...Throughout the process of working with two different groups in this course, I noticed while working on our projects we encounter some similarities and differences. Now that I reflect back on my groups I realized we used some of the small group dynamics we discussed in class such as group development, we developed an effective team by incorporating complementary skills’, we demonstrated Communication Competence, and lastly, we also used technology. All of these group dynamics essentially contributed to our success as a small team. In both projects. Some of the similarities I encountered while working in both teams is right off the bat on our first meeting we started our group development, which is a model created by Bruce Tuckman. This model...
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...1 Assignment: Observation of a Small Group 2 Community Board Background: I attended the Committee For The Concerns Of The Aging meeting for Community Board 12 (Manhattan). The Aging meeting is held every 2nd Tuesday of the month. The meeting was held at Dyckman Senior Center. Community Board #12 Manhattan is one of the 59 community boards in New York City (12 in Manhattan). Each of the Community Board members represents a unique geographic area of the city of New York and CB12 represents the neighborhoods of Washington Heights and Inwood in the Borough of Manhattan. It is delimited by the Harlem River on the east and on the north, the Hudson River on the west, and W 155th Street on the south (Community Board 12, 2011). The Community board is made up of 50 non-salaried volunteered members, who are considered officials of the City of New York. These members are appointed by the borough president, in which half of the members must be appointed from nominees of the districts council members. Each of the Board Members must either live, work, or have special interest in the CB 12 district (Community Board 12, 2011). As an independent City Agency, Community Board #12 Manhattan is committed to improving the delivery of the City services in the district and advocating for the welfare...
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...Leadership Roles 1 Leadership Roles in a Small-Group Project Merlla McLaughlin Professor Bushnell Communications 102 February 22, 2004 Source: Andrea A. Lunsford (Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2004) Leadership Roles 2 Abstract Using the interpersonal communications research of J. K. Brilhart and G. J. Galanes, as well as that of W. Wilmot and J. Hocker, along with T. Hartman’s Personality Assessment, I observed and analyzed the leadership roles and group dynamics of my project collaborators in a communications course. Based on results of the Hartman Personality Assessment, I predicted that a single leader would emerge. However, complementary individual strengths and gender differences encouraged a distributed leadership style, in which the group experienced little confrontation. Conflict, because it was handled positively, was crucial to the group’s progress. Source: Andrea A. Lunsford (Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2004) Leadership Roles 3 Leadership Roles in a Small-Group Project While classroom lectures provide students with volumes of information, many experiences can be understood only by living them. So it is with the workings of a small, task-focused group. What observations can I make after working with a my peers on a class project? And what have I learned as a result? Leadership Expectations and Emergence The six members of this group were selected by the instructor; half were male and half were female. By performing the Hartman Personality Assessment (Hartman, 1998)...
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...Small Group Analysis of ’12 Angry Men’ Interpersonal and Group Dynamics – SOSC 301 Instructor: Mr. Crisp Bryant & Stratton College October 31, 2012 A Small Group Analysis of ’12 Angry Men’ Set in a large U.S. city, in the 1950’s, Twelve men of a jury are sequestered in a room and are unable to leave until a weighty decision is made, one that will either condemn a young man to death or set him free. The twelve strangers are trapped within the confines of the jury room until the goal is achieved. They melt in the hot humidity, which is worsened by the room's stuffiness and by the stress as they grapple with each other and with their responsibility (Lumet,1957). The characters of each of the twelve men was carefully crafted into a particular role within the group dynamics. A complete spectrum of issues among the different characters was developed to add chaos to the group decision-making process. From the bigotry of Juror No.10, to the coldly analytical No.4, each character brought good and bad qualities to the jury room; they all had to be addressed to reach an outcome (Lumet,1957). At the beginning of the movie, as the twelve men sit down to begin the deliberation process, there is no discussion and they decide to begin by a vote of guilty or not guilty. Eleven of the jurors quickly vote ‘guilty’ and try to leave the room. Nobody even bothers to think what their decision means for the accused. Juror No. 4 is too rigid to change and Juror No. 7 just wants to...
