The factor that determines the good cohesion of the group. Characteristics of a highly cohesive group. The influence of the level of cohesion of the group on its effectiveness. The permeability of group boundaries. Group formation and cohesion

I. General concept of a legal entity and types of legal entity

I. The concept of obligation as an obligation relationship

Group cohesion- characteristic of the strength, unity and stability of interpersonal relations and interactions in the group, which ensures the stability and continuity of the group's activities (7). A person's belonging to a close-knit group, as a rule, gives him positive experiences. In a close-knit group, people feel support from others, their interest. The behavior of people in such groups is distinguished by greater sincerity, desire to communicate and cooperate.

Cohesion studies were originally conducted at the K. Levin's school of group dynamics, where this phenomenon was considered as a characteristic of the group as a community, the basis of which is interpersonal emotional ties (L. Festinger). Cohesion was interpreted as the attractiveness and usefulness of the group for the individual. A group was considered to be close-knit, the members of which were strongly attracted to its members.

In addition, a close-knit group was considered in that case. if its members saw membership in it as attractiveness and usefulness for themselves.

In sociometry, a cohesion index was proposed, which was calculated as the quotient of the number of mutual elections, made by members of the group in the process of its research using sociometric methods, to their maximum possible number.

In the concept of A.V. Petrovsky, the cohesion of the group was understood as value-orientational and subject-value unity.

Experimental studies have repeatedly shown that the effectiveness of group activities in close-knit groups is significantly higher than in groups of disunited, unfriendly ones.

The prerequisites for cohesion are workability (a functional characteristic of group interaction) and compatibility (an emotional characteristic).

Workability is based on the consistency of actions and the process of working together. It is both a process and a result of joint activities. On the basis of responsiveness, compatibility is formed, which arises as a result of a sufficient long-term interaction of people, characterized by their satisfaction with each other.

Compatibility forms on three levels: psychophysiological, psychological and socio-psychological.

Psychophysiological compatibility implies that people are satisfied with each other based on the similarity of such individual characteristics as reaction time, speed, intensity of flow. mental processes etc.

Psychological compatibility presupposes the satisfaction of people with each other on the basis of the similarity or difference of characterological properties, personality quality, abilities, intellectual potential (with different mental properties, it can be formed due to their complementarity). This compatibility is important in a family, a group of friends.

Socio-psychological compatibility - implies the similarity of value orientations and dispositions. Ideals, principles, level of training and education. It is important in the activities of collectives and serves as the basis for their cohesion.

Group cohesion is manifested in the creation of a single socio-psychological community of people belonging to the group, and presupposes the emergence of a system of group properties that prevent the violation of its psychological integrity. TO such properties usually include:

A) the nature of the interpersonal emotional relationships of the group members (mutual sympathy, common interests. Emotional experiences)

B) the nature of the relationship between the members of the group in the process of accepting joint activities (mutual assistance, support, cooperation);

C) the nature of value orientations, attitudes, goals, behavioral stereotypes of group members.

Group cohesion is influenced by factors such as:

Agreement among group members about its goals;

Extensive communication and interaction between group members;

Equality of social status and origin of group members acceptable to all;

Democracy of group relationships;

Positive opinion of group members about each other;

The size of the group is sufficient to achieve its goals and communications;

Spatial proximity;

The prevalence of positive experience in achieving the group's goals and protecting values;

Psychological compatibility of group members, which is a set of individual qualities of group members, ensuring the coherence and efficiency of their activities.

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Cohesion of a group is a process that accompanies it at all stages of development. The essence of cohesion is the formation of a special type of ties in a group, which allow a formal structure, given from the outside, to be turned into a psychological community. Cohesion has various manifestations. It is expressed in the emotional attractiveness and interdependence of group members, and their desire to preserve their group membership, and in the unity of values and goals of the participants in group communication.

By itself, cohesion appears for members of any group as an attractive goal and value, as a group state to strive for. This is especially evident in adolescent groups seeking to achieve high level intragroup solidarity and cohesion. However, this is not always possible, since the formation of relationships in a group that is constant on solidarity depends on many psychological factors. Let us dwell on the enumeration of the most important parameters affecting the process of rallying a small group.

1. Emotional attractiveness of group members. Note that by itself it does not provide either productive joint activities or high cohesion. On the other hand, even without the emotional appeal of people, it is difficult to create a cohesive group.

2. The similarity of the members of the group to each other. We are talking about various aspects of similarity: age, social, and ethnic, but the main thing is value similarity, similarity of views and social orientations of group members. In this case, the mechanism already described above comes into force when discussing the peculiarities of people's perception of each other. Indeed, the closer someone else's opinion is to a person's own opinion, the more attractive the person expressing this point of view is. And vice versa: people tend to ignore disagreements and contradictions with the position of an attractive person. The same phenomenon works in a group: a person gravitates more towards a group, the views and values that he shares and in which his own views find support.

3. The group's preferred mode of interaction and the leading social motive of the group members. This was also discussed above. Note that it is more attractive to people and has a great chance of becoming a close-knit group, whose activity is based not on competition, but on cooperation, and in which the motive of cooperation prevails.

