Exam 6: A: Groups in Organizations

Walther and Bazarova found that when individuals are in completely distributed groups,they take more responsibility and blame their partners less often than individuals working virtually but with collocated group members.

Compatibility between group members is attractive to prospective members.

It is more important to focus on the issues of the group rather than a person's status in the group.

Prefabricated groups are so rigidly designed that they can bring together a collection of people with no previous experience to produce at a predictable level.

Focus groups are a collection of individuals who have no familiarity with a problem,which helps to gain an "unattached" approach to the problem.

Group participation should not be considered a productive part of an organization.

In a group,being able to communicate well with others is not as important as personal expertise.

Social support group membership does not affect an employee's level of satisfaction with the organization.

Idea generation,problem solving,conflict,decision making,and compromise are communication processes that occur as a group matures.

Bona fide groups are influenced by the environment but have fixed boundaries.

Groups only serve task goals concerns.

High-reliability organizations regularly examine their communication processes,technologies,and tactics.

High-reliability organizations are structured towork mostly in stable,low-risk industries.

When entering an organization,a person usually is placed in their primary work team.

Suppressing differences of opinion in a group is a positive behavior which benefits the group in the long run.

University departments are examples of long-standing teams.

Primary work teams are ad hoc groups which are designed to work on non-organizational goals.

Research and design of products and processes are uses for a project team.

Directional groups are usually less dependent on the communication competencies of individuals than they are on the information seeking and processes the group adopts for problem solving and decision making.

The formation of project teams helps to keep an organization current in response to changing markets.