual) goal/activity

Types of Groups
1. Formal Group:
Defined by the organizations structure
Formed for achieving certain goals/tasks

2. Informal Group:
Neither formally structured nor
organizationally determined
Natural formations in the work environment
that appear in response to the need for
social contact
Deeply affect behavior and performance

Why People form

Groups?
Social Identity Theory :
Perspective that considers when and
why individuals consider themselves
members of groups
Proposes that people have emotional
reactions to the failure or success of
their group because their self-esteem
gets tied into the groups performance
Helps people to reduce uncertainty
about who they are and what they
should do

Elements of Social Identity

Theory

Similarity
Distinctiveness
Status
Uncertainty Reduction

In-group Favoritism
Perspective in which we see
members of our in-group as better
than other people, and people not
in our group as all the same

Five Stage Group Development

Model

The Five Stages of Group

Development
1. Forming Stage:
Members feel much uncertainty about groups
purpose, structure & leadership
Stage complete when members start to think of
themselves as part of a group

2. Storming Stage:
Lots of conflicts between members of the group
Members accept the existence of the group but
resist the constraints it imposes on individuality
Stage completes with a relatively clear
hierarchy of leadership within the group

3. Norming Stage:
Members developed close relationships
and cohesiveness

4. Performing Stage:
The structure is finally fully functional
and accepted
Group energy moves from getting to
know and understand each other to
performing the task
Last stage for Permanent Groups

5. Adjourning Stage:
Final stage for temporary groups
Characterized by concern with
wrapping up activities and preparing
to disband

An Alternative Model for Group

Formation
Temporary groups with deadlines
dont follow the five-stage model

Punctuated-Equilibrium
Model
Temporary groups under deadlines go
through transitions between inertia and
activity
At the halfway point, they experience an
increase in productivity

 Sequence of Actions
1. Setting group direction
2. First phase of inertia
3. Half-way point transition
4. Major changes
5. Second phase of inertia
6. Accelerated activity

Group Properties
Role
A set of expected behavior patterns attributed to
someone occupying a given position in a social unit

Role Identity
Certain attitudes and behaviors consistent with a role

Role Perception
An individuals view of how he or she is supposed to
act in a given situation received by external stimuli

 Role Expectations
How others believe a person should act in a given
situation

Psychological Contract: an unwritten

agreement that sets out mutual expectations of
management and employees

Role Conflict
A situation in which an individual is confronted by
divergent role expectations

Norms
Established within the group
Acceptable standards of behavior
Shared by group members

Performance norms
Appearance norms
Social arrangement norms
Resource allocation norms

Conformity
Adjustment of ones behavior with
the norms

Reference Groups
Individuals belong or hope to belong
With whose norms they are likely to
conform

Deviant Workplace Behavior

Voluntary behavior
Violates organizational norms
Threatens the well-being of the
organization and its members
Antisocial behavior or workplace
incivility

Categories

Production
Property
Political
Personal aggression

Status
Socially defined rank
Given to groups or their members by
others

Status Characteristics
Theory
Power over others
Contribution to goals
Personal characteristics

Social Loafing
Individuals expend less effort
working collectively
Compared to individual effort

Cohesiveness
Attraction between the group
members
Motivation to stay in the group

Diversity
Extent to which members are similar
or different, from one another

Understanding Work
Teams

Difference Between Groups &

Teams.
Work Group:
A group that interacts primarily to share
information and to make decision to help
each group member perform his/her are of
responsibility.
Work Team:
A group whose individual efforts result in
performance that is greater than the sum of
the individual inputs.

Types of Teams
Problem Solving Teams:
Groups of 5 to 12 employees from the same
department who meet for a few hours each
week to discuss ways of improving quality,
efficiency, and the work environment.
Self-Managed Work Teams:
Groups of 10 to 15 people who take on
responsibilities of their former supervisors.

Types of Teams
Cross-Functional Teams:
Employees from about the same hierarchical
level, but from different work areas, who
come together to accomplish a task.
Virtual Teams:
Teams that use computer technology to tie
together physically dispersed members in
order to achieve a common goal.

Team Effectiveness Model

Context
Adequate Resources:
Every team needs proper resources to do its
job effectively. A scarcity of resources directly
reduces the ability of a team to perform its
job effectively and achieve its goals.
Leadership and Structure:
Leadership & structure are needed in order to
fully exploit the skills of members in the best
way, to get maximum efficiency.

Context
Climate of Trust:
Members of effective teams trust each other.
They also exhibit trust in their leaders.
Interpersonal trust among team members
facilitates cooperation, reduces the need to
monitor each others.
Performance Evaluation and Reward Systems:
Individual performance evaluations and
incentives encourages workers towards high
performance.

Team Composition
the ability and personality of team
members, allocation of roles and
diversity, size of the team, and
members preference for teamwork.

