PROBLEMS IN GROUPS

Obviously, groups and teams can be powerful forces for satisfying employee needs and accomplishing organizational goals. However, there are difficulties associated with groups and teams that can derail organizational success.

One common problem many teams face is dealing with the related issues of conformity and agreement. In the context of a group, conformity means adherence to the group's norms, values, and goals. While member acceptance of pivotal norms is important for both individual and group success, too much conformity - especially to the point of blind adherence even to all peripheral norms - can result in reduced creativity and objectivity in addressing issues and solving problems. For example, in a set of experiments in which subjects were asked to judge whether three lines were equal or different in length, many individuals conformed to the consensus of a group, judging lines that were obviously different in length to be the same just because the rest of the group said they were. This kind of conformity can detract from the generation of new ideas and from appropriate disagreements with inappropriate behaviours the group might be demonstrating.

Experts have recognized two special cases of group conformity – groupthink and the Abilene Paradox.

Irving Janis, who coined the term groupthink, identified eight symptoms of the phenomenon:

1. Illusion of invulnerability - members become convinced that they are invincible, and their overconfidence results in a willingness to take great risks.

2. Illusion of morality - members believe that whatever they do is good, ethical, and morally correct, when, in fact, it may not be.

3. Illusion of unanimity - members falsely believe they are all in agreement.

4. Collective rationalization - members justify any concerns about the value of what they are doing or challenges to their decisions.

5. Mindguarding - some members protect the group by preventing adverse information from being presented.

6. Shared stereotypes - members negatively stereotype outsiders who may present a threat to the group and its decisions.

7. Self-censorship - members consider disagreement with the group inappropriate, so they don't speak out.

8. Direct pressure - members who voice objections to the apparent group consensus are pressured by other members to conform.

Figure 5 illustrates these symptoms in the context of a meeting of a pharmaceutical company's board of directors discussing the introduction of a new weight-loss drug. These groupthink symptoms can be prevented through specific techniques, including assigning the role of critical evaluation to everyone in the group, appointing a specific individual to be a “devil’s advocate” to challenge the group consensus, breaking the group into smaller subgroups to discuss issues, having the leader withhold his or her opinion about the issue, and bringing in outside experts to challenge the group's thinking. Within the broader organization, ways to preclude groupthink include establishing an organizational culture that encourages original thinking and challenge, training leaders, and conducting organizational development activities such as team building and creative problem solving. It is important that leaders establish cohesive groups with norms that encourage rather than discourage critical evaluation of ideas.

A special case of groupthink called the Abilene Paradox – a term derived from originator Jerry Harvey’s family’s unwanted, but agreed upon, automobile trip to Abilene – occurs when members of a group publicly agree on a course of action even though there is a consensus agreement that an alternative course is preferred. Each person incorrectly assumes that everyone else wants the publicly chosen alternative. An example would be when an executive team continues to approve expenditures for a project that each member privately believes ought to be scrapped. The unwillingness of members to bring up their true feelings and beliefs results in a growing commitment to a bad decision. This phenomenon can result from some combination of the desire not to “step on someone’s toes” or to humiliate the original project advocate, negative fantasies and fear of rejection or exclusion from the group, and insecurities in one’s own point of view.

1. Which of these statements expresses the main idea of the text?

a) Conformity means adherence to the group's norms, values, and goals.

b) Excessive conformity can lead to a decrease in objectivity when dealing with issues.

c) There are two special cases of group conformity.

d) Groupthink symptoms can be prevented through specif­ic techniques.

3. Are these statements true or false? Correct the false ones.

a) When subjects were asked to say whether three lines were equal or different in length, many persons agreed that lines were the same just because the rest of the group said they were.

b) Illusion of invulnerability implies that members are certain of their vulnerability and are ready to take risks.

c) Collective rationalization means that members express concerns about the value of what they are doing.

d) Mindguarding involves prevention of unfavourable information from being presented to the group.

e) Direct pressure takes place when members who try to oppose the evident group consensus are persuaded by other members to conform.

f) To avoid groupthink symptoms, it is advisable to delegate the role of critical evaluation to everyone in the group.

g) Breaking the group into smaller subgroups to discuss issues cannot preclude groupthink.

h) By encouraging original thinking and challenge, an organization promotes groupthink.

i) The Abilene Paradox takes place when group members openly agree on a strategy even though there is an agreement that an alternative course is favoured.

j) The unwillingness of group members to bring up their true feelings and beliefs results in a growing worry about a bad decision.

4. Answer the questions.

a) What common problem do many teams face?

b) What can decrease the generation of new ideas in the group?

c) What does illusion of morality imply?

d) Does illusion of unanimity mean that group members doubt they are all like-minded?

e) Why may group members negatively stereotype outsiders?

f) What does self-censorship involve?

g) What does figure 5 demonstrate?

h) What is the purpose of appointing a specific individual in a group to be a “devil’s advocate”?

i) What other techniques can challenge the group's thinking?

j) What kind of cohesive groups must leaders establish?

k) Who coined the term the Abilene Paradox?

l) What is the Abilene Paradox exemplified with in the text?

m) What are the possible reasons of members’ unwillingness to bring up their true feelings and beliefs?

5. Write a summary of the text.

Figure 5

Date: 2015-01-02; view: 919