Chapter 11
Small Group Communication
CHAPTER OUTCOMES
• Learn the defining characteristics and types of small groups
• Understand how effective small groups communicate
• Explain how individual characteristics affect small groups
• Explore ways to address the challenges of participating in virtual small groups
CHAPTER OUTLINE
DEFINING SMALL GROUPS
Participating in groups can help you accomplish tasks that would be difficult to do on your
own. But working in groups is not always easy. To increase the chances for a group’s success,
it helps to know why small groups form and the stages they go through.
• A small group is defined as three or more interdependent persons who share a common
identity and who communicate to achieve common goals or purposes.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SMALL GROUPS
• A small group has the following four defining characteristics:
1. It is made up of interdependent persons whose behavior influences the entire group. The
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2. It has at least three people, with the upper limit dependent on how the communication
3. Its members share a common identity and see themselves as a group. Over time, small
4. Its members communicate to achieve common purposes or goals; if they’re
communicating to pass the time, they’re not a small group.
• A virtual small group is any team of individuals (three or more) who work together to
achieve a common goal and who communicate primarily through technology instead of
face-to-face encounters. This type of group has two unique characteristics:
2. Virtual small groups rely mainly on technology to manage information, data, and
personal communications.
TYPES OF SMALL GROUPS
• Primary groups are the individuals who meet your basic life, psychological, and social
needs, such as family and friends.
○ They protect you from harm and loneliness.
○ You rely on interpersonal communication skills to develop and maintain primary group
relationships.
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▪ Information-sharing groups, which exchange ideas and resources that benefit
individual or organizational development.
▪ Action or production groups that provide a particular service or support to others.
▪ Problem-solving groups that help identify, analyze, and develop solutions to problems.
DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL GROUPS
• Small groups generally go through five phases.
○ You can tell what phase a group is in by how members communicate with each other,
which changes over time.
• Forming phase
○ Members start to become acquainted with each other, seek to understand the task, and
overcome a high level of uncertainty.
• Storming phase
○ The group becomes familiar with its task and with each other.
○ Members express different ideas about how to approach the task and who will take on
leadership roles.
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○ Personality differences and power struggles may surface and create tension. Conflict
must be addressed immediately for the group to make progress.
• Norming phase
○ The group resolves conflicts.
○ Members agree about the plans for working toward the goal and who will do what.
• Performing phase
○ Members actually make the required contributions for completing the task.
○ Group members’ efforts are well coordinated and directed to achieving the goal.
• Adjourning phase
○ This phase may begin once the group completes its objectives and it disbands.
○ Members take this time to evaluate and reflect on how well they accomplished the task
and the quality of their relationships.
HOW SMALL GROUPS COMMUNICATE
Groups achieve their stated goals when members communicate in a cooperative and productive
fashion. You can help the group build and maintain positive relationships by understanding how
group roles work and by adapting your communication to foster group unity.
BALANCING GROUP ROLES
• Formal roles are assigned positions that members take on by appointment or election.
• Group roles (informal roles) are unassigned, specific patterns of behavior and
communication that members develop from interacting over time to achieve goals, split
workload, organize tasks, and keep relationships between group members effective. They
include the following:
○ Task roles are roles that support the group in achieving its goals. Group members
exchange information about a duty or goal important to the group. For example,
individuals serving task roles may be the coordinator, information giver, researcher,
critical thinker, or note taker.
○ Maintenance roles are roles that help strengthen and secure relationships between group
members by building trusting and appreciative interpersonal relationships. Teams can
achieve high levels of performance when members trust one another and feel personally
○ Group role emergence and flexibility refers to the fact that when you are a part of a
group, you may find how the roles that members play depend on their personality.
▪ Extraverted individuals tend to naturally fall into maintenance roles, and group
members who are conscientious assume task roles with greater ease.
▪ By practicing critical self-reflection, you increase your self-awareness of the various
roles you can play in a small group.
▪ It is important to remember that group roles are not fixed. Instead, each member may
take on different roles as the group develops.
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BUILDING COHESIVENESS
• In a cohesive group, members like each other and have a sense of camaraderie; this can
fulfill a human need to belong and is one reason people join groups.
○ In highly cohesive groups, members feel a strong sense of unity and commitment to the
group’s work.