Abilities of members
Part of a teams performance
depends on the knowledge, skills,
and abilities of its individual
members.

Allocation of Roles
Teams have different needs, and
members should be se- lected to
ensure all the various roles are
filled.

Size of Teams
Most experts agree, keeping teams
small is a key to improving group
effectiveness. 37 Generally
speaking, the most effective teams
have five to nine members. And
experts suggest using the smallest
number of people who can do the
task.

organizational demography
The degree to which members of a
work unit share a common
demographic attribute, such as age,
sex, race, educational level, or length
of service in an organization, and the
impact of this attribute on turnover.

Team Processes

Specific Goals
Common Plan and Purpose
Team Efficacy
Mental Models
Conflict Levels
Social Loafing

Leadership

What Is Leadership?
Leadership
The ability to influence a group toward the
achievement of goals

Management
Use of authority inherent in designated
formal rank to obtain compliance from
organizational members

Both are necessary for organizational

success

Trait Theories of Leadership

Theories that consider personality,
social, physical, or intellectual traits to
differentiate leaders from non-leaders
Distinguished leaders by
Physical attributes
Personality characteristics
Social skills and speech fluency
Intelligence and scholarship
Cooperativeness
Insight

Trait Approach
Traits (examples)
Extraversion
Conscientiousness
Openness

Assumption: Leaders are born

Goal: Select leaders
Problems
Traits do not generalize across situations
Better at predicting leader emergence than
leader effectiveness

Behavioral Theories
Behavioral Theories of Leadership
Theories proposing that specific behaviors
differentiate leaders from non-leaders.

Behavioral theory
Leadership behaviors can be taught.
Vs.
Trait theory
Leaders are born, not made.

Behavioral Approach
Assumption: Leaders can be trained
Goal: Develop leaders
Problem: Effective behaviors do not
generalize across situations

Behavioral Approach
Initiating Structure leader behavior
aimed at defining and organizing work
relationships and roles; establishing clear
patterns of organization, communication,
and ways of getting things done
Consideration leader behavior aimed
at nurturing friendly, warm working
relationships, as well as encouraging
mutual trust and interpersonal respect
within the work unit

Types of Leaders
Production-Oriented Leader
Constant leader influence
Direct or close supervision
Many written or unwritten rules and
regulations
Focus on getting work done
Employee-Oriented Leader
Relationship-focused environment
Less direct/close supervision
Fewer written or unwritten rules and
regulations
Focus on employee concern and needs

CONTINGENCY THEORIES

All Consider the Situation

Fiedlers Contingency Model
Cognitive Resource Theory
Hersey and Blanchards Situational Leadership
Model
Path Goal Theory
Assumptions underlying the different models:
Fiedler: Leaders style is fixed
Others: Leaders style can and should be changed

Fiedlers Contingency
Theory
Fiedlers Contingency Theory classifies the
favorableness of the leaders situation
Least Preferred Coworker (LPC) the
person a leader has least preferred to work
with over his or her career
Task Structure degree of clarity, or
ambiguity, in the groups work activities
Position Power authority associated with
the leaders formal position in the organization
LeaderMember Relations quality of
interpersonal relationships among a leader
and group members

Findings from Fiedler Model

Situational Leadership
Theory
A model that focuses on follower
readiness
Followers can accept or reject the leader
Effectiveness depends on the followers
response to the leaders actions
Readiness is the extent to which
people have the ability and willingness
to accomplish a specific task

Leader-Member Exchange (LMX)

Theory
In Groups
Members are
similar to leader
In the leaders inner
circle of
communication
Receives more time
and attention from
leader
Gives greater
responsibility and
rewards

Out Groups
Managed by
formal rules
and policies
Receive less
of the
leaders
attention /
fewer
exchanges
More likely to
retaliate
against the

Tramsformational leadership
Leaders who inspire followers to transcend
their own self-interests and who are
capable of having a profound and
extraordinary effect on followers.

Transactional Leaders
Leaders who guide or motivate their
followers in the direction of established
goals by clarifying role and task
requirements.

Characteristics of transactional and

transformational Leaders
Transactional Leaders:
Contingent Reward
Management by Exception (active)
Management by Exception (passive)
Laissez-Faire

Continue
Transformational Leaders:
Idealized Influence
Inspirational Motivation
Intellectual Simulation
Individual Consideration

Authentic Leaders
Leaders who know who they are, know what
they believe in and value, and act on those
values and beliefs openly and candidly. Their
followers would consider them to be ethical
people.

Socialized charismatic leadership

A leadership concept that states that leaders
convey values that are other centered
versus self centered and who role-model
ethical conduct.

Servant leadership
A leadership style marked by going beyond
the leaders own self-interest and instead
focusing on opportunities to help followers
grow and develop.