Cooperation acts as a factor in group cohesion due to the fact that it contributes to the emergence in the group of a number of phenomena that are important and attractive to group members. First, with cooperation and the motive of cooperation, the number of intragroup conflicts decreases and there are constantly operating conditions for the successful resolution of the arising objective contradictions. Secondly, cooperation promotes free and open communication of people, simulates convergence of opinions, expands the exchange of information between partners (in contrast to competition, which provokes group members to hide from partners important information as it can help you achieve your personal goals). Finally, thirdly, cooperation provides mutual support for action, since only joint efforts can lead each member of the group to personal success.

In this way, cooperation between group members contributes to the cohesion of the entire group. As for the nature of the group's ties with other social communities, competition can play a positive role here. It is known that competition between groups in certain types of activities contributes to the internal cohesion of the participating groups. This technique is often resorted to, for example, in school practice, organizing class competitions in various types of educational and extracurricular activities. At the same time, it is important to remember one danger: intergroup competition can lead to the emergence of intergroup aggression and rejection of each other by children, which in no case should be allowed.

4. Features of group goals. The point is that the goals that are set by the group or before the group by its leader help the team to be paid if they meet the needs of a group member, can be accepted by them as their personal goals (that is, each participant sees a personal meaning in what the whole group is doing), and if the group can expect to be successful in achieving its goal. Another very important characteristic of a group goal should be the clarity and unambiguity of its statement. Unfortunately, group goals do not always meet this condition. For example, in educational process goal-setting is often carried out incorrectly, and schoolchildren are either left with abstract global goals that are not concretized into particular tasks (to become harmoniously developed people, become friendly and united, etc.), or the goal is replaced by a means, and then the meaning of learning becomes the achievement of a concrete the estimated result, and the meaning of extracurricular activities is participation in any event.

The goal of the activity, in the case when it can really serve as a source of activity of schoolchildren and a factor in rallying the class team, must meet the following requirements: first, it must be finite, that is, have a clear result, the achievement of which is not very delayed in time from the moment of adoption. goals. Moreover, the younger the children, the smaller this gap should be. Secondly, the goal should be clear, definite and understandable to each participant. It is imperative to check whether all students really understand the meaning and purpose of what is happening in the same way. Thirdly, the goal must be technological, that is, contain the means available to children to achieve it. It is good if these tools were developed by children in the previous stages of joint action. For example, children learned to sew simple products, and then take part in a carnival competition, etc. Finally, the goal should be personally attractive to each student, and for this it should contain some private goals and means that are interesting or accessible to the student. The activities organized in the classroom should require from everyone those skills that he is especially developed or that he would like to develop in himself.

5. Satisfaction of the group and each of its members with the group activities and their position in the group. The higher the satisfaction of the participants with the activities of the group and with themselves, the more such a group will rally. In turn, satisfaction arises when a number of conditions are met.

Let us ask ourselves what activities attract schoolchildren?

First of all, students are attracted by such group activities, which can really be called joint, that is, on the one hand, it objectively requires division of labor, relations of interdependence on its participants, and on the other hand, it is perceived, understood by the students as a single one, requiring common efforts. In addition, joint activity is available to their partial or complete control; they do not feel like just executors of the will and desires of adults.

Further, the activities offered to students should have a tangible meaning, that is, be "adult" in their purpose and their results. This gives a sense of value to the entire class work as well as to the personal contribution of each. It is important to remember that for last years in children and adolescents, ideas about the public benefit have changed quite dramatically. Let's say you can't persuade them to collect scrap metal for a steam locomotive.

In addition to social significance and compatibility, any activity offered to schoolchildren should be characterized by an emotionally attractive form, that is, be creative and not reproductive in nature, children and adolescents love to "reinvent the wheel", but prefer not to do what is well known to them from personal experience and the stories of peers, should put the teenager in a situation of personal overcoming (his weaknesses, objective obstacles, and so on), should be aimed not only at achieving an external result, but also include a bright moment of self-knowledge or knowledge of the world around him. Finally, emotional attractiveness is also associated with the inclusion in any activity of moments of play, excitement, improvisation, and even moderate risk.

In general, using such a formula, it is possible to display an attractive group activity for a student: interest + activity + communication with peers + personality of the teacher +

Social value and relevance + problematic situation + volitional tension + success + triumph and a sense of personal significance.

6. Group cohesion also depends on the leadership and decision-making style of the group. It is known that the collegial, cooperative style of leadership and the ability for each member of the group to take part in the development of general solution, contribute to the cohesion of the group. Below we will dwell in detail on the forms and means of organizing the process of working out a joint decision by a group.

Note that cohesion is an important characteristic of the state of the group, since a cohesive group not only represents a more efficiently functioning single organism, but also has great attractiveness for each member of the group. A close-knit group is characterized by the strengthening of mutually satisfying communication between the participants, the proximity of opinions and value orientations, which allows a person to feel comfortable. In a group with a high level of cohesion, a person's self-esteem increases, his level of anxiety decreases, and in addition, the effectiveness of any form of activity of such a group increases.

Organizing people into groups. Group classification

The effectiveness of the organization is determined not only by the efforts of individuals, but to a greater extent by the effectiveness of their joint activities. A person performs his work duties in interaction with others, being a member of the group in which he works. Solving the problems facing the group requires the joint efforts of people with different knowledge, qualifications, experience, and professional training.

However, in order to achieve effective results of joint activities, it is necessary to correctly form a group and teach all its members the skills of teamwork, as well as the ability to combine and concentrate efforts on solving common tasks.

