Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how with the advent of the new millennium has come an increased focus on the workplace and the impact of sociological concepts within that workplace, such as leadership and group dynamics and how studies of group dynamics in the workplace reveals that the theory is significantly relevant to the goings on of organizations, posing several important implications for managers and owners. Through an examination of group dynamics and their relationship to decision-making, motivational patterns, conflict and competition, and task functions, this paper attempts to obtain a better understanding of how this traditional psychological and social idea can be applied to the workplace.

Outline:
Group vs. Individual Decision-Making
Motivational Patterns in Workplace Groups
Conflict and Competition Among Workplace Groups
Task Functions and Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Although it was traditionally a buzzword among psychologists and sociologists, the term, "groupthink," has begun to make its way into popular circles. Developed in 1982 after Janis's influential study of American foreign policy decisions made by groups, the term was coined to express "concurrence-seeking tendencies that lead to defective decision making" (Brown, 2000, pg. 213). When Janis (1982) coined the term, Brown (2000) argues she was trying to assess the quality of groups' decision making, a perilously difficult task as it is nearly impossible to discuss, after the fact, how good a decision is. However, in her study of American foreign policy decisions, Janis (1982) found that those decisions in which Americans were not the benefactors (decisions that did not go the way the foreign policy decision-makers would have wanted them to go) were marked by several features. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Baumeister, R.F. & Leary, M.R. (1995). The Need To Belong: Desire for Interpersonal Attachment as a Fundamental Human Motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 117.3, pp. 497-529.
• Brown, R. (2000). Group Processes. Wiley-Blackwell. Retrieved July 14, 2009, from http://books.google.com/books?id=e-9OtYRo45cC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s
• Cole, M.B. (2005). Group Dynamics in Occupational Therapy. New Jersey: SLACK. Retrieved July 24, 2009, from http://books.google.com/books?id=FPmZ-olNP94C&dq=Group+Dynamics&source=gbs_navlinks_s
• Jehn, K.A. & Mannix, E. (2001). The Dynamic Nature of Conflict: A Longitudinal Study of Intragroup Conflict and Group Dynamics. Academy of Management Journal, 44.2, pp. 238-251.
• Levi, D. (2007). Group dynamics for teams. Sage. Retrieved July 24, 2009, from http://books.google.com/books?id=95r9Qs_GYlUC&source=gbs_navlinks_s

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