Running head: GROUP INTERDEPENDENCE AND DYNAMICS
The Functioning and Application of Group Dynamics
MGT 415
June 22, 2009
The Functioning and Application of Group Dynamics
Groups are a fundamental part of our life. They can be very small comprised of just two people or very large with memberships in the tens of thousands. There are different ways of observing group behavior and gaining insight into the group collective experience. In thinking of groups, there are some key dynamics about them that should be explored for relative significance in relation to their goals, interdependence, and trust; how groups manage conflict, and the value of diversity in groups; including information on how we apply this information to current or future applications.
According to some group researchers, ‘Groups are not merely sets of aggregated, independent individuals; instead they are unified social entities. Groups cannot be reduced down to the level of the individual without losing information about the group unit, as a whole’ (Forsyth, 2006, p. 13). The notion of group cohesion, which is the forces or bonds that bind individuals to the collective nature of the group, is fundamental to the collective nature of groups. In some groups, the feelings that group members have for each other and their commitment to achieving the group’s goals will be minor. In other groups, these feelings are seen as quite strong. The functioning of the group is dependent on the trust and loyalty its members develop towards one another and to the group.
Group Goals, Social Interdependence and Trust
The group experience maintains group norms which are basically socially established rules of conduct that indicate the commonly shared beliefs for the group and affect how the group may function collectively. The group norms are developed out of necessity for the group to survive or achieve its goals. Social norms also act to reduce uncertainty that members can...