By participating in the work of a group, a person can significantly change his personal behavior. This makes it important to study the problems of the formation and functioning of groups.

A group is a relatively isolated association of a certain number of people (two or more), interacting, interdependent and mutually influencing each other to achieve specific goals, performing different duties, coordinating joint activities and considering themselves as part of a single whole (Table 4.1).

Table 4.1

Group classification

Each group goes through a number of stages in its development.

Formation - the stage at which the selection of group members takes place in accordance with their functional or technical experience in order to fulfill the goals of the group. Group members get to know each other, exchange official information about each other, make suggestions about the work of the group (for example, how functional responsibilities and roles will be distributed).

Seething - this stage is characterized by the emergence of conflicts and the emergence of confrontation between members of the group.

Moving towards the goal set for the group, its members express various interests, sometimes not corresponding to this goal. Different opinions arise, certain interactions develop between the members of the group, their attitude to group work, the distribution of roles and responsibilities, and the tactics of the group is manifested. If the differences are too great, then some members may leave the group. If the differences are minor, then the members of the group either adjust or openly discuss the contradictions.

An important role at this stage belongs to the formal leader, who must resolve intragroup conflicts and establish the initial conditions for interaction.

Formation of norms of behavior (rationing) in the group. Group members begin to constructively accommodate differences in views and cooperate with one another. They develop group norms of behavior. The distribution of roles in the group is finally completed and everyone recognizes. There is a sense of camaraderie, group cohesion. Employees identify with the group.

Completing of the work. Team members work effectively in accordance with the set goal and the distribution of tasks agreed in the previous stage. Group discussions are used to resolve possible conflicts.

Disbandment. The group fulfills its task and disbands. This stage is typical for temporary teams created to carry out specific projects or assignments. Standing groups reach this stage after all of the group's goals have been achieved.

Going through all the stages of formation and development, the group acquires a number of essential features, characteristics that ultimately affect the effectiveness of its activities.

General characteristics of the group

The structure of a group is a diagram of relationships in a group between its members, depending on the position held. The members of the group determine the prestige of each position, its status and importance in the group.

The structure of a group can be based not only on status-role relationships. In this case, they talk about professional and qualification characteristics and gender and age composition.

Status - the position of the employee in the group in accordance with the position held (formal, official status), as well as the position in the group assigned to the employee by its other members (informal, unofficial status).

Roles. Each member of the group has different roles in it. Roles are a certain set of actions, the behavior of an individual, determined by work. Roles can be:

All these roles can be called functional, since they are associated with the performance of duties in accordance with the position held and are formally fixed. However, along with this, an informal distribution of roles develops in the group, which, as a rule, is recognized by all its members.

Thus, a person plays both a functional and an informal role in a group, and one and the same member of the group can perform several informal roles in it.

People fulfill informal roles of group behavior in accordance with their personal abilities and inner calling.

The effectiveness of the group depends on its composition and on the balance of roles.

Studies have shown that groups that have achieved particularly high rates are:

capable leader;
strong generator of ideas;
an intellectual stimulating a generator of ideas;
“A mathematician who is able to“ calculate ”the shortcomings of the proposals under discussion in time.

Analysis of approaches to understanding role functions in a group allows us to draw a number of conclusions.

Effective group activities require more than just ideas, initiative, concrete proposals, informed decisions and precise execution. decisions taken, but also emotional support, good relations, humor and a good moral and psychological atmosphere in the team.
The more complete and diverse the role structure of the group, the more dynamic the process of formation and the more effective the activity of this group.
The composition of the group should reflect the specifics of the assignment. A complete set of roles is especially important in a context of rapidly changing work content.

Norms are generally accepted standards, rules of individual or group behavior, formed as a result of the interaction of group members, adopted and implemented by them.

Group norms perform the function of regulating the joint activities of group members. They can be formalized in certain documents, regulations, procedures, etc. However, most group norms are informal.

Group norms have a strong influence on the behavior of its members. This is due to the fact that observing the norms, a person can count on belonging to a group, its recognition and support. They also help group members determine what behavior and what results are expected of them.

The norms have an impact on the results of the organization's activities. They can be positive and encourage people to behave towards achieving the goals of the organization. Conversely, negative norms encourage behavior that is not conducive to the achievement of the organization's goals.

Groups can have a variety of norms.

Activity standards:

attitude to work at a later time, to overtime work, replacements;
intensity of work;
attitude towards marriage, mistakes in work, violation of performing discipline, etc.

The rules governing the form of clothing.
The norms governing the distribution of resources within the group.

Leadership is the ability to influence other people, directing their efforts to achieve the goals of the organization.

In a formal group, the leader is the formal leader. The success of the group's work largely depends on him, since the leader forms the basic principles of interaction, sets the vector of development, affects the socio-psychological climate, relationships in the team, he has the right and power to encourage or punish group members based on the results of their work.

In an informal group, the leader also plays an important role. He contributes to the fulfillment of the tasks of the group, allows its members to satisfy their needs, embodies the core values of the group, represents the point of view of the group when interacting with the leaders of other groups, smooths out contradictions in the group.

The leader should always be open, encouraging group members to participate in its goals, and authoritarian, intervening when necessary in order to achieve the group's goals.

Group processes are processes that organize the activities of a group. These include, for example, the interaction of group members in performing a specific task, decision-making procedures in the group, information exchange, social support.

