Forgotten Group Member

Whether groups are formed for social or task oriented purposes, the ability to produce and maintain a sense of affiliation, peer support and collaboration is important for overall group functioning. The cohesion of a social group is produced through the establishment of a set of group norms, which are later defined as a guide for conduct accepted within a group of individuals. However, in order for a group to perform and produce results, the team leader should guide his/her team through the proper stages of group development, which includes the following steps: forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. Although teams should follow all these stages of group development, the forming and the norming stages are the most important,

Coming into this class I was a bit wary about how this class would be run and what we would learn, especially once I found it was to be team led. In the past twelve weeks I have gained more insight on myself and how I react to situations in group settings, especially being in a class that is described as management and not psychology. Within this essay, I will describe my experiences with thoughts about my team as well as how we progressed. I will also describe how my class has progressed from the early stages and has transformed into a well-oiled high performing team. One of the tools I will use to show and describe the development of both my team and the class will be Wheelan’s four stages of development.

Working in a group to achieve a high quality group project can be one of people’s most difficult school experiences. Working in a group is tough because there is often someone who does not pull their own weight. “There are five stages to group development, adjourning, forming, storming, performing, and norming” (John & Wiley pg 166). Christine’s group from the Case Study the Forgotten Group Member is in between the Storming and Norming Stages. The Storming Stage “is dealing with tensions and defining group tasks,” while the Norming Stage is dealing with high emotionality and tension among the group members” (John & Wiley pg. 166). Christine and her group could have had better

Wheelan (2013) identifies the four stages of team development and provides detailed explanation of how a group transforms itself from a stage one group of uncertainty into a successful, highly productive stage four team. This requires work and a thorough understanding of the many internal/external influences that can occur during each stage. A team member or leader who is well versed in these stages and who can evolve with each stage will be better equipped to deal with possible obstacles that can hinder group progress and implement practices to help the group successfully work through a

Coming into this class I was a bit wary about how this class would run and what we would learn, especially once I found it was to be team led. In the past twelve weeks I have gained more insight on myself and how I react to situations in group settings, especially being in a class that is described as management and not psychology. Within this essay, I will look do describe my experiences and thoughts with my team as well as how we progressed. I will also look to describe how my class has progressed from the early stages and has transformed into a well-oiled high performing team. One of the tools I will use to show and describe the development of both my team and the class will be Wheelan’s four stages of development.

The long range plan will be for the teams to continue through the stages of group development. The Storming stage will be the next stage the team will work through. They will have to work through some disagreements and/or conflicts about their roles, power, and structure; and build consensus by revisiting the purpose of the team (Gordon, 2013). The Forming and Storming stages of group development are two of the cornerstones, People and Task, of effective collaboration (Conzemius and O’Neill, 2002). The team will continue to the Norming stage where they demonstrate an improved ability to create interdisciplinary instruction, solve problems, and conflicts that arise in the process. The team will have to make decisions on how they will go about making connections between disciplines. The leaders at this stage become less directive and more leaders

As a team leader it is the goal to have the group perform well and as quickly as possible and work through their differences. Many studies suggest that interprofessional teams do not perform effectively due to friction, hostility, and barriers to knowledge sharing (Mitchell, Parker, & Giles, 2011). Forming a team usually is recognized by the stages known as forming, storming, norming, and performing (Mind Tools, 2012). Formatting an agenda that includes expectations, rules, and

Fielder’s contingency model explores the group dynamic between a leader and the other team members. He explains how an effective group dynamic is reflected when a leader is able to successfully determine what each team member is going to do (Fielder, 1981 and Forsyth, 2006). I believe that I was able to carry out this role effectively as tasks were given according to the strengths that an another team member had. Inclusive of what Fielder had stated, I believe that I was able to act upon the role and motivate my team members when we were faced with challenges. For instance, one challenge that we were faced with was the lack of support each team member gave one another. Although every member was given a task to complete, some members did not carry out their task and as being one of the leaders and following the coaching style, I had taken it as my responsibility to encourage them completing the task. However, after a while, I had noticed that the work was not being done and so I had taken over their roles on top of mine as I knew that their lack of effort would affect my

Christine should understand how people relate to one another in groups and the blended personalities that each member brings will be based on their needs to express feelings of inclusion and control are important to the success of the team. With the situation with Mike and knowing off first hand that he is the class clown, is allow him to be creative and be the presenter of their project to the class to show case the teams work. Steve being the business mind, allow him to produce the project plan. By doing this, Christine would draw on each team member’s strengths and a successful workgroup performance.

Several team development models and theories have been published, particularly over the last few decades. One of the most widely known and referred to models is the Tuckman and Jensen five-stage team development model (Miller, 2003). Tuckman, an educational psychologist and researcher born in 1938, first introduced his four stages of team development in 1965: forming, storming, norming and performing and along with Jensen in 1977, later modified it into a five-stage version through the addition of adjourning. Tuckman proposed that a team’s interactions, functions and efficacy altered between stages and that in order for team to be effective, it needs to go through the first three stages: forming, storming and norming. Since then, numerous other

For instant, our team leader constantly intervene on the female member’s task and direct a specific area for her to follow strictly that ends up frustrated her and suggested him to work alone on the part as well. Fortunately, development of group cohesion is form on the next few meetings. The norm of team quickly directed under the team leadership as well as emotional intelligence of our team efforts towards performing tasks. In the last two meetings, alternative interpretations of the information can be openly discussed within all members. Lastly, throughout task completion step by step, team termination is reached. In order to come to an effective performance, our teams have pass through several development stages together addressed with intra-personal and interpersonal needs before any behavior norms established (Rickards & Moger, 2000). Again, in the future, Tuckman’s model of group development can used to avoid similar

A certain amount of group conflict and adjustment at the beginning of every team member's experience is to be expected. This is part of the 'forming, storming, norming, and performing' process of team development. To lessen the chances of personality conflicts, or the desire of one team member to dominate, the expectations of the team as a whole must be made clear from the beginning. The focus must be upon the task, not upon the personality. It must be clear that teams are judged based upon their collective, not individual output.

The teamwork and leadership class took me step by step to the academic and practical side of what needs to be developed in my real-life profession. As an assistant professor, and a former team leader of a team-based organization I realize even more. where and how my team and I need to improve. In this paper, firstly I will review the definition of leadership, secondly I will discuss my three top learning choices from the class discussions including self-assessments, resolving conflicts, and the BART theory of listening. Finally, I will conclude with the future development, or practices that will be inserted into my profession in teamwork, team leadership, and the areas need to improve, establish or change.

The 'forming stage' of group development is one in which "groups initially concern themselves with orientation accomplished primarily through testing. Such testing serves to identify the boundaries of both interpersonal and task behaviors" (Smith 2005). These tests include discussing how group procedures will operate; testing what is considered acceptable within the limits of group discussion (such as humor or when it is acceptable to interrupt a speaker); and also establishing leadership roles in both a formal and informal manner. The group is also highly dependent upon exterior direction. Our behaviors were consistent with the fact that there is "little agreement on team aims other than received from leader" during the 'forming' phase (Chapman n.d.).