Our group was brought together for a purpose of making a presentation. We were strangers to each other but expected commitment in terms of attendance, communication, meetings and quality of work. It can be argued that individuals can be demotivated by group project if they feel their success depends on others who do not share this views and which might lead to discrimination and oppression (CMU, 2015). However this might be resolved by a professional organisation of working process, high motivation and personal responsibility of each group member indicating a successful group development. This project was a valuable experience for developing our teamwork skills and in this essay, I will discuss our group process and theories which can apply …show more content…
Group work can be identified as a method of social work aiming to help groups and individuals to meet their needs in an informed way (Lindsay and Orton, 2009). The primary model of group work which could be applied to our group is Dr. Bruce Tuckman Forming Storming Norming Performing model which he published in 1965 and added Adjourning stage in the 1970th (Lindsay and Orton, 2009). Tuckman suggests that every team goes through a relatively unproductive initial stage before becoming a self-reliant unit and unless the issues of processes and feelings were satisfactorily addressed the team might not reach the most productive final stage (Lindsay and Orton, 2009). Tuckman's model was criticised for emphasising the importance of the exchange in communication and necessity of group members for having an attraction to one another but not aiming as much at group task or goals (Lowman, 2015). It can be argued that contingencies outside the group and its members are just as …show more content…
By projecting the JOHARI window (West, R. and Turner, L., 2009) on our group at the first stage when we met it can be said that the Arena window representing facts about the members, their feelings, desires, and emotions was very small. We had personal awareness towards each other and probably unconsciously we behaved in a discriminatory way towards assessing each other as we did not know professional qualities and how far we can trust each other in completing a reliable presentation. As suggested by some research that group members can project their experience of oppression and feeling of mistrust from their previous life experience (Lindsay and Orton, 2009). This probably was the case with our group at the beginning of our project as we all wanted to achieve good outcomes but had some mistrust in group work as a result of stereotyping the low level of the communal responsibility. With time the Arena windows (West, R. and Turner, L., 2009) of our group members expanded as we explored each other's ability to concentrate on the task, meet a deadline and by giving each other feedback which was appreciated and increased our trust in each other. The group members admitted that the turning point was a self-disclosing process as described by Whitaker's group focal conflict theory. There were only four group members out of five present at this time and through
This stage sees group members begin to confront each other as they begin to vie for roles within the group that will help them to belong and to feel valued. Thus as members begin to assert their individual personalities, the comfort of the forming stage begins to come under siege. Members experience personal, intra and inter group conflicts. Aggression and resentment may manifest in this stage and thus if strong personalities emerge and leadership is unresponsive to group and individual needs, the situation may become destructive to the
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,
In this paper I will identify the need for the group that was chosen. Part of the discussion will concentrate on the three key values used in the group approach with this population. The other will address models and theories of group practice, and the approach used by this group. The paper will also look at the key challenges or obstacles in group interventions with this population. Using the worksheet planning guide for social work group’s eight headings will be discussed. Briefly the readings from the course syllabus will be used in the development plan and incorporated in the paper will be the plans for an initial group session. Based on the skills inventory three critical skills will be addressed. Lastly a critique of a proposed group will be conducted.
The Tuckman Model of Group Development has 5 stages: Forming, Storming, Norming, and Adjourning (Maples, 2008). During the first session of MOP, everyone was tasked with forming their own small project team. The very first class workshop activity involved meeting two new people and introducing one of them to the entire class. The aim of the activity was to indirectly assess who we would want to be in a team with, based on our perceptions of a person’s behaviour, values, and work ethic. Most people would want to be in a team with people similar to them on a surface level (age, gender, ethnicity) and on a deeper level (personality, attitudes, believes, values) (Liang, Shih, & Chiang, 2015). We were free to choose whoever we wanted in our team under the condition that the team we form is diverse.
The Tuckman’s stages of team development (Levi, 2007) will be used as lens to evaluate the work of the group presentation. The Tuckman’s stages of team development consist of five stages of forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning (Levi, 2007). In the forming stage we tend to know each other and figure out how we are going to run the presentation. At this stage, there was discomfort due to unfamiliarity together with confusion on how we will function together. The solution for that case was, everyone had each member contact detail, had a clear ground rules, as well as planned how we will accomplish our tasks. In addition, we also experienced the storming and norming stage. Levi (2007) says that the in the storming phase there are often
This work will focus on the meaning, the five stages of Tuckman’s theory, the approaches and the uses of group work. Group work refers to a method of social work practice which is concerned with the recognition and use of processes which occur when three or more people work together towards a common purpose (Trevithick, 2005).