Conflict - differences in the opinions of group members, which can lead to intra-group disputes and even conflict.

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Situational characteristics of the group

Group size. Research shows that groups of 5-7 people are most effective. With the increase in the size of the group, communication between its members becomes more difficult, it is more difficult to achieve agreement in activities when performing tasks, individual members of the group are not given enough time, they experience difficulties, timidity in expressing their own opinions in front of others. In groups of 2-3 people, tension arises between its members, they are worried about too obvious personal responsibility for the decisions they make.

Spatial location. It characterizes the placement of people during work in relation to each other: they sit with their faces or backs to each other. Three characteristics of the spatial arrangement of a person in the process of work are important, affecting the relationship between a person and a group:

1) the presence of a permanent place or territory;

2) personal space in which only this person;

3) mutual arrangement work places.

Tasks to be solved by the group. Their content determines the specifics of the group's work and the organization of the group process. It is especially important to determine the frequency and quality of interactions between group members in the process of solving a problem, depending on its complexity.

The reward system should be of value to the group members, the reward should be perceived as deserved and should encourage them to complete common tasks.

Group cohesion

Group cohesion is one of the most important characteristics of a group. Cohesion refers to the strength of the members' drive to remain within the group and to fulfill their obligations to the group.

As a rule, the more cohesive the group is, the better the results of its work. Group cohesion affects the performance of not only the group, but the entire organization as a whole. If group goals are consistent with the goals of the organization, and the norms of behavior adopted in the group are aimed at achieving high results of work, then the effective activity of the group also ensures the effectiveness of the organization.

Group cohesion is influenced by various factors that can both increase it and significantly reduce it (Table 4.2).

Table 4.2

Factor	Directionality of the factor
Increasing group cohesion	Decreasing group cohesion
Group lifetime	Long period of collaboration	Short period of existence of the group
Kudos to the group	High	Not high enough; the group is re-created; there is no reliable information about the group
How difficult is it to join a group	Difficult	Easily
Group size and the ability of group members to interact with each other	A small number of group members (5-7 people)	Large size of the group. The opportunities for each member of the group to interact with each other are reduced
Consent on goals	Present	Absent
Commonality of attitudes and value orientations	High (large)	Low
The relationship of tasks facing the group	Present	Absent
The complexity of the tasks facing the group	High	Low
Group composition by age	Little age difference	Big difference in age
External threat	High	Low
Competition	Intergroup	Intragroup
Group work experience	Positive experience of interaction between group members, personal attractiveness of group members	Negative interactions between group members, personal dislike
Previous success of group work	Pride in joint achievements	Lack of a tangible increase in labor results, joint activities previously did not bring satisfaction or there were obvious failures
The attitude of management towards group forms of work	Supportive: holding meetings, focusing on the global goals of the group, organizing group discussions of emerging problems, new processes and priorities, involving group members in decision-making	Indifferent
Motivation and reward	Group motivation and group reward	Individual motivation and remuneration based on individual performance
Resource allocation	By group principle	On an individual basis

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Group cohesion is a process that accompanies the group at all stages of its development. It consists in the formation of a unique type of connections in the group, which make it possible to turn a formal structure, given from the outside, into a psychological community. Cohesion manifests itself in different ways. It can be emotional attraction, and mutual attachment of group members, and their desire to preserve their group membership, and the unity of values and goals of the group members. Note that cohesion is an important characteristic of the state of the group, since a cohesive group not only represents a more efficiently working single organism, but also has greater attractiveness for each of its members. A close-knit group is characterized by the strengthening of mutually satisfying communication between the participants, the proximity of opinions and value orientations, which allows a person to feel comfortable. In a group with a high level of cohesion, a person's self-esteem increases, his level of anxiety decreases, and in addition, the effectiveness of any forms of activity of such a group increases.

By itself, cohesion appears for members of any group as an attractive goal and value, as a group state to strive for. An example of this is adolescent groups seeking to achieve a high level of intragroup solidarity and cohesion. However, this is not always possible, since the formation of relationships based on cohesion in a group depends on many psychological factors.

Emotional attractiveness of group members- an important factor in human relationships, which largely determines the nature of communication and the success of joint activities. So, the higher the mutual attractiveness of partners, the more they are satisfied with intragroup interpersonal relationships. However, it would be wrong to think that normal communication and successful human activity are impossible without mutual attraction. This is due to the fact that satisfaction with intragroup relationships can be high even with successful joint activities, even if close emotional relationships are not formed. Note, however, that it is difficult to create a cohesive group without taking into account the factor under consideration.

Similarity of group members to each other also plays an important role. These can be various aspects of similarity: age, social, ethnicity, etc. But the most important thing is the value similarity, the similarity of the views and social orientations of the members of the group, since in this case psychological mechanism, consisting in the fact that the closer someone else's opinion to his own, the prettier the person expressing this point of view. And vice versa: people tend to ignore disagreements and contradictions with the position of an attractive person. The same phenomenon works in a group: a person gravitates more towards a group whose views and values he shares and in which his own views find support.

More attractive to people and more likely to become a cohesive group whose activities are not based on competition, but on group cooperation, in which the motive of cooperation prevails.

Studies have shown that satisfaction with interpersonal relationships among group members can be regulated compatibility partners that induce interpersonal attractiveness, and responsiveness, which gives rise to satisfaction with the results of joint activities.

