Business Communication Essentials, 6e (Bovee/Thill)
Chapter 2 Mastering Team Skills and Interpersonal Communication
1) Teams are at the core of ________ management, which is the effort to involve employees in the company's decision-making process.
A) autocratic
B) participative
C) top-down
D) personnel
E) laissez-faire
Answer: B
Explanation: B) Teams are often at the core of participative management, the effort to involve employees in the company's decision making.
Classification: Conceptual
LO: 1
Difficulty: Easy
Learning Outcome: Describe best practices in team and interpersonal communication
2) Teams can increase performance levels by ________.
A) pooling experience
B) discouraging consensus
C) encouraging
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Classification: Application
AACSB: Communication Abilities; Multicultural and Diversity Understanding
LO: 1
Difficulty: Moderate
Learning Outcome: Describe best practices in team and interpersonal communication
4) ________ occurs when peer pressure causes team members to withhold contrary or unpopular opinions.
A) Free riding
B) Social loafing
C) Collaboration
D) Groupthink
E) Feedback
Answer: D
Explanation: D) Groupthink occurs when peer pressure causes individual team members to withhold contrary or unpopular opinions and to go along with decisions they don't really believe in. Groupthink leads to poor decisions and ill-advised actions and can even induce people to act unethically.
Classification: Conceptual
LO: 1
Difficulty: Easy
Learning Outcome: Describe best practices in team and interpersonal communication
5) Jean's eight-member team met to discuss their strategy for completing a project. Though Jean and her colleague Jenna didn't agree with the proposed plan, they didn't voice their disapproval when the plan was put to vote, because the rest of the team agreed with it. Jean and Jenna's behavior in this situation can be explained by the phenomenon of ________.
A) brainwashing
B) social loafing
C) groupthink
D) hidden agendas
E) mob mentality
Answer: C
Explanation: C) Groupthink occurs when peer pressures cause individual team members to withhold contrary or unpopular opinions and to go along with decisions they
Katzenbach and Smith (1993a) recognise teams as the basic units of performance in organisations and identify a team as '...a small number of people with complimentary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable.'
What is groupthink? There is a simple definition for it, but is it truly that simple? The term groupthink refers to the inclination of group members to have the same opinions and beliefs; it frequently leads to mistakes. It often occurs without an individual being aware of it. Conflict is considered to be a harmful element when related to groups, but conflict is good when considering groupthink because it helps to eliminate the existence of a groupthink. The explanation sounds simple enough, but it is more complex than the description given.
As stated by Janice, groupthink refers to when group members, as a group, make a bad decision even though as individuals they know that it is a poor decision (as cited by Spector, 2012, p. 315). Factors that can cause groupthink include group cohesiveness, isolation of the group, pressure for conformity, and strong leadership (Spector, 2012, p. 315). Inside Out represented groupthink when Anger took control while Sadness and Joy were away from headquarters. Anger wanted to give Riley the idea of running away to Minnesota because that is where she collected all of her happy memories. Disgust and Fear were against the idea at first, but due to time pressure, the pressure of conformity, and Angers’ strong leadership, Disgust and Fear gave in to Angers’ plan to get Riley to Minnesota. When the decision was made and Riley ran away, it became obvious how terrible of a decision Disgust, Fear, and Anger made as Riley became
Group think is a phenomenon that occurs when group 's need for consensus supersedes the judgment of individual group members. Group think often occurs when there is a time constraint and individuals put aside personal doubts so a project can move forward or when one member of the group dominates the decision-making process.