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
Group work is important in social work as it promotes understanding of the social contexts of people’s lives and identifies strengths of the oppressed to pursue social change (Dominelli 2008).
Group work has been a cornerstone of the social work profession and requires a variety of facilitator skills and awareness of group processes. The SSLDTM Group Program for People with Difficulties in Social Situations (Socialwork1914, 2017) provides an excellent example of a psycho-educational group co-facilitated by two female social workers, Jane and Karen. After viewing the 6th session of this 8-week program, I began to understand how the concepts of group formation/development, interpersonal dynamics, and leadership styles contribute to successful group work outcomes.
Groupwork can be defined as a method of social work that is utilised in order to help individuals to enhance their social functioning through purposeful group experiences and to help cope with their personal group or community problems (Konopka, 1972). The role of groupwork places emphasis on sharing thoughts, ideas, problems and activities, allowing social action groups for instance, to “empower members to engage in collective action and planned change efforts to modify particular aspects of their social or physical environment” (Toseland & Rivas, 2014, p. 38; Pyles, 2009; Staples, 2004). Therefore, reflecting on the processes of groupwork is an essential mechanism for all professionals in order to develop better communication skills, conflict resolution and enhance future performance. This essay will reflect upon the task group processes that were conducted this semester, while evaluating my own role within the group and what was learnt working within a small group.
Teamwork is a vital aspect of the public and community services. These services consist of groups of people working together to achieve a mutual goal/aim. Teamwork is a key element for having a successful and efficient team. The way a team works together influences how successful they are and how efficient and effective they can be in achieving their common goals/aims. This essay will evaluate various teamwork theories, that explain the stages of forming a group and how it develops into a well established team. Examples of these theories include: Tuckman's theory of team development, Belbin's team roles, conflict theory, pluralism, trait theory and social learning theory. This essay will consider Tuckman's theory of team development, trait
The main group process that will be studied is the Storming Process, from Tuckman’s Stages of Group Development. Particularly, the effects the storming stage has on members that already feel dissatisfied with the group and how they reconcile those feelings to stay apart of the group and enter into the norming stage. The storming stage is where members start to rebel against some of the expectations that the group has. The conflict could be between working styles, rules or authority, but it regardless, storming has the ability to make the group fail (Tuckman, 1965 via Forsyth, 2014).
As I began the Group Process and Dynamics course, I was excited to become educated and experienced with group counseling. Group counseling is a topic I have enjoyed in the past and have continued to be fascinated by. I have learned the elements of a group process through observation and research. The group process consists of several elements that come together when the group begins and ends when the group is terminated. I have observed group norms, group cohesion, the generation of trust, the manifestation of resistance, the emergence of conflict and resolution, healing forces, the reactions of group members, and the various stages a group develops through (Corey, Corey, & Corey, 2010). Throughout this course, I was able to derive a conceptualization of groups. From this course I will take with me the understanding of how effective group counseling can be for individuals. Groups have been known to be as effective as individual therapy and a great source of treatment. Group counseling is designed as a part of a treatment plan that helps individuals and guide them through change. Group counseling is a versatile practice, which can be used in several settings and with different populations (Corey et al., 2010). This course has given me the opportunity to reflect on my own personal leadership style, the challenges that may arise, and an action plan to continue my group leadership knowledge and skills.
“Group work is a form of voluntary association of members benefiting from cooperative learning that enhances the total output of the activity than when done individually”.
Tuckman proposes that groups develop via five stages; forming, storming, norming, performing and finally adjourning (Archee, Gurney, & Mohan, 2013a). The first stage, known as forming, involves clarifying the task and purpose of the group, and identifying boundaries of both the task and interpersonal behaviour (Archee et al., 2013a). For the presentation task we were randomly allocated into groups. This worried me greatly as I have struggled in the past with group members who do not contribute equally or see the task as important as other group members. To avoid this problem, the group collectively determined and agreed upon a number of ground rules. For example, we decided that all group members were expected to contribute equally to the presentation, all group members were expected to attend and contribute at all group meetings, and all group members would adhere to agreed upon deadlines. Having failed to do this in previous group assignments, this clarification stage