AN EXPERIMENT

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

POWER OF CONFORMITY

Asch Paradigm (Solomon Asch, 1950) Solomon Asch thought that the majority of people would not conform to something obviously wrong, but the results showed that:

25% of the participants did not conform. 75% conformed at least once, 5% conformed every time.

SYNERGY: 1+1+ 1 = ?

More than 3 -> Synergy

Less than 3 -> Social Loafing

Synergythe creation of a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Which theory does this address? When synergy occurs, groups accomplish more than the total of their members individual capabilities.

SOCIAL LOAFING
Performance

The

tendency

for

individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than when working individually
Group Size

CHARACTERISTICS OF TEAMS

Cohesiveness
The

extent to which members are loyal and committed to the group; the degree of mutual attractiveness within the group.

Factors That Influence Group Cohesiveness

Factors That Increase Cohesiveness Intergroup competition Personal attraction Favorable evaluation Agreement on goals Interaction Factors That Reduce Cohesiveness Group size Disagreement on goals Intragroup competition Domination Unpleasant experiences

GROUP COHESIVENESS AND PRODUCTIVITY

WHY DO PEOPLE SOMETIMES BEHAVE IN GROUPS IN WAYS THEY WOULDNT BEHAVE IF ALONE? Group Think: Individuals in crowds adopt a group

mind.
Deindividuation: a loss of personal responsibility that occurs in group situations that foster anonymity Eg: Trick or Treat Studies Eg: NASAs launch of Challenger (1986)
rocket boosters too brittle-73 sec blew off. cold weather-solid

Escalation of Commitment

HOW DO GROUPS MAKE DECISIONS?

Roger, who has two kids and a low-paying job, just heard that the stock of an unknown company may soon triple if its new product is received favorably. Of course, the stock may decline if the product flops. Roger should sell his life insurance policy to invest in the company only if the chances of the stock doing well are: 10% to 100 % ? What is your answer individually and as a group member?

Group/Risky shift: Tendency for groups to make riskier

decisions than individuals.

TYPES OF TEAMS

Conventional Matrix Contemporary

Functional,

Divisional,

Virtual teams High Performance Work teams Cross- Functional teams

Quality Circles (Kurt Lewin, TQM)

Self-Managed/directed teams (empowered teams)/Autonomous Work teams

WHY DO SOME TEAMS WIN?

Clear purpose, climate of mutual respect and trust,

informality, disagreement, participation, consensus listening, decisions, civilized open

communication, clear roles and work assignments,

shared leadership and values, external relations (noninsular), style diversity, self-assessment, complementary

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT

EFFECT OF CONFLICT

Optimal conflict increases performance

When conflict is too much to handle it

decreases performance

Physiological
Psychological Behavioral

FIVE MOST COMMON TYPES OF WORKPLACE CONFLICT

Interdependence Conflicts. A sales-person is constantly late inputting the monthly sales figures which causes the accountant to be late with her reports. Differences in Style. One person may just want to get the work done quickly (task oriented), while another is more concerned about having it done a particular way e.g. artistic or by including other people in the project. Differences in Background/Gender. Differences in Leadership. Personality Clashes. A team leader jumps on someone for being late because she perceives the team member as being lazy and inconsiderate. The

SOURCES OF CONFLICT

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES

Problem Solving Super ordinate Goals Expansion of Resources Smoothing Avoidance Compromise Behavioral Training Changing Structure Authority Conflict Inducement Techniques Threats Devils Advocate

WHAT IS YOUR CONFLICT-HANDLING STYLE?

Try to identify: 1.Potential reasons for conflict. 2 .Your initial reaction and solution. 3.Other information you might require.

4.Possible alternative solutions.

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
You have been employed as a supervisor in the same department for 4 years. You are well respected and do a good job. A new supervisor has recently been appointed whom you have to work with. They are continually reorganising the section, re-prioritising work which you have allocated and questioning your judgement openly. Following a restructuring exercise, new departments have been formed. You are now working with 2 other sections who were previously separate. The staff do not mix, they do not share information and are quietly hostile to each other. The quality of work leaving the department is suffering.

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
Your partner arrives home and tells you that he/she have been offered a promotion. It will mean moving area and house. You do not want to move as it will mean disrupting your career, leaving friends and moving your children's school. Your partner feels you should support him/her.

You are discussing going on holiday with a group of 4 friends. You would like to spend a bit of money and get a nice resort, hotel, full-board - a complete break. Your friends, especially one of them, is keen to have a budget holiday, self catering and a wild time! You feel that the discussion is going their way. You want to share this holiday though, otherwise you may have to miss out or go alone.

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
You are the supervisor of your department, and have just returned from a family vacation. The minute you get to work, employees are coming to you

and telling you there were several blow-ups/arguments in the department

while you were on vacation. Three employees have been involved in a heated battle, and have been taking their stress out on each other (they

used to be good friends). What started out at as just taking stress out on one
another, and small conflicts, has grown into a heated battle. The three employees perform a vital function in your department, and since the disagreements started one month ago, the employees havent been fulfilling their job responsibilities like they have in the past, and productivity is going down. This constant conflict is taking its toll on the other employees in your department.

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
The manager of your department has the reputation of being a yes person. At meetings with administrators, he/she will agree to take on new projects. Due to his/her willingness to take on these projects, the person has a very good reputation/standing with administration. As an employee in your department, you know that whatever the yes person agrees to do, never actually gets accomplished. The only time this persons projects/additional responsibilities are completed is by the work of the employees in the department. The employees do this because they want their department to be successful, but are very resentful. One of the employees has had enough of this yes person not doing his/her job, and comes to you for help.

