<< Chapter < Page Chapter >> Page >

    More obstacles to group work

  • Free Riders : Free riders are individuals who attempt to "ride for free" on the work of the other members of the group. Some free riders cynically pursue their selfish agenda while others fall into this pitfall because they are unable to meet all their obligations. (See conflict of effort.)
  • Outliers : These are often mistaken for free riders. Outliers want to become participants but fail to become fully integrated into the group. This could be because they are shy and need encouragement from the other group members. It could also be because the other group members know one another well and have habitual modes of interaction that exclude outsiders. One sign of outliers; they do not participate in group social activities but they still make substantial contributions working by themselves. ("No, I can't come to the meeting--just tell me what I have to do.")
  • Hidden Agendas : Cass Sunstein introduces this term. A group member with a "hidden agenda" has something he or she wants to contribute but, for some reason or other, hold back. For example, this individual may have tried to contribute something in the past and was "shot down" by the group leader. The next time he or she will think, "Let them figure it out without me."
  • Conflict of Effort : conflict of Effort often causes an individual to become a free rider or an outlier. These group members have made too many commitments and come unraveled when they all come due at the same time. Students are often overly optimistic when making out their semester schedules. They tightly couple work and class schedules while integrating home responsibilities. Everything goes well as long as nothing unusual happens. But if a coworker gets sick and your supervisor asks you to come in during class times to help out, or you get sick, it becomes impossible to keep the problem from "spilling out" into other areas of your schedule and bringing down the whole edifice. Developing a schedule with periods of slack and flexibility can go a long way toward avoiding conflict of effort. Groups can deal with this by being supportive and flexible. (But it is important to draw the line between being supportive and carrying a free rider.)

    Best practices for avoiding abilene paradox

  • At the end of the solution generating process, carry out an anonymous survey asking participants if anything was left out they were reluctant to put before group.
  • Designate a Devil's Advocate charged with criticizing the group's decision.
  • Ask participants to reaffirm group decision--perhaps anonymously.

    Best practices for avoiding groupthink (taken from janis, 262-271)

  • "The leader of a policy-forming group should assign the role of critical evaluator to each member, encouraging the group to give high priority to airing objections and doubts."
  • "The leaders in an organization's hierarchy, when assigning a policy-planning mission to a group, should be impartial instead of stating preferences and expectations at the outset."
  • "Throughout the period when the feasibility and effectiveness of policy alternatives are being surveyed, the policy-making group should from time to time divide into two or more subgroups to meet separately...."
  • One or more outside experts or qualified colleagues within the organization who are not core members of the policy-making group should be invited to each meeting ...and should be encouraged to challenge the views of the core members."
  • "At every meeting devoted to evaluating policy alternatives, at least one member should be assigned the role of devil's advocate."

Questions & Answers

how to study physic and understand
Ewa Reply
what is conservative force with examples
Moses
what is work
Fredrick Reply
the transfer of energy by a force that causes an object to be displaced; the product of the component of the force in the direction of the displacement and the magnitude of the displacement
AI-Robot
why is it from light to gravity
Esther Reply
difference between model and theory
Esther
Is the ship moving at a constant velocity?
Kamogelo Reply
The full note of modern physics
aluet Reply
introduction to applications of nuclear physics
aluet Reply
the explanation is not in full details
Moses Reply
I need more explanation or all about kinematics
Moses
yes
zephaniah
I need more explanation or all about nuclear physics
aluet
Show that the equal masses particles emarge from collision at right angle by making explicit used of fact that momentum is a vector quantity
Muhammad Reply
yh
Isaac
A wave is described by the function D(x,t)=(1.6cm) sin[(1.2cm^-1(x+6.8cm/st] what are:a.Amplitude b. wavelength c. wave number d. frequency e. period f. velocity of speed.
Majok Reply
what is frontier of physics
Somto Reply
A body is projected upward at an angle 45° 18minutes with the horizontal with an initial speed of 40km per second. In hoe many seconds will the body reach the ground then how far from the point of projection will it strike. At what angle will the horizontal will strike
Gufraan Reply
Suppose hydrogen and oxygen are diffusing through air. A small amount of each is released simultaneously. How much time passes before the hydrogen is 1.00 s ahead of the oxygen? Such differences in arrival times are used as an analytical tool in gas chromatography.
Ezekiel Reply
please explain
Samuel
what's the definition of physics
Mobolaji Reply
what is physics
Nangun Reply
the science concerned with describing the interactions of energy, matter, space, and time; it is especially interested in what fundamental mechanisms underlie every phenomenon
AI-Robot
what is isotopes
Nangun Reply
nuclei having the same Z and different N s
AI-Robot
Got questions? Join the online conversation and get instant answers!
Jobilize.com Reply

Get Jobilize Job Search Mobile App in your pocket Now!

Get it on Google Play Download on the App Store Now




Source:  OpenStax, Business ethics. OpenStax CNX. Sep 04, 2013 Download for free at http://legacy.cnx.org/content/col10491/1.11
Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google Inc.

Notification Switch

Would you like to follow the 'Business ethics' conversation and receive update notifications?

Ask