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...TECHNOLOGY AND SMALL GROUPS Recent advances in new communication technologies are not only changing how small groups interact, but are also redefining our notion of a small group. Although some organizations have used technology such as telephones and videoconferencing for some time, those communication tools are costly. New technologies, particularly the Internet, allow for asynchronous and synchronous communication among small group members at relatively low cost. These technologies are altering small group membership, functions, and processes. Research on Technology and Small Group Communication Most research on the use of technology in small group work compares groups that use communication technologies (such as discussion boards and videoconferencing) to those that meet face-to-face. With the rapid changes in communication technology, many problems associated with groups that do not meet face-to-face have been reduced or eliminated. Still, groups that never meet face-to-face can encounter difficult challenges. And yet, not meeting face-to-face also has its advantages. New communication technologies can create new environments that produce more open, fluid, and dynamic small group environments. For example, recent research suggests that online discussions facilitate collaborative learning in the university classroom. One study found that students who are actively engaged in online discussion earned higher grades in large lecture class and felt that they learned more...
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...head: LEADING AND PARTICIPATING Leading and Participating in Discussions in Small Groups or Teams Steven L McGee Group and Organizational Behavior Christine E. Philips, Ph.D. MHR Group 236 Trevecca Nazarene University Leadership is not dictating, it is about keeping the group focused and motivating members to do their best during group activities. According to a study by the Hay Group, a global management consultancy, there are 75 key components of employee satisfaction (Lamb, McKee, 2004). Trust and confidence in top leadership was proven to be the single most reliable predictor of employee satisfaction in an organization. When a person doesn’t respect the people in a leadership position, complications in tasks will arise. An example of this would be in the workplace when a leader is delegating responsibility to employees, and the employees do not respect him or her. The task will be completed; however, the quality or production will not be as good as it would if the manager was appropriately respected. Trust and respect go hand in hand when leading any group, whether it is in the workplace, school, or just a casual event. Aside from trust and respect, a leader has the ability to set the morale in a group. Being aware of the mental and spiritual shape of your teammates plays an important part in leadership. Leaders can shape morale by compassion, and by listening to other group members before adding their thoughts and ideas. By listening to others, a leader...
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...Small Team and Group Paper Working as part of a small team or group is inevitable at some point in every person’s career. Whether it is at a food establishment or in an office environment, teams and groups always play a crucial role in the business world. I have worked with several small teams and groups, but the longest I’ve worked in such an environment was as an instructor for the U.S. Army in Arizona. I taught for four years as a contract instructor at the Human Intelligence Collector Course at Fort Huachuca, Arizona. The course was broken down into three detachments numbered One, Two, and Three. Each detachment was broken down into six smaller groups. Each group consisted of approximately six to eight contract instructors, a civilian group leader, and one to three military group leaders or assistant group leaders. Each group consisted of approximately four teaching teams of two to three contract instructors and the rest of the instructors were generally role players or assisted with grading reports. The purpose of each of the teaching teams was to present classes in order to teach the military students the essentials of becoming a Human Intelligence Collector. The breakdown within each detachment generally changed for every class cycle. Each class cycle lasted approximately 18 weeks, sometimes longer with holiday weekends, with about 2 weeks or less in between classes. During the break between classes, the upper management and the military leadership would review input...
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...As a small group we want to push each other to grow in all areas of our lives. And we believe this can be practically exercised in an honest evaluation of ourselves. The Bible tells us that we should “test our own actions” and “Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves.” Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves.4 Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, 5 for each one should carry their own load. Galatians 6:3-4 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don't think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. Romans 12:3 So in light of this we have put together a short exercise that can help us gauge ourselves and provide insight into one another’s lives. Some of these questions are difficult and we encourage you to take your time to stop and reflect on each one. 1. Tell me about your signature strengths? 2. Tell me how you use these strengths in life/work? 3. Tell me about your chosen career. Why did you choose this career path? What do you love about it? What would you like to change? 4. Tell me about your biggest weakness? What does it cause? What is its cause? 5. How do you determine whether something is...
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...One of the small group communication theory is the functional theory. In my word, the functional theory, means the consequence of a behavior within a group and different behavior can result in different outcomes. In this semester, I have the small group work on the class Com 320. In the beginning, I set up the Group Me and add all of group members to the contact list. This social communication application used to be the major way of our group communication. My group member – Stephen put the working time in Group Me in order to avoid forgetting the meeting time. Zachary sets up a timetable, it can show our free time after class in the week, therefore we can know that when the best meeting time is. The clearly communication is one of the best...