Interpersonal compatibility is a complex psychological effect of the combination, interaction of communicating people. Distinguish between structural and functional-role compatibility.

Structural compatibility is the compatibility of temperament, character and other personal qualities of partners. Moreover, if in relation to the first two, the hypothesis of complementarity, complementarity of the qualities of partners is confirmed, then with regard to personal properties, the opposite idea was experimentally confirmed - similarity and closeness (the compatibility of partners is high if they have complementary properties of temperament and character (sanguine person is melancholic, choleric person is phlegmatic) and similar personal orientations and characteristics (sociability, anxiety, daydreaming, etc.)).

Functional role compatibility is the correspondence of partners' ideas about those interpersonal roles that they will realize themselves and expect from the other in the process of communication and interaction. If the role representations and expectations of the participants coincide, they have a lot of chances to achieve harmonious relationships based on interpersonal attractiveness.

Response - another effect of the combination and interaction of people, which allows you to achieve high success in teamwork and satisfaction with your work and with each other. Workability, as a rule, does not lead to the emergence of such phenomena of interpersonal communication as emotional closeness, identification, orientation towards intimate-personal communication of partners. Rather, it is the result of the group's successful implementation of its instrumental functions, which makes it possible to achieve high productivity of activity, high satisfaction of the group members with their work and group membership, as well as generating a good level of mutual understanding, adequate reflection by the communication participants of everything that happens in the group.

In conditions when the members of the group could not achieve a good level of responsiveness or turned out to be incompatible in their characterological, personal properties or role representations, various interpersonal intragroup conflicts develop.

The reason for the cohesion of the group is cooperation, which contributes to the emergence in the group of a number of phenomena that are important and attractive to the members of the group:

with cooperation and the motive of cooperation, the number of intra-group conflicts decreases, and there are also all conditions for the successful resolution of the arising objective contradictions;
cooperation promotes free and open communication of people, stimulates convergence of opinions, expands the exchange of information between partners;
cooperation provides mutual support for actions, since only joint efforts can lead each member of the group to personal success;
cooperation between group members contributes to the cohesion of the entire group.

At the same time, the competition between groups in certain types of activities contributes to the internal cohesion of the participating groups. However, it is important to remember one danger: intergroup competition can lead to the emergence of intergroup aggression and rejection by group members of each other, which in no case should be allowed.

Features of group goals. The goals set by the group or before the group by its leader help the team to unite if they meet the needs of the group members, can be accepted by them as their personal goals (each member sees personal meaning in what the whole group does), and also if the group can expect to be successful in achieving the goal.

An important characteristic of a group goal should be the clarity and unambiguity of its statement. Abstract global goals that are not concretized into particular tasks (to become harmoniously developed people, friendly, united, etc.), substitution of a goal with a means (achieving a specific evaluative result) does not bring the desired effect.

The purpose of the activity, in the case when it can really serve as a source of the individual's activity and a factor of group cohesion, must meet the following requirements:

to be final (to have a clear result, the achievement of which is not very delayed in time from the moment the goal was adopted);
be clear, specific and understandable to each member of the group. It is imperative to check whether all members of the group really understand the meaning and purpose of what is happening in the same way;
be technologically advanced (contain the means of achieving it available to members of the group);
be personally attractive to each member of the group (contain any private goals and means that are interesting or accessible to him). The activity organized in the process of activity should require from everyone those skills that he is especially developed or that he would like to develop in himself.

The higher the satisfaction of the participants with the activities of the group and with themselves, the more the group will rally. In turn, satisfaction arises when a number of conditions are met.

It is known that a collegial, cooperative leadership style and the ability for each member of the group to take part in the development of a common decision contribute to the cohesion of the group.

Small group communication Is a mode of activity that facilitates the mutual adjustment of people's behavior. Consequently, the essence of communicative activity consists in the establishment of such cooperation, when the behavior of each changes and, to a certain extent, is regulated by the fact of cooperation with other individuals. Small group communication is an exchange that provides cooperative mutual assistance. "An integral characteristic of the system of intragroup ties is the degree of cohesion, the index of which can be the frequency or degree of coincidence of opinions, assessments, attitudes and positions of group members in relation to the objects most significant for the group as a whole."

Cohesion is a key concept in the theory of group dynamics developed by Kurt Lewin. Cohesion is defined by him as a "total field of forces", forcing the members of the group to remain in it. The more united the group is, the more it meets the needs of people in emotionally rich interpersonal relationships. In close-knit groups, an atmosphere of attentive attitude and mutual support is created, and a sense of group identity is formed in its members. Cohesion also generates emotional attachment, acceptance of common tasks, provides the group with stability even in the most difficult circumstances, contributes to the development of common standards that make the group stable, despite the multidirectionality of individual aspirations.

Group pressure is of particular importance in the mechanism for the formation of group cohesion. As a result of his action, the individual submits to the group in a situation of conflict between the opinion of the individual and the opinion of the group. This degree of subordination of the individual to group pressure is called conformism, or conformal behavior. The model of conformal behavior was first studied experimentally by Solomon Asch in 1951.

A specific case of conformism, a kind of "inside out" conformity, is negativism - the behavior of an individual who opposes the opinion of the group even when pressure is exerted on him. However, in this case, the dependence on the group continues to persist and manifests itself in the form of active production of anti-group behavior, anti-group position. In other words, the individual continues to remain attached to the group opinion, albeit with a minus sign.

