Prepare an investigative assignment that applies team-related communication theories to a selected team.
There are several ways to enhance interpersonal effectiveness, and the benefits of doing so are profound. Many studies point to interpersonal effectiveness as the leading predictor of future success. Derailment studies (Lombardo & McCauley, 1988) found lack of interpersonal communication skills to be a key factor in the likelihood of a manager to derail, or be removed from his or her job.
Context
Individuals are the essence of communication. Even before involving others, intrapersonal communication is at work. These are the messages we send to ourselves and relate to our own issues and perceptions.
Questions to Consider
To deepen your understanding, you are encouraged to consider the questions below and discuss them with a fellow learner, a work associate, an interested friend, or a member of the business community.
Resources
needed Resources
The following resources are required to complete the assessment.
Capella Resources
The following is a PDF document written by Capella faculty.
Backlund, G. (2001). Team effectiveness. Minneapolis, MN: Capella University.
Benne, K. D., & Sheats, P. (2007). Functional roles of group members. Group Facilitation, (8), 30–35.
Tuckman, B. W. (1965). Developmental sequence in small groups. Psychological Bulletin, 63(6), 384–399.
The initial ideas presented by Bruce Tuckman in 1965, regarding the stages of development that teams go through, are so ingrained in the literature about teams that some authors forget to cite Tuckman. Reading Tuckman’s original ideas about team development will help you understand how later authors formulated their ideas on team development.
Assessment Instructions
Complete the following:
select a group in which you are currently involved or have been involved in the past. A group or team associated with a current employer often works the best, but you may also use group experiences from previous employers or community activities. If possible, choose a group that may be experiencing communication difficulties.
Prepare an investigative paper that applies group-related communication theories to your selected group. Include the following in your paper:
identify the characteristics of the group using all of the criteria below:
identify whether the team is ongoing (permanent) or ad hoc (temporary).
Is the group a short-term group that will only exist for 1–12 months or is the group a long-standing group that has or will exist for more than one year?
Is the group formal or informal? For example, is the group an official (that is, formal) department or committee at a company or is the group an informal collection of people such as a book club.
Is the group self-managing or does the group have a clear consistent leader?
Is the group best described as a primary work team or a project team? A primary work team generally takes on a variety of tasks (for example, a Human Resources Department or a Maintenance Department). Project teams typically engage in a narrow set of activities such as organizing a specific event or a taking on a single project.
Using the 2007 Benne and Sheats article, “Functional Roles of Group Members,” linked in the Resources under the Required Resources heading, analyze the formal roles and communication roles of group members:
Group members’ task roles.
Group members’ maintenance roles.
Group members’ individual roles.
Using Bruce Tuckman’s (1965) team stages model or Backlund’s 2001 article, “Team Effectiveness,” linked in the Resources under the Required Resources heading, describe the group stages experienced by the group.
Analyze the group norms. Norms are the formal and informal rules groups develop. Many norms are never written down and many are not discussed openly but are still learned by group members.
Describe positive and negative participation behaviors.
Describe the group’s use of technology for communication, such as e-mail, texting, or the Internet.
Additional Requirements
Written communication: Written communication is free of errors that detract from the overall message.
APA formatting: Resources and citations are formatted according to APA (6th ed.) style and formatting. Include a properly formatted title page and references page.
Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.
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