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...is vital to foreign policy decisions (p. 556). Bureaucracies are not powerful unless they are backed by Congress and the president’s support. They seek their legitimacy through the acceptance of their recommendations by both the Congress and the president. In part, their effectiveness arises from whether the small group surrounding the president approves of them. Small group dynamics approach is more likely to occur in groups that are cohesive aka exhibit a high level of amiability among each other. Group Cohesiveness is an essential element of small group dynamics. It is stronger when there is a sense of loyalty between everyone. For e.g. in the decision to go to Iraq in the first Gulf War, President Bush picked people who he was very close to, like Cheney, Gates and Scowcroft. They worked together since the Ford administration (about 14 years). The second important element is Group Insulation which means the lack of other parties involved in the process of decision-making. There’s little to no outside sources of information or opinion, the inner group gets to decide without intervention from the outside....
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...Many might refer to small groups as therapy based, but small groups are not inclusive or able to be generalized in such regard. Indeed, when addressing issues of faith, small groups may be best suited for training and discipling men and women in the faith of Christ. Many reasons may be given attesting to the validity of the aforementioned, so Comiskey who mentions Trinitarian Doctrine with its emphasis on “life, love and movement within the Godhead.” Torrance notes that the Doctrine of the Trinity is essential and “foundational to Christianity, defines who we worship and serve, while guiding the church to practice love, care and unity.” Love is based on more than mutual understanding and the secular view of love which rests on the Eros form rather than the biblical which is Filial. Regarding the Godhead even filial love is superseded by the relational that is impossible to subscribe to either a narrow or one-ness view of self. This is demonstrated best in Scriptures such as John 3:25-36 and 5:20 which h allows for reason to conclude...
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...Individual Assignment: Small Team and Group Paper A group of 10 professionals employed to maintain operations in one residential apartment building comprised of 700 rental apartments and five retail stores, the property is 900,000 square feet in size. Each employee has specific duties associated with his or her respected positions all are to work together as one family with the successful operation of property in mind. The respected roles are Landlord, Property Manager, Chief Technology Officer, Leasing Coordinator, Leasing Representative, Administrative Assistant, Assistant Property Manager, and Apartment Director. Most significant change in behavior by the entire group can be seen after a new property manager was hired. First the entire group was motivated by the in property managers verbally obnoxious behavior. As time went on the personality and antics of property manager did not subside the obnoxious behavior turned into verbal abuse causing a gap in communication of all group members. First, other group members said nothing but as the antics and abuse persisted it was clear that the property manager’s behavior was affecting other group members personally causing tension in the entire group. Problem came to...
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...Small group ministry is a gathering of individuals discussing the word of God, issues of life, giving encouragement, and hope through the struggles of life. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the small group and see how the team can be improved to better everyone's situation to draw the group closer to God. The small group observed for evaluation is a co-ed group the author leads on some Saturdays at the author's home. The purpose of this group is to see the hurting and broken people transformed through Jesus and develop a relationship with Jesus and live a faith filled life. The ministry accepts people as they are, encouraging others where they are in their life and strengthening each other in their daily walk with Jesus through the Word of God and the words of their testimonies. The small ministry group is an open group to the public and led individually by the author who is the overseer. Sometimes someone in the group or outside the group is asked to teach the next small group meeting. Before the meeting begins, announcements and...
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...to interpret because these expressions, hand movements, and postures should be interpreted with verbal communication as well. During our meetings there were many non-verbal’s to observe and record. We noticed many illustrative gestures during our conversations. By illustrative, we mean gestures that accompany words and are used to help illustrate what is being said. For example when a person said something like "over and over" there was a circular hand motion that occurred. There were also many gestures such as head nods and short sounds that gave feedback during conversation. Short sounds like "uh-huh, mm-hmm" and then expressions of boredom and interest were noticed. Eye contact was also a major non-verbal that our group observed. Eye contact in our group was used...
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...uccessful small groups can be marked by a range of different communication behaviors. A large part of communicating is Listening. In order to communicate with the group properly you must listen to all of the individuals to get a full understanding of what they are saying so you can respond properly. Non-verbal behaviors are also just as important. For an example looking at people when they speak or nodding your head when you agree with something. Another important thing to remember when communicating is to make clear statements. If you want your group to preform a certain task it is important they clearly understand what the goal is. Groups also communicate with each other through deliberating and discussing. When in a group it is important for others to feel they are important in order for the group to be successful. If members do not feel important or utilized this will lower moral and motivation. To avoid this respond to other people and engage them by agreeing or adding on what they say. A group may also want to brainstorm to avoid unproductive conflict and avoid groupthink. A way to improve the groups productivity constructive criticism or feedback is important. Communication styles can vary according to group dynamics. For an example a small group that is...
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