Small Group Decision Making

GOOD MORNING

SMALL GROUP DECISION MAKING B y, R.Sharmu I M.Sc(Ag.Extn.,)

GROUP DYNAMICS A group is two or more individuals who are connected to each other by social relationships Primarily concerned with small groups they interact and influence each other.

DEFINE SMALL GROUPS A group having at least 3 and not more than 12.

NATURE OF SMALL GROUPS 1.Task group -school council 2. Relationship group -recreation club 3.Influence group -self help groups

DISTINGUISHING FEATURE OF SMALL GROUPS 1 . Every member is aware of all . 2 . Mutually inter - dependent 3 . Sense of belonging , identifying himself with others 4 . Oral interaction 5 . Behaviour based on norms , values , etc accepted by all .

DECISION MAKING

TYPES OF DECISION MAKING IN SMALL GROUPS

1.Individual decision making 2.Group decision making

Group decision making

Individual Decision making

Group usually take more Individual usually take time to reach a decision . less time to reach a decision compared to group .

Better decision made by Group

Decisions are inferior to group decision .

Decisions are made by committee or group of members

Decisions are made by individuals .

HOW GROUP MAKE DECISIONS??

GROUP THINK A mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive ingroup

GROUP POLARIZATION The tendency for a group’s average post-discussion attitudes to be more extreme than its average prediscussion attitudes.

GROUP DECISION MAKING - METHODS

BRAIN STORMING The generation of large quantities of ideas for solving a problem. ++ Generate creative ideas. --Random, unstructured way of responding to a problem and often eats up much of a group's time

NOMINAL GROUP TECHNIQUE

STANDARD AGENDA A logical process to define a problem and develop a solution

SIX STEPS 1.Define the problem 2.Analyse the causes of problem 3.Develop criteria for an acceptable solution 4.Identify the possible solutions 5.Evaluate the solutions and determine the best alternative 6.Test the solution and re - evaluate its success

EXAMPLE ORGANISING A MEETING IN A SELF - HELP GROUP ..

STEP 1 Identify the decision to be made. When should our group meetings be scheduled?

STEP 2 Analyze the issue under discussion . Determine each member’s current schedule of prior commitments (e.g., classes, activities) Are weekends and nights a possibility? How much time we will need for each meeting? How often should meetings be scheduled?  

Establish criteria.

STEP 3

  The ideal meeting time would (in order of importance) a. Not conflict with any member’s school or extra-curricular schedule. b. Be at a time that is optimal for group productivity (e.g., when energy levels are highest, and when members would be most prepared to participate). c. Be during daytime working hours (i.e., 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday).  

STEP 4 Brainstorm potential solutions.   These are the times when all group members are free from prior commitments: a. Mondays 12 to 1:30 p.m. b. Wednesdays 6 to 7:30 p.m. c. Fridays 9 to 10:30 a.m.  

Evaluate options and select the best   one Mondays 12 : 00 to 1 : 30 p . m . Pros : Would get the meeting over with early in the week. Have the week-end directly beforehand to prepare for the meeting.   Cons : At lunchtime, all group members would need to eat before or after, or bring a “brown bag” lunch.  

Wednesdays 6 : 00 to 7 : 30 p . m . Pros : After dinner, group members will not be hungry and be refreshed from their dinner break.

Having the meeting in the middle of the week allows for additional time before or after

Wednesday to complete any necessary “last minute” project tasks.

  Cons : One group member has a tutorial to attend at 7:30,

Fridays 9 : 00 to 10 : 30 a . m .  

Pros :

None of the group members have classes or activities scheduled until 11:00 a.m. on Fridays, so there would be ample time to conduct the meeting.  

Cons :

If there are social events scheduled for Thursday night, some of the group members are not in favour of having a meeting early the next morning.  

Best solution

 

Wednesdays 6:00 to 7:30 is determined to be the most favourable time and chosen as the meeting time based on the criteria. The group decides that this would be the time during which they would be the most productive, having just finished their dinner break. This meeting time is not in agreement with the third criteria (i.e., the ideal meeting would during daytime working hours), but this was ranked as the least important, so a compromise was made.

STEP 5 Implement the solution.   Choose group members to: 1. Book the meeting room 2. Confirm the time/location with all group members 3. Appoint group roles for each member for meetings (see optimizing group performance tips sheet)

STEP 6

Monitor & evaluate the outcome.

  Conditions for success based on the criteria: 1.Regular attendance by all group members. 2.All group members are active participants during meetings. 3.If unforeseen scheduling conflicts arise, the group will have to revisit step 4 to determine a more suitable meeting time.

COMMON PROBLEMS IN SMALL GROUP DECISION MAKING

1 . Reaching goals 2 . Reaching

agreement on agreement on

procedures 3 . solving other problems 4 . Long meetings 5 . Unequal group commitment & involvement

ADVANTAGES

1.Group has more information than an individual. 2.Can generate number of alternatives, wider experience, variety of opinions . 3.Participation in group-decisions increases acceptance and commitment . 4.People understand the decision and pave the way for the smooth implementation of the decision. 5.Interaction between individuals lead to greater creativity . 6.Able to capitalize on individual talents specialization of

DISADVANTAG ES 1.Groups are notorious time wasters 2.Create a pressure towards confirmity, force members to compromise 3.Some powerful and influential members prevents others from participating freely 4.Easy to avoid the responsibility 5.Disagreement may lead to conflict among the members

THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND ATTENTION !!