Page 79 - Effective group discussion theory and practice by Adams, Katherine H. Brilhart, John K. Galanes, Gloria J

62 Chapter 3

Clearly, this is a cohesive, supportive group. Could Gary admit something like this if
he didn’t trust the others?
Several standards exist for judging a group’s outputs. These should be used regu-
larly once you are well underway in your group. Regular reflection on the quality of a
group’s outputs allows a group to better adjust its behaviors and change what is neces-
sary rather than ignoring what is needed or changing behavior that is not warranted
and thus creating a whole new set of problems.

1. Members perceive that the group’s purpose has been achieved. The church
board talked about several accomplishments they had achieved, including
receiving bylaws approval and saving enough money to pay for half a year’s
salary for a minister. Group solutions should be accepted by most or all of the
people involved.
2. Members are personally satisfied with their respective roles in the group, the
discussion and group work process, and their relationships with other members.
In Bill’s remark, “I think about what we’ve created and I’m energized again”
you see this kind of satisfaction. The fact they considered meeting more
frequently, not less, indicates a high degree of satisfaction.
3. Cohesiveness is high. “This has been one of the best experiences of my life”
reflects a strong identification with the church board. Its members, in spite of
competing demands on their time, prioritized this board’s work.
4. The group’s leadership is stable and reliable. Bill emerged as the group’s
designated leader because he organized well, was democratic, and put in
considerable work. Yet other members shared in leading the board when their
expertise was relevant to the task. If asked, board members could identify this
leadership structure.
Environment 5. The group creates a culture that reflects its unique qualities and values. Each
The context or group emerges into its own culture or personality. Effective groups have positive
setting in which a cultures that support the values of members and reflect to the members what
small group system is important in that group. Church board members would sometimes stop a
exists; the larger discussion for a brief prayer, particularly if a disagreement was under way. The
systems of which a prayer reminded members that disagreement over ideas was acceptable, but
small group is a being disagreeable to other people was not. In other kinds of group cultures,
component.
prayer breaks would not have been appropriate or welcomed.
6. The parent organization (if one exists) is strengthened as a result of the small
Open System group’s work. In the case of the church board, this standard was met. They
A system with helped create a viable church that grew, received the approval of its
relatively permeable denomination, and eventually hired its first minister.
boundaries,
producing a high A System and Its Environment
degree of A system may be either open or closed, depending on the degree to which it interacts
interchange between
the system and its with its environment, or the setting in which the group exists. A group that is an open
environment. system interacts freely with its environment, with resources, information, and so forth,
flowing easily between the environment and the group. The church board had a high

gal37018_ch03_051_074.indd 62 3/28/18 12:34 PM