Group and Team Cohesion

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Group and Team Cohesion
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What Is a Group?
Group A collection of interacting individuals
who share
a collective identity,
a sense of shared purpose or objectives,
structured ways of communication,
personal or task interdependence (or both) All
teams are groups, but not all groups are teams.
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How a Group Becomes a Team Linear Model
Forming
Familiarization interpersonal relationships
formed team structure developed.
Storming
Rebellion resistance to the leader and control
by the group interpersonal conflict.
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How a Group Becomes a Team
Norming
Solidarity and cooperation develop.
Performing
Energies channeled for team success.
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Other Models
Cyclical - Life Cycle Pendular

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Group Structure
Group roles
Behaviors required or expected of a person
occupying a certain position.
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Group Structure
Formal roles (e.g., coach, captain)
are dictated by the nature and structure of the
organization.
Informal roles (e.g., enforcer, mediator)
evolve from the interactions among group
members. Role clarity and role acceptance are
critical for team success.
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Group Structure
Group norms
A level of performance, pattern of behavior, or
belief.
Leaders need to establish positive group norms
or standards (especially standards of
productivity).
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Creating an Effective Team Climate
Social support Mutual respect and support
enhances team climate.
Proximity Closer contact promotes team
interaction.
Distinctiveness The more distinctive the group
feels, the better the climate. Fairness
Fairnessor a lack of itcan bring a group
closer together. Similarity Greater similarity
closer climate.
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T.O.

• Status was just upgraded from Suicidal to
  Questionable
• Would you, or would you not, want him on your
  TEAM?

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Defining Cohesion
Taskcohesion
The degree to which group members work together
to achieve common goals and objectives.
Social cohesion
The interpersonal attractions among group
members.
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Task Demands and the CohesionPerformance
Relationship
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Guidelines for Building Team Cohesion
Leader-Coach Strategies
Communicate effectively.
Explain individual roles in team success.
Develop pride within subunits.
Set challenging team goals.
(continued)
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Guidelines for Building Team Cohesion
Leader-Coach Strategies
Encourage team identity.
Discourage formation of social cliques.
Avoid excessive turnover.
(continued)
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Guidelines for Building Team Cohesion
Leader-Coach Strategies
Conduct periodic team meetings.
Know the team climate.
Know relevant, personal things about each team
member. Treat as individuals know how far each
can be pushed...
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Individual and Team Performance in Sport
Basic principle
While individual ability is important, the
individual abilities of team members alone are
not good predictors of how a team will perform.
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Individual and Team Performance in Sport
Steinersmodel
Actual productivity potential productivity
losses due to faulty group processes
Losses
(1) motivation
(2) coordination
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How Individual Skills Relate to Group Performance
The more that cooperation and interaction are
necessary in a task, the more that the importance
of individual ability decreases and the
importance of group productivity increases.
Teams with players of equal ability tend to play
best.
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Ringlemanneffect
The phenomenon where individual performance
decreases as the number of people in the group
increases.
Socialloafing
Individuals within a group or team giving less
than 100 effort due to motivational losses.
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EliminatingSocial Loafing
Emphasize the importance of individual pride and
unique contributions.
Increase identifiability of individual
performances.
Determine specific situations where social
loafing occurs.
(continued)
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EliminatingSocial Loafing
Conduct individual meetings to discuss social
loafing.
Walk a mile in a teammates shoes switch off
assignments.
Break down the team into smaller units.
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Team Building
Action research model
Initial discussions with coaches Education and
contracting
Data collection and analysis
Presentation of data to coaches and players
Designing and implementing step-by-step
interventionleading to final action plan and
exit interviews Ongoing monitoring and
support