4/3/00

In today’s lecture, we finished talking about group processes. We began by discussing “process gains” that are enjoyed by groups over individuals, and then continued on to outline “process losses” that can hinder group performance. The point was then made that whether groups perform better than individuals, or vice versa, can depend on the type of task in which the group is engaged. Lecture finished with a discussion of leadership in groups. A small amount of emphasis was given to traits good leaders possess, but more emphasis was given to the two types of leadership styles, characteristics of each style, and when each style is beneficial to group interaction.

Key terms:

*Actual productivity

*Process gains

*Sharing of knowledge

*Division of labor

*Social stimulation

*Detection and correction of errors

*Potential productivity

*Process losses

*Social loafing

*Poor coordination

*Socializing

*Social pressure and conformity

*Compensatory task

*Additive task

*Disjunctive task

*Conjunctive task

*Complex task

*Task oriented leader

*Social oriented leader

*Contingency Model of Leadership