In the studies of conformity conducted by Morton Deutsch and Harold Gerard, two types of group influence were distinguished:

normative, when pressure is exerted by the majority and its opinion is perceived by a member of the group as the norm;
informational, when pressure may be exerted by a minority and members of the group see this opinion as information on the basis of which they themselves must make a choice.

Normative conformism implies the need to obey the group in order not to be rejected, to keep with the group members a good relationship or earn their approval.

Information influence occurs when the situation is ambiguous and the opinion of others can be a valuable source of information. It is interesting to note that after a person has agreed with a particular group, he has a rather strong need to justify the chosen decision.

As we can see, conformism manifests itself not only in situations of strong group influence, but also when a person feels incompetent; when the problem that he needs to solve seems too difficult for him and he seeks to avoid possible mistakes.

Group cohesion from the point of view of communication processes in a small group was also investigated by Leon Festinger. Cohesion was analyzed by him on the basis of data on the frequency and strength of communicative connections revealed in the group. The central concept with which the analysis was carried out was the concept of cognitive dissonance, i.e. an individual's awareness of the opposition of his beliefs to the opinion of another person or group.

According to Festinger, the processes of social communication and social influence are closely related to the processes of the emergence and elimination of cognitive dissonance. For an individual social group is both the main source of cognitive dissonance and the main means of reducing or even completely eliminating it. Thus, information obtained in the process of communication may contain elements that are discordant with the individual's view of a problem or situation. The most effective way to eliminate dissonance between the opinions of the individual and the group is to adopt a set of cognitive elements that correspond to the point of view of the group. Moreover, the dissonance caused by a clash of opinions depends on the following factors.

1. The number of cognitive elements of an individual's opinion that coincide with the opposite opinion. The more consonational relations (the overlapping cognitive elements of two expressed opinions), the less dissonance caused by the disagreement. Thus, ultimately the quantitative characteristic determines degree of disagreement.
2. The importance of cognitive elements included in dissonance. The more important an element is, the greater the dissonance will be. Thus, the more significant the problem is for an individual or an entire group, the more important will be the cognitive elements that indicate the existence of different views on this problem, and the greater the dissonance caused by the expression of disagreement.
3. The authority of the person or group expressing the opposite point of view. The dissonance becomes greater if the opposite opinion is expressed by a person or group recognized as authoritative.

According to Festinger, if there is dissonance, there is a desire to reduce it at the same time. Moreover, the greater the dissonance, the stronger the desire to eliminate it.

Ways to build consensus in groups:

an independent change in the subject's opinion to a more common one (it is the prevalence of opinion that is a prerequisite for reducing dissonance);
changing the subject's opinion through influence;
assertion of the superiority of one's own opinion.

At the same time, Festinger draws attention to the possibility of an individual using the processes of social influence and communication to reduce dissonance. The person will make an effort to get the approval of the group members. He will try to find those who have a similar point of view, or to influence the opinion of others. Moreover, attempts to influence will be directed mainly towards those members of the group who show the greatest degree of disagreement, since the sharper the disagreement, the stronger the dissonance in the consciousness of the individual.

The development of intragroup interaction, in particular its communicative side, is also influenced by the spatial arrangement of the group members. According to the experimental data of Robert Sommer, there is a relationship between the spatial arrangement of people in a particular room and their interaction and attraction.

Proximity the location of people in space affects the strengthening of communication, the growth of attraction and friendship. As a rule, people are not randomly placed in a space. In most situations, one can note the attraction of people to those who cause sympathy, and the desire to distance themselves from those who do not cause the need to communicate. However, this does not happen in groups with a strong directive leader who tightly controls communication flows.

The choice by group members of a particular location in the group space shows a certain relationship between the spatial position and the status of the owner. In particular, a position at the intersection of intragroup communications gives its owner the opportunity to control group processes and, consequently, increase his status and become a leader.

In any small group there is also a predominant "emotional atmosphere" on which the well-being of the group members and their actions often depend. Accordingly, actions consistent with the dominant mood are greatly facilitated. Quite often, a group that has developed and exists autonomously negatively perceives the joining of new people to it, evaluating this as an intrusion into the communication network formed in the group.

Thus, environmental factors turn out to be important element analysis, since it is impossible to give an adequate interpretation of the communicative processes in the group, without taking into account the specific conditions of their course. For example, it was experimentally revealed: sitting at a table of a square or rectangular shape, group members more often exchanged information with partners in front of them than neighbors. Based on these data, an important practical conclusion was made about the advisability of placing the participants in the group discussion at a small round table in order to ensure equal communication.

Fundamentals of the theory of communication. P. 414.
Levin K. Field theory in the social sciences. SPb., 2000.
Myers D. Social Psychology. SPb., 1996.S. 298.
Festinger L. Cognitive dissonance theory. SPb., 1999, pp. 223–271.
Dubovskaya E.M., Krichevsky R.L. Small group social psychology. M., 2001.S. 165-166.

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Introduction

1. Group cohesion

1.1 Factors contributing to the development and formation of group cohesion

1.2 Problems that lead to decreased group cohesion

1.3 Ways to Improve Group Cohesion

2. Effectiveness of group activities

2.1 Factors affecting the effectiveness of group activities

2.2 Advantages and Disadvantages of Group Activities

3. Indicators of the effectiveness of group activities

4. Conditions necessary to achieve the effectiveness of group activities

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

The effectiveness of group activities is ensured by the dynamic processes taking place in the group. There are three main criteria for the effectiveness of the group's activities: educational, professional and educational. The first two reflect special tasks, the third is general social. Important performance indicators are the productivity and satisfaction of group members with group activities.