2. The effect of social facilitation can be positive when the task is but negative when the task is ___________
The Groupthink symptom, Rationale, is described as when victims of Groupthink ignore warnings: they also collectively construct rationalizations in order to discount warnings and other forms of negative feedback that, taken seriously, might lead the group members to reconsider their assumptions each time they recommit themselves to past decisions. An illustration of this symptom is first presented in Act 1 of The Crucible when Reverend Parris tries warn Abigail. Parris discloses, “ Now look you, child, your punishment will come in it’s time. But if
This case, as well as the previous two, are prime examples of how detrimental groupthink can have on the effect of your career or the lives of several others. It may not always be easy to recognize the dangers or altercations groupthink may have, which is why you should always appoint ‘mind guards’ to contradict the decisions made within a group setting. It is always beneficial to seek an outside source for their opinion, as it may be just the idea that the group has
3. Group think is a concept that involves individuals abandoning their critical senses and agreeing to group process even when they know it will have disastrous consequences. (Challenger disaster, Enron, Iraq war, etc.). Your will encounter these pressures in your work life and need to be prepared. Have you ever done something in a group that you would not have done if you were alone? What happened? How did you feel? What have you learned from this chapter that might help you avoid this behavior in the future, and avoid group think?
Irving Janis, a social psychologist, studied how social behavior is influenced in group settings. In 1972, he coined the name ‘groupthink’ to describe observed behavioral changes in individuals belonging to groups. Groupthink is characterized by a group’s pursuit for unity, often resulting in individual members disregarding or altering their own beliefs to coincide with the majority, or group’s, beliefs. This disregard or altercation ensures that the group stays unified; however, results in the group committing illogical actions without considering
The term groupthink in this report is defined as, the social psychological phenomenon that results in groups during pressure situations. This social psychology theory is broken down into eight signs. Illusion of invulnerability, Collective rationalization, Belief in inherent morality, Stereotyped views of out-groups, Direct pressure on dissenters, Self-censorship, Illusion of unanimity, Self-appointed “mindguards”. According to research conducted by Irving Janis, there are three conditions to groupthink. The first, "high group cohesiveness" which is the direction for a group to be in unity while working towards a goal, or to satisfy the emotional needs of its members. Secondly, the structural faults such as insulation of the group, lack
Groupthink theory often occurs without the group’s realization. Irving Janis formed 8 different symptoms that indicate groupthink. The first of these symptoms is illusions of vulnerability. This occurs when members of the group are overly optimistic and believe that nothing negative will arise from their decision. Janis describes it as taking great risks and acquiring the attitude of “everything is going to be OK, because we are a special group”. Secondly we have belief in inherent morality. This symptom is characterized as the groups thought that they could do no wrong. They believe that they have high morality, that they are right in all situations and they ignore the ethical consequences that could arise because of their decisions. As the third
Furthermore, groupthink and group polarization also occurred in the movie. Groupthink is the tendency for members to reach solidarity, and the group often avoids questions that could lead to disputes (Iurchevici, 2016). In order for groupthink to occur, the group must be highly cohesive, in a group structure, and in a stressful situation (Kassin et al., 2013). All three of these were present in the movie, as the members of the group
“Social influence is the process by which the actions of an individual or group affect the behavior of others” (Feldman 495). These influences are strongly experienced by members in the group. Every group is unique and is mostly guided by a particular norm and behavior. An individual in a group passively or actively allows himself to be influenced by the group just to have a sense of belongingness. In the bid to prevent being excluded or rejected from a group, some individuals overtly adhere to the norms of the group. “Thus, people conform to meet the expectations of the group” (Feldman 495).
This type of group mentality is referred to as “groupthink.” Group think, a concept discovered by Irving Janis, is the thought process that takes place among members of a cohesive group wherein they cease to consider their individual desires and instead respond according to group beliefs. This is done to ensure the solidity of the group. The members value this even more than their own views.
Business communication is abound in today's society. The ability to communicate has always had its advantages, with its rich history, and traditions, modern business communication is valued as a modern day concept. Business executives rate the ability of business communication skills as among the personal factors necessary in gaining a job. As stated by Hynes (2005)” effective business communication is the key to planning, leading, organizing, and controlling the resources of the organizations to achieve objectives” (Conrad & Newberry, 2011, p112). This essay will examine what business communication skills is needed for the process of graduating in Westminster Business School, while giving recommendations in studying