Psychology of Teamwork and Problem-Solving

Social Environment and Social Work

• The topic covers family, group, community, and organizations.
• The presenter is Mr. Ian John Belgira, RSW.

Groups in Social Work

• A quote by Milton Mayer: "Nothing is harder to stop than a freely and fully united band of human beings."
• Another quote by Carter (2011): "The social group is a critical system to each person and, in particular, to the helping professions."
• Groups have potentials: a need to belong and to be accepted by others, a need to be validated by others through feedback processes, a need to share common experiences with others, and opportunities to work with others on common tasks.
• Another quote by Carter (2011): "The human group is a social system that has received, and deserves extensive investigation, because it is uniquely adaptable and can be put to an infinite number of uses in a huge variety of settings."
• A quote by Carter (2011): "The term group comprises those patterns of association and activity in which persons engage most of their selves from day to day."
• Groups consist of individuals and small constellations of persons (e.g., dyads, triads) and are a component of their environment.
• A quote by Kurt Lewin: "The whole is different from the sum of its parts; it has definite properties of its own."
• Another quote by Carter (2011): "The human group is a system distinguishable from its environment, has the characteristics and functions of a system, and provides the connection between its components and its environment."
• Another quote by Carter (2011): "Like other social systems, groups are characterized by energy/transformation exchange to promote synergy."
• A quote by Carter (2011): "From a social systems perspective, a cluster of persons can be considered as a group only if it fulfils certain specific criteria of systems."
• A definition of a group by Eubank: "Two or more persons in a relationship of psychic interaction, whose relationship with one another may be abstracted and distinguished from their relationships with all others so that they may be thought of as an entity."
• Another definition of a group by Borgadus: A social group is a framework wherein personalities develop and mature; It exists as a number of people who have some common loyalty and who participate in common activities; and, who are stimulating each other; A social group consists of human beings in inter-stimulation.
• A group consists of at least two people, but usually more, gathered with common purposes or like interests in a cognitive, affective, and social interchange in single or repeated encounters.
• Encounters that are sufficient for creating a set of norms, developing goals, and a sense of cohesion are considered a group.
• An aggregate is a simple collection of people who are in the same location but without a bond or significant interaction.

Classification of Groups

• Formed Groups: Those that come together because of influence or intervention (e.g., therapy groups, educational groups).
• Natural Groups: Those that come together spontaneously (e.g., peer groups, family groups).
• Deliberate Formation Groups: Groups formed to accomplish specific objectives (e.g., work groups, problem-solving groups).
• Spontaneous Formation Groups: Groups formed because people expect to derive satisfaction from associating together (e.g. social clubs).
• Externally Designated Groups: Groups where individuals are placed into categories by others.

Group Behavior

• Group qualities include a definable membership, group consciousness or conscious identification with each other, independence in satisfaction of needs, interaction, and ability to act in a unitary manner.
• Reasons for using group methods of service include the group as a primary means of helping, augmenting community methods, augmenting individual methods, and working with groups in the context of intergroup approaches.
• Uses of groups include effects on participants, changing social situations outside the group, and collective problem-solving.
• Advantages of group settings include increased comfort, encouragement and shared experience, psychological rewards for helping others, and influencing attitudes and behavior.

Group Structure

• Defines the arrangement or interrelation of all group parts and the pattern for their maintenance over time.
• Types include formal (task group, social action group, work group) and informal (therapy/treatment groups).

Structural Properties

• Includes size, communication, emotional structure (natural attraction, unconscious needs), sociological methods (such as sociometry), constellations of people (pairs, triads, foursomes, isolates).

Power Structure

• Types of power include reward, coercive, legitimate, referent, and expert power.

Leadership Theories

• Includes position theory, trait theory, style theory (authoritarian, democratic, laissez-faire), situational theory, and functional leadership theory.

Group Roles

• Relates to socially recognized patterns of behavior, expectations from individuals in certain positions, and the interpretations of their actions.

Group Norms

• Rules and standards of behavior emerge in groups , including written rules and non-explicit informal norms and norms beyond awareness.

Group Status

• Refers to rank or standing within a group , including role expectations and norms and the valuation of worth.

Group Processes

• Group process involves changes in conditions, developmental sequences of group formation, and patterns of interaction.

Group Process - Types (Conformity and Competition)

• Explanations include conformity and competitiveness in groups, involving expedient and true conformers and different types of atmospheres within a group.

Group Process (Decision-Making)

• Decision-making tactics include voting, consensus-building, postponement, and delegation.

Group Process (Conflict)

• Conflict styles include win-lose, yield-lose, lose-leave, compromise, and integrative styles.

Group Process (Group Cohesiveness)

• Important group factors include group cohesiveness, the contribution to welfare and objective advancement, and integration into the process of organization.

Community Organization

• Approaches to community organization include locality development, social planning, and social action.
• Stages include area or site selection, integration into community, studying the community, identifying community leaders, creating a core group, forming a community organization, and mobilization.

Workshop

• Practical exercise involving the creation of an eco-map using the family of origin as a basis

This quiz explores key concepts in teamwork, problem-solving, and critical thinking. It delves into the importance of emotional intelligence in leadership and the role of feedback in fostering continuous improvement. Test your knowledge on these essential psychological aspects.