I. Steiner proposed a formula for calculating productivity:

Actual productivity = potential productivity - unrealized productivity

There are various ways to improve the effectiveness of group activities. group cohesion psychological effectiveness

Group size has no effect unequivocal impact on its successful activity. The consequences of increasing or decreasing the number of group members can be both positive and negative.

Positive: there are more people with a pronounced personality; easier to distribute responsibilities; a larger group in one and the same time can perform a larger amount of work, the “resource of talents” increases, and more people can participate in making decisions.

Negative: cohesion may decrease, the likelihood of disintegration into groups increases; difficult handling, increasing differences of opinion; the average contribution of each is declining.

For successful work great importance have established interpersonal relationships. With relatively simple, familiar tasks, relationships do not significantly affect the results of group work. Otherwise, groups with favorable relationships perform better.

The success of an activity depends on the form of its organization. The following forms are distinguished: collective-cooperative (close interaction and interdependence), individual ( independent work each), coordinated (correlating the result with the activities of others).

The effectiveness of group activities is influenced by its composition. Highly developed groups with a heterogeneous composition are better than homogeneous ones to cope with complex problems. In underdeveloped groups, mutual understanding is difficult. In difficult situations, in conditions of time pressure with relatively simple tasks top scores usually show homogeneous groups.

The success of the activity depends on the style of leadership. For a group approaching the collective level, a democratic and sometimes liberal style is preferable. For groups with an average level of development, the best results are obtained by a flexible style that combines elements of directivity, democracy, and liberality. In underdeveloped groups, a directive style with elements of democracy is preferable.

Many psychologists have dealt with the issue of effectiveness, such as: the American psychologist R. Likert, who proposed certain characteristics of an effective team, K. Adjiris, M. Belbin, J. Hackman, R. Schwartz and others.

1. Druppacohesion

Group cohesion is an indicator of the strength, stability and teamwork of the team. It is based on interpersonal relationships between people, which are characterized by mutual all-round sympathy of the members of the group and satisfaction with membership in it. The development and formation of group cohesion of any team is characterized by the similarity of the ideas of its members about the current norms, rules, requirements and the expected result of the group.

The definition of group cohesion suggests that the higher the cohesion of the group, the higher the efficiency of work. But this pattern is not always true. It depends on certain factors.

Factors contributing to the development and formation of group cohesion:

1) the coincidence of goals, interests, views, values and orientations of the group members;

2) communication and interaction between group members;

3) acceptable for all equality of social status and origin of members of the group;

4) the democracy of group relationships, the atmosphere of psychological safety, benevolence, acceptance;

5) active, emotionally rich joint activities aimed at achieving a goal that is significant for all participants;

6) positive opinion of group members about each other;

7) the expressed need of everyone for membership in the group;

8) optimal group size (5-9 people);

9) the optimal size of the working space - workplaces are located close, but people do not interfere with each other;

10) the presence of positive experience in joint problem solving;

11) psychological compatibility and mutual sympathy of the group members.

13) the presence of the effect of competition (unofficial) with another group

In a group with high group cohesion, there may also be some Problems, due to which the cohesion, and subsequently the effectiveness of group work and the result as a whole, will begin to decline. Therefore, you should pay attention to possible reasons reducing the level of team cohesion:

* breakdown of the group into small subgroups, often with the effect of tacit competition among themselves;

* close relationships between members of the group (friendship, love) or, on the contrary, a sudden enmity between individual members;

* mistakes in the wrong style of management

* lack of a single goal uniting all employees, weak dynamics of development of joint activities.

There are some ways to improve group cohesion:

1) Test of overall success

2) The trust of the group members to each other and, above all, to the group leader

3) A developed sense of belonging to a group, a sense of some particularity, of being chosen This feeling can be strengthened by conducting joint group activities, demonstrating greater potential, new opportunities for solving problems that open up in joint work.

4) Care should be taken to ensure that belonging to a group brings joy, realizes the desire for respect, self-respect, and prestige.

5) The group's belief in the reality of solving the tasks assigned to it.

6) External incentives include special encouragement for the development of group cohesion and mutual support. External stimulation (encouragement or punishment) is of particular value to group members.

2. Ethe effectiveness of group activities

The effectiveness of group activities is the productivity of the group and the satisfaction of its members with joint activities.

The effectiveness of group activities is influenced by both content (interpersonal relationships, norms, roles, statuses, internal attitudes, leadership) and formal characteristics of the group (the number of members in the group, the features of the group task associated with the distribution of responsibilities between the members of the group). The former describe the psychological states of people and directly affect the work of the group, but they are difficult to change and depend on the formal characteristics of the group, for example, on its composition. The formal characteristics of group work have only an indirect effect on group activity - through the psychology of its constituent people, but they are easier to manage.

Factors affecting the effectiveness of group activities:

1. The size of the group. It has both a positive effect (the number of people with knowledge in different fields increases, the distribution of responsibilities becomes easier, the volume of information processing per unit of time increases), and negative (a decrease in cohesion, an increase in distance and a difference of opinion between group members is possible, which leads to an aggravation of relationships in the group, complicates management and reduces the result, the contribution of each member of the group is significantly reduced).

