Trust is a key ingredient of effective group action that is clearly evident in Japanese management but often underutilized by American managers. When work group members trust one another, there will be a more active exchange of information, more interpersonal influence, and hence greater self-control. Managers who prefer either/or thinking, rely solely on hard data, and envision the world as basically an unsafe place foster a climate of mistrust. Political tactics such as posturing, empire building, making the boss look good, creating power and loyalty cliques, and destructive competition need to be kept in check if a healthy degree of trust is to be achieved.
Although a fairly high degree of conformity is necessary if organizations andsociety in general are to function properly, blind conformity is ultimately dehumanizing and destructive. Research shows that individuals have a strong tendency to bend to the will of the majority, even if the majority is clearly wrong. Cohesive decision-making groups can be victimized by groupthink when unanimity becomes more important than critically evaluating alternative courses of action.
I. Reading Exercises:
Exercise 1. Read and memorize using a dictionary:
| cohesiveness, compliance with, mutual acceptance, delusion, disillusion, interpersonal influence, envision, mistrust, loyalty, destructive, conformity, minority, obstacle |
Exercise 2. Answer the questions:
1)What obstacles are groups faced with?
2)What is compliance with role expectations and norms rewarded with?
3)Why is trust a key ingredient of effective group action?
4)Why are norms enforced?
Exercise 3. Match the left part with the right:
| 1. Mature groups that are characterized by | a) whereas norms are more general standards for conduct in a given social setting. |
| 2 When work group members trust one another | b)because they tend to get stalled in an early stage of group development. |
| 3. Roles are social expectations for behavior in a specific position | c) there will be a more active exchange of information, more interpersonal influence. |
| 4. Committees have a widespread reputation for inefficiency and ineffectiveness | d)mutual acceptance, encourage ment of minority opinion, and minimal emotional conflict. |
Exercise 4. Open brackets choosing the right words:
Compliance with role expectations and norms is (stalled/rewarded) with social reinforcement; non-compliance is (punished/accepted) by criticism, ridicule, and ostracism.
The speaking module
II. Speaking Exercises:
Exercise 1. Describe mature groups, trust, ostracism, norms, disillusion
using the suggested words and expressions as in example:
| Mature groupsEmotional conflict, developmental process, encouragement, identifiable, opinion, are characterized by.example: Mature groups that are characterized by mutual acceptance, encourage ment of minority opinion, and minimal emotional conflict are the product of a developmental process with identifiable stages. |
| ostracisminformal, punishment, power, rejection, derive, threat, individual, present |
| trustinformation, influence, effective, one another, interpersonal, a key ingredient |
| normssetting, survive, enhance, identity, enforced, self-images, clarify, standards |
| disillusionwears off, disenchantment, how, turning out, goodwill, growing, things, unlimited, |
Exercise 2. Ask questions to the given answers:
1) Question:
Answer: Committees have a widespread reputation for inefficiency and ineffectivenessbecause they tend to get stalled in an early stage of group development.
2) Question:
Answer: Groups are faced with the obstacle of uncertainty over interpersonal relations during the last three stages.
3) Question:
Answer: Managers who prefer either/or thinking, rely solely on hard
data, and envision the world as basically an unsafe place foster a climate of mistrust.
The writing module
III. Writing exercises:
Exercise 1. Complete the sentences with the suggested words: victimized, majority, than, tendency, shows.
Research _____that individuals have a strong ______ to bend to the will of the majority, even if the ______ is clearly wrong. Cohesive decision-making groups can be ______ by groupthink when unanimity becomes more important _____ critically evaluating alternative courses of action.
Exercise 2. Compose a story on one of the topics (up to 100 words):
“Formal and informal groups”
“Mature groups”
“Trust and mistrust in groups”