Group Ideology

In the course of interacting and carrying out its task and maintenance functions, the group develops an ideology which affects the attitudes and actions of its members and the degree of satisfaction which they feel.


Group cohesion


If the group ideology is strong and individual members identify closely with the group, it will become increasingly cohesive. Group norms or implicit rules will be evolved, which define what is acceptable behaviour and what is not. The impact of group cohesion can, however, result in negative as well as positive results. Janis’s (1972) study of the decision-making processes of US foreign policy groups established that a cohesive group of individuals, sharing a common fate, exerts a strong pressure towards conformity. He coined the term ‘group think’ to describe the exaggeration of irrational tendencies that appears to occur in groups and argued that a group setting can magnify weakness of judgement.


To be ‘one of us’ is not always a good thing in management circles. A sturdy spirit of independence, even a maverick tendency, may be more conducive to correct decision-making. Team-working is a good thing, but so is flexibility and independent judgement. These need not be incompatible with team membership, but could be if there is too much emphasis on cohesion and conformity within the group.


Reference group

A reference group consists of the group of people with whom an individual identifies. This means that the group’s norms are accepted and if in doubt about what to do or say, reference is made to these norms or to other group members before action is taken. Most people in organizations belong to a reference group and this can significantly affect the ways in which they behave


Impact on group members


The reference group will also affect individual behaviour. This may be through overt pressure to conform or by more subtle processes. Acceptance of group norms commonly goes through two stages – compliance and internalization. Initially, a group member complies in order not to be rejected by the group, although he or she may behave differently when away from the group. Progressively, however, the individual accepts the norm whether with the group or not – the group norm has been internalized. As noted by Chell (1987), pressure on members to conform can cause problems when:


● there is incompatibility between a member’s personal goals and those of the group;

● there is no sense of pride from being a member of the group;

● the member is not fully integrated with the group;

● the price of conformity is too high.

Tuckman (1965) has identified four stages of group development:


1. forming, when there is anxiety, dependence on the leader and testing to find out the nature of the situation and the task, and what behaviour is acceptable;

2. storming, where there is conflict, emotional resistance to the demands of the task, resistance to control and even rebellion against the leader;

3. norming, when group cohesion is developed, norms emerge, views are exchanged openly, mutual support and cooperation increase and the group acquires a sense of its identity;

4. performing, when interpersonal problems are resolved, roles are flexible and functional, there are constructive attempts to complete tasks and energy is available for effective work.