2. The nature and complexity of the task facing the group.

3. Individual composition of the group. Heterogeneous groups are better at dealing with complex problems and tasks than homogeneous groups.

4. Group development. Underdeveloped groups are capable of solving only easy tasks, while a highly developed group can cope with solving the most difficult tasks and problems.

5. Leadership style.

6. Microclimate in the group, compatibility of its members and their efficiency.

7. Form of organization of activities.

Group activities have both advantages and disadvantages.

Pros of working in a group:

1. Group forms of work allow to unite group members with knowledge in various fields of science and technology, which has a positive effect on the result.

2. Each person can express their opinion about the problem and offer their own solution, in accordance with their vision of this problem. This allows you to take into account different aspects of the problem being solved.

3. In the process of group discussion, new proposals and ideas appear (brainstorming method).

4. Group work stimulates mutual trust and confidence in colleagues, especially if the joint problem solution had to overcome certain difficulties.

5. Group forms of work contribute to the individual development of group members (through learning in the process of joint problem solving, analysis, constructive discussion).

Cons of working in a group:

1. Waste of time. Working in a group involves discussing problems with all members of the group, considering different points of view, so more time is spent on making a decision in the group.

2. Dominance of one of the members in the group. This is not about leadership, but about strengthening the influence of some members of the group on others, which does not contribute to the effectiveness of work, but only forces people to accept the imposed point of view and in the future there may be a fear of expressing their own opinion.

3. Stubbornly defending a certain proposal, which may lead to its acceptance by the whole group, and also require a certain investment of resources, although the proposed solution may turn out to be incorrect.

4. Separation of responsibilities. On the one hand, the awareness of shared responsibility for the performance of a task is a positive thing. But at the same time, it can contribute to avoiding individual responsibility. Then some members of the group may be tempted to shift responsibility to other members of the group, thereby making their work less efficient. Then shared responsibility turns into irresponsibility.

5. One of the most important shortcomings is "group like-mindedness" - stereotyped thinking.

3. Effects indicators

1. Achievement of the goals of the group.

2. Satisfaction of group members with their work, employees feel comfortable at work.

3. Individual development of group members. Working in a group, in a team, employees satisfy their needs, increase their creative potential, gain experience, increase their activity, develop their abilities, etc. And this, in turn, leads to an increase in their productivity, and, consequently, to an increase in efficiency work and the group as a whole.

4. The members of the group are confident in its success.

5. All its members are aware of their responsibility for maintaining the quality and timing of assignments or tasks.

6. The interaction between the leader and the team members is optimally built.

4. Conditions required to achieve effectivegroup activity

1. Both the formal and the informal group should have strong leader interested in her success.

2. Normal psychological climate in the team. Mutual support of group members, trust.

3. Group heterogeneity. Provides greater efficiency in solving more complex problems and problems.

4. Cohesion of the team and its efficiency.

5. Optimal group sizes.

6. Clarity of goals and their sharing by all members of the group.

7. Permanent stay in search of new ideas, knowledge, promising methods of work.

8. Motivation of group members.

Conclusion

The effectiveness of group activities depends on many factors. It is influenced by: the size of the group and its individual composition, the nature of the task or problem posed, the development of the group, the climate within the group and the relationship between its members, team cohesion.

Group cohesion plays an important role in the effectiveness of group activities. The close-knit team has an atmosphere of goodwill and trust.

Group activities undoubtedly bring certain benefits. Such as: individual development of group members, the emergence of trust between employees, confidence in colleagues, which contributes to team building. Also, in my opinion, one of the most important advantages of group activities is the ability to express their opinion for each member of the group. As you know, everything in the world is quite subjective, and each person has his own views, thoughts. Each member of the group can see the problem in his own way, from his point of view (the heterogeneity of the group is a big plus here), hence the vision of the solution for each employee can be different. There are many options for solving the problem or task facing the group. And this is an opportunity to choose the most correct and suitable solution for this group.

Of course, there is also a downside to the coin.

Working in a group often involves discussing problems or tasks with all members of the group, as a rule it takes much longer than a decision would be made individually. Also, in my opinion, working in a group has a significant disadvantage - shared responsibility. The more there is a person in the group, the greater the danger of irresponsibility and conflicts. Some members of the group may perform their tasks in bad faith, hoping that other members of the group will fix it. And who should be responsible for a poorly performed task? Everyone and no one at the same time. Individual responsibility goes aside, and to some extent the incentive to do their job efficiently disappears (in the absence of a charismatic leader), simply because he is not specifically responsible for it. But this, of course, threatens with a decrease in the level of team cohesion (since trust is weakening), a decrease in productivity and quality of the result.

It is not easy to achieve the effectiveness of group activities, but by following certain methods (depending on the specific situation), of course, this can be achieved.

Bibliography

1. I.A. Skopylatov, O. Yu. Efremov "PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT"

2. Ageev VS Psychology of intergroup relations. - M., 1983

3. Klaus Fopel Group cohesion

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6. Dushkov B.A., Korolev A.V., Smirnov B.A. encyclopedic Dictionary: Labor Psychology, Management, Engineering Psychology and Ergonomics, 2005

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8.http: //vocabulary.ru/dictionary/894/word/yefektivnost-grupovoi-dejatelnosti

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