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
As supervisor, you are conducting the yearly evaluations/performance reviews for your department. You are meeting with one employee and you express that he/she is doing good work, and is professional and courteous to co-workers and customers. You also indicate that there are some areas of improvement needed including: taking too much time at lunch (more than allotted time), coming to work late and leaving early. The employee is astonished and says that because you didnt address these issues before so why are you doing it now. The employee also tells you that she/he stays later if he/she is late for work. You explain that these issues have been discussed with the entire department in past staff meetings the topics of being punctual, and not abusing flexible scheduling in the department, and thought your message was clear. The employee storms out of the performance review saying how unfair you are, and he/she is going to report you to administration.

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
You are the manager of a department that functions fairly well. There is one employee (a good worker) who is always depressed, or has some personal crisis occurring in his/her life. Since the employees like this person, they offer lots of sympathy to him/her. This person is has been missing a lot of work lately, and uses his/her vacation and sick leave as earned. This employee has struggled with family issues over the years, which is why he/she frequently uses leave time, and/or time off without pay. This persons work is beginning to suffer, as he/she misses dead lines. The other workers in your department are starting to get upset. You are an administrator of your organization and have just received a letter from a customer about the customer service he/she received. The letter states that the customer had to wait on hold for over thirty minutes. Other complaints included being treated rudely by an employee (whose name is given in the letter). Customer service/ satisfaction is one of the most important values of your company.

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
Setup: In this scenario, an older, wiser manager is in conflict with a younger employee who "socializes constantly" with co-workers during quiet time, when employees are supposed to focus on their work without being disturbed. The employee is popular and carries a lot of influence with her co-workers. The older manager is justifiably concerned that all this socialization by the employee is reducing productivity. Okay, roll it: Manager (confrontationally): "Sue, you've got to stop socializing with your co-workers. It's really not productive. My philosophy is that the workplace is designed for work, not recreation." Employee (with indignation): "What do you mean "socializing!" What's wrong with talking to my colleagues?" Manager: "If it's business, that's one thing. I'm talking about chatting during quiet time." Employee: "What's wrong with that?" Manager: "We're a dynamic, hard-working company, not a singles' club. From now on, I expect you to focus on your projects and leave the talking for after hours." Employee (aggressively): "I'm the hardest worker on this team. You know when you're under the gun, I get the job done! Why don't you speak to the others?- I don't force them to talk to me!" Manager: (firmly) "I'm talking to you now. I'll talk to them later." Employee (with disgust): "I didn't take this job to be a workaholic; it's only human to talk to your co-workers. I can't work with someone constantly looking over my shoulder." Manager: "I want you to focus on your projects during quiet time and leave the

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
Setup: This scenario involves an employee who collects data from other, higher ranking coworkers in the organization and compiles the data into critical monthly reports. One of these higher level co-workers has been negligent about giving the employee the needed data on time. So the employee decides to ask her manager for help. Roll the tape: Employee (reluctantly and non-assertively): "For months I've been trying everything - reminders, e-mail, checklists and nagging - but I've been unsuccessful at getting the data from Cindy on time. That's why I've been behind on the reports." Manager: "You've got to get those reports to me on time." Employee: "I know. She's friendly towards me but consistently unresponsive when I try to get the data from her. I'd like to be able to handle it better, but I don't know how to approach it because Cindy's on a higher level than me. Maybe it would be better if you spoke with her about it?" Manager (very clipped and business-like): "I've got too much going on to handle this matter. My philosophy is just to be straight with people about what you need and don't give them so much room. Do you want me to enroll you in an assertiveness course?" Employee (looking away and speaking hesitantly): "That would be nice, but I'm not sure it would be enough in this case..." Manager (impatient to end discussion): "Look, it's up to you. Do whatever it takes to get the data Cindy knows you've got to have it. Put the heat on and let her know you need it now!"

CONFLICT VIGNETTES
Setup: This scenario involves an employee who collects data from other, higher ranking co-workers in the organization and compiles the data into critical monthly reports. One of these higher level co-workers has been negligent about giving the employee the needed data on time. So the employee decides to ask her manager for help. Roll the tape: Employee (reluctantly and non-assertively): "For months I've been trying everything reminders, e-mail, checklists and nagging - but I've been unsuccessful at getting the data from Cindy on time. That's why I've been behind on the reports." Manager: "You've got to get those reports to me on time." Employee: "I know. She's friendly towards me but consistently unresponsive when I try to get the data from her. I'd like to be able to handle it better, but I don't know how to approach it because Cindy's on a higher level than me. Maybe it would be better if you spoke with her about it?" Manager (very clipped and business-like): "I've got too much going on to handle this matter. My philosophy is just to be straight with people about what you need and don't give them so much room. Do you want me to enroll you in an assertiveness course?" Employee (looking away and speaking hesitantly): "That would be nice, but I'm not sure it would be enough in this case..." Manager (impatient to end discussion): "Look, it's up to you. Do whatever it takes to get the data - Cindy knows you've got to have it. Put the heat on and let her know you need it now!"

CONFLICT-HANDLING STYLES

Concern for Others

High

Accommodation

Collaboration

Compromise

Low

Avoidance

Competition

Low Concern for Self

High

CONSEQUENCES OF CONFLICT

Lose-Lose conflict

Lose-Win conflict Win-Lose conflict

Win-Win conflict