Trust and Leadership

Trust is a positive expectation that another
will not act opportunistically.
Trust is a primary attribute associated with
leadership.
Trust modulate the leaders access to
knowledge and cooperation.
Followers who trust a leader are confident
that their rights and interests will not be
abused.

How trust is developed?

Key characteristics lead us to believe a leader:
Integrity
Benevolence
Ability
Integrity refers to honesty and truthfulness.
Benevolence means the trusted person has
your interests at heart even if yours arent line
with theirs.
Ability encompasses an individuals technical
and interpersonal knowledge and skills.

Consequences of Trust
Few consequences of trust are as follow:
Trust encourages taking risk
Trust facilitates information sharing
Trusting groups are more effective
Trust enhances productivity

Mentoring
A mentor is a senior employee who
sponsors and supports a less-experienced
employee, called a protg.

Attribution theory of Leadership

A leadership theory that says that leadership
is merely an attribution that people make
about other individuals.
Substitutes are the attributes such as
experience and training that can replace the
need for leaders support or ability to create
structure.
Neutralizers are the attributes that makes
it impossible for leader behaviour to make
any difference to follower outcomes.

CHAPTER 13

POWER AND POLITICS

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Define power and contrast leadership
and power.
Contrast the five basis of power.
Explain the role of dependence in
power relationships.
Identify nine power or influence
tactics and their contingencies.

Define power and contrast

leadership and power

Power :
A capacity that A has to influence the behavior of
B so that B acts in accordance with A s wishes.

Contrasting Leadership and

Power:
Power does not require goal compatibility, merely
dependence. Leadership, on the other hand,
requires some congruence between the goals of
the leader and those being led. Leadership focuses
on the downward influence, power does not.

Contrast the five basis of power

Formal Power:
Formal power is based on an individuals position in an
organization.
Coercive Power
The coercive power base depends on fear of the negative
results from failing to comply.
Reward Power
The opposite of coercive power is reward power , with which
people comply because it produces positive benefits.

Legitimate Power
In formal groups and organizations, probably the most
common access to one or more of the power basis is
legitimate power

Personal power:
Influence derived from an individuals
characteristics.
Expert power:
Influence based on special skills or
knowledge.
Referent power:
Influence based on identification with a
person who has desirable resources or
personal traits

EXPLAINATION OF ROLE OF
DEPENDENCE IN POWER POLITICS

Dependence increases when the resource

you control is important, scarce, and no
substitutable.

Identify nine power or influence

tactics and their contingencies

Legitimacy
Rational persuasion
Inspirational appeals
Consultation
Exchange
Personal appeals
Ingratiation
Pressure
Coalitions

ORGANIZATIONAL POLITICS
Political behavior in organizations
consists of activities that are not
required as part of an individuals
formal role but that influence, or
attempt to influence, the distribution
of advantages and disadvantages
within the organization

REALITY OF POLITICS
Many managers report some use of
political behavior is both ethical and
necessary, as long as it doesnt
directly harm anyone else.
They describe politics as a necessary
evil
Believe someone who never uses
political behavior will have a hard
time getting things done.

POLITICS IN EYE OF
BEHOLDER

Forming coalitions vs.

Whistle-blowing
vs.
Scheming
vs.
Overachieving
vs.
capable
Ambitious
vs.
Opportunistic
vs.
Cunning
vs.
Arrogant
vs.
Perfectionist
vs.

Facilitating teamwork
Improving efficiency
Planning ahead
Competent and
Career minded
Astute
Practical minded
Confident
Attentive to detail

FACTORS CONTRIBUTED TO
POLITICAL BEHAVIOR
Individual factors

High self-monitors
Internal locus of control
High Mach personality
Organizational investment
Perceived job alternatives
Expectations of success

Organizational factors

Reallocation of resources
Promotion opportunities
Low trust
Role ambiguity
Unclear performance
evaluation system
Zero-sum reward practices
Democratic decision making
High performance pressures
Self-serving senior managers

Political behavior
Low
High

Favorable
Outcomes
Reward
Averted
Punishments

EMPLOYEE RESPONSE TO
ORGANIZATION POLITICS
Organizational politics may threaten
employees.
Decrease job satisfaction
Increased anxiety and stress
Increased turnover
Reduced performance

IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT
The process by which individuals
attempt to control the impression
others form of them.
DEFENSIVE BEHAVIOR
Reactive and protective behaviors to
avoid action, blame, or change.

DEFENSIVE BEHAVIOR
Avoiding Action
Avoiding Blame
Avoiding Change

Avoiding Action

Over conforming
Buck Passing
Playing Dumb
Stretching
Stalling

AVOIDING BLAME

Buffing
Playing Safe
Justifying
Scapegoating
Misrepresenting

AVOIDING CHANGE
Prevention
Self-protection

IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT
TECHNEQUES

Conformity
Favors
Excuses
Apologies
Self Promotion
Enhancement
Flattery
Examplification