ESTABLISHING POSITIVE NORMS
• Norms are the expectations about behavior within a group. To have the most impact, norms
should be clearly communicated. Members can establish positive norms by following a few
simple steps:
○ Create ground rules when the group first comes together, and take time to develop
ground rules, or written expectations, about behavior.
○ Begin and end meetings on time. Waiting for everyone to arrive before you start a
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○ Evaluate the group regularly to ensure the group is adequately working toward its goals
by openly identifying what’s going well in the group and what needs to be changed.
SHARING RESPONSIBILITY
• Shared leadership is created when group members influence one another’s work and they
each feel a sense of ownership about their contributions and the group’s goals.
MANAGING PHYSICAL SPACE
• The physical environment affects the communication process.
○ Semi-fixed features are those that can be easily moved or changed and can influence how
group members communicate with each other. The physical space you meet in can
positively influence your group’s communication.
▪ Highly cohesive group members tend to sit closer together than those in less cohesive
groups, and those who occupy seats at the head of a table or in a center position are
more likely to be perceived as leaders.
THE SELF’S INFLUENCES ON SMALL GROUP COMMUNICATION
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communicate more competently in small groups and teams.
• Although all members of a small group should work toward a common goal, each person
still brings his or her own unique self, experiences, and communication preferences to the
group.
• The following three factors influence small group behavior and will help you communicate
more competently within groups: communication traits, gender, and culture.
COMMUNICATION TRAITS
• Communication apprehension is the fear or anxiety about real or anticipated communication.
○ Most people experience a small amount of communication apprehension from time to
time.
▪ Reduce your fear by asking simple questions to clarify points made during group
discussion.
• Argumentativeness is your willingness to take a stance on controversial issues and verbally
refute others who disagree with you.
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○ Although argumentativeness carries negative connotations, in small groups it can be a
positive form of communication that fosters the exchange of ideas, which is valuable for
group decision making.
▪ It differs from being verbally aggressive, which is characterized by hostile, personal
○ Highly argumentative individuals separate issues from people, tend to communicate well
in groups, and often emerge as group leaders. Constructive arguing also strengthens
bonds in a group.
▪ Such group members are more likely to be satisfied with the group relationship and
believe the group has reached consensus on decisions. Despite the advantages of
argumentativeness, there’s a constructive way to argue and a not-so-constructive way
that can lead to unproductive conflict.
GENDER
• Gender affects small groups because of popular stereotypes about the big differences in how
men and women communicate. Members need to be aware of stereotypes when interpreting
teammates’ communication behaviors.
○ According to stereotypes, men are unemotional, dominant, and achievement oriented;,
• People have a tendency to negatively judge individuals who defy gender stereotypes.
○ If you think gender-based stereotypes are affecting your perception of team members, use
perception-checking to form more accurate impressions by the following:
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CULTURE
• Culture affects all communication, and by knowing how cultural factors influence your own
group behavior, you can be mindful of communicating your ideas in ways that maintain the
self-worth or face of culturally different teammates.
• Three factors are especially relevant when interacting within small groups:
○ Whether you see your individual needs as more or less important than the group’s needs.
▪ Individualistic cultures place greater importance on their individual achievement and
○ Power distance is the degree to which people expect inequality between persons of low
and high power.
▪ In cultures with high-power distance, an individual of low power wouldn’t disagree
with a leader during a discussion.
▪ In low-power-distance cultures, many people expect leaders to treat those below them
with respect and to invite everyone’s input on certain decisions.
○ Uncertainty avoidance is how much tolerance people have for risk.
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VIRTUAL GROUPS AND TEAMS
Social media and videoconferencing help virtual groups organize their work and
communicate. However, as with all online interactions, remember the three P’s of online
communication—powerful, public, and permanent. Your self-presentation matters just as much
(if not more) in virtual small groups as it does when you’re communicating online with close
friends and family.
• A virtual small group is any team of individuals who work together to achieve a common
goal and who communicate primarily through technology instead of face-to-face encounters.
CHALLENGES OF VIRTUAL GROUPS
• Lack of face-to-face interactions presents virtual small groups with several challenges:
○ The physical distance separating members restricts nonverbal communication, and this
lack of feedback makes it hard to know how the team feels about what is being said.
○ It’s hard to build cohesion in a virtual team whose members may experience mistrust,
limited rapport, or feelings of isolation. To offset these problems, virtual team members
should occasionally meet face-to-face if possible or hold icebreaker activities. These
interactions are essential for building interpersonal relationships and strengthening
cohesion.