Lesson 13 Team cohesion, Part 2

Four stage of group development

Stage I

1.   Members familiarize themselves with other group members.

2.   Members engage in social comparison.

3.   Assess one another’s strengths and weaknesses.

4.   Members evaluate whether they belong in the group.

5.   Interpersonal relationships are formed.

6.   Initial roles are assigned.

7.   Coaches should develop strategies to facilitate group familiarity.

Stage II

1.   Resistance to the group. leader (Testing of limits).

2.   Resistance to the control of the group.

3.   Interpersonal conflict.

4.   Establishment of routines.

5.   Coaches should communicate to athlete openly and objectively.

6.   Coach should communicate displeasure if hostilities become too excessive.

Stage III

1.   Hostility is replaced by solidarity/cooperation.

2.   Conflicts are resolved and a sense of unity is formed.

3.   Athlete. begin to work together to reach common goals.

4.   Group cohesion is formed.

5.   Instead of competing for status/recognition, players strive for economy of effort/task

   effectiveness.

6.   Coaches can facilitate this process by praising team members for quality               

   performance, effort, improvement, and unique contribution.

Stage IV

1.   Team members band together to channel their energies for team success

2. Focus is on problem solving.

3.   Group processes/relationships focused on task completion.

4.   Structural issues are resolved.

5.   Roles are well defined.

6.   Primary goal is winning.

7.   Team members not threatened by teammates success.

8.   Coach should avoid activities that promote intra-team competition and interpersonal

    aggression.

9.   Coach should acknowledge player’s special contribution.

10. A cooperative environment should be encouraged

REFERENCES

Weinberg, R. and Gould, D. (2015). Leadership. In: Foundations of sport and exercise

psychology. 2ND ed. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.