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142 Chapter 6

Negotiating Task and Social Dimensions of Group Culture
A group’s culture emerges from the communicative dynamics of the members as they
manage tensions and negotiate status among themselves. As the members handle
their dual challenges of getting the job done and managing relationships with one
another, their communication begins to assume identifiable patterns.
A number of researchers have studied how groups develop and change over time.
This evolutionary process happens gradually, without clear demarcations to separate
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phases. However, predictable phases of group development can be identified by the
types of interactions that occur. Bales was one of the first to investigate a group’s
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progression through these predictable phases. He identified two concerns that
group members face and must manage effectively: socioemotional and task concerns.
First, members must develop the kinds of interpersonal relationships that provide
stability and harmony, allowing the group to function cooperatively. Second, they
must attend to the group’s job. Bales noted that groups tend to cycle between these
concerns, initially focusing on socioemotional issues and then moving to task con-
cerns; they cycle back and forth between socioemotional and task concerns as they
work to finish their charge. This should not be surprising, given our discussion of task
and social dimensions in previous chapters.

Primary and Secondary Tension Early in the group’s formation phase, the socioemo-
tional dimension predominates as members attempt to negotiate the kinds of relation-
Primary Tension ships they will have with each other. Primary tension results from the interpersonal
Tension and relationships among members and is described as “the social unease and stiffness that
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discomfort in accompanies getting acquainted.” Primary tension shows up as extreme politeness,
members that stems apparent boredom, yawning and sighing, frequent long pauses, and tentative state-
from interpersonal ments uttered in soft tones. Members are asking themselves, “Will they like me? Will
(i.e., primary) sources, this be a group I enjoy working with?” The politeness and apparent boredom are only
including the social a façade covering the tensions we all feel when we are with people we don’t know well.
unease that occurs If these tensions are not managed effectively, groups may become stuck in patterns of
when members of a over-politeness, formality, and hesitancy to disagree, which can impair their ability to
new group first meet
or during competition think critically when they need to.
for power among What kinds of actions can group members take to manage their primary tension
members. effectively? First, members can take time to get acquainted with each other. They can
talk about themselves, their backgrounds, interests, hobbies, and experiences relevant
to the group’s purpose, feelings about being groups, and so on. Actively sharing infor-
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mation about each other is a characteristic of cohesive groups. Second, the group
may have a social hour or party, with no formal agenda. Joking, laughing together,
and having fun can help diminish primary tensions. Third, even if time together seems
at a premium, groups can spend a few minutes at the beginning of each meeting get-
ting back in touch. Even groups whose members have worked together over the course
of many meetings typically spend a few minutes early in a meeting chitchatting and
reconnecting before getting down to work. In Chapter 8 we talk about how leaders of
virtual groups can reduce primary tension among members who may never meet
face-to-face.

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