Showing papers on "Psychological safety published in 1992"

Demography and Design: Predictors of New Product Team Performance

Abstract: The increasing reliance on teams in organizations raises the question of how these teams should be formed. Should they be formed completely of engineers or should they include a range of specialists? Should they be made up to people who have long tenure in the organization, or those with a wide range of experience? As teams increasingly get called upon to do more complex tasks and to cross functional boundaries within the organization, conventional wisdom has suggested that teams be composed of more diverse members. This study suggests that the answer may not be so simple. Using 409 individuals from 45 new product teams in five high-technology companies, this study investigates the impact of diversity on team performance. We found that functional and tenure diversity each has its own distinct effects. The greater the functional diversity, the more team members communicated outside the team's boundaries. This communication was with a variety of groups such as marketing, manufacturing, and top management. T...

Collective behavior and team performance

Abstract: Modern complex systems require effective team performance, yet the question of which factors determine effective teams remains to be answered. Group researchers suggest that collective or interdependent behavior is a critical component of team interaction. Furthermore, anecdotal evidence suggests that some team members are less collectively oriented than others and that the tendency to ignore task inputs from others is one factor that contributes to poor team performance. In this study we develop a procedure for differentiating collectively oriented versus egocentric team members. Experimental results confirm that collectively oriented team members were more likely to attend to the task inputs of other team members and to improve their performance during team interaction than were egocentric team members.

Successful team building

Abstract: Working in teams brings benefits to both team members and organizations for which they work. If you are a team leader, you know that getting commitment isn't always easy. SUCCESSFUL TEAM BUILDING shows you how to motivate team members, and so reap the benefits. You'll learn how to build team commitment, deal with team conflict, use creativity in problem solving and decision making, and evaluate and reward team players. The result? Your team will respond favorably to your efforts. And your boss will notice too.

The mental health treatment team as a work group: team dynamics and the role of the leader.

Abstract: Although treatment teams have been examined often in the mental health literature, this literature seldom addresses the crucial property of "teamness"--the key set of intangible phenomena that allow a team to function synergistically as more than the sum of its parts, and with a sense of team identity. In this paper, the concept of the work group is used to develop a framework for understanding the factors contributing to effective team functioning and identity, an their implications for the tasks of team leadership and sociotherapy: "the art of maintaining a social system in which the treatment of an individual patient can best occur" (Edelson 1970). Leadership activities that promote team cohesiveness and boundary maintenance are discussed, and suggestions are provided for ways in which the subjective experiences and emotional reactions of the leader and team members can be used to promote improved task performance and clinical care.

Collective Excellence: Building Effective Teams

Abstract: \ICollective Excellence: Building Effective Teams, ’2E\N examines the team approach in the workplace as effective team development is an essential element in the successful operation of any organization. It presents the concepts and practices of team development and management for optimum productivity, moving systematically from defining teams and the various stages of team development to providing measures of team strengths and methods for capitalizing on each member’s personality and temperament. Separate chapters address project management and the concept of leadership.

Successful team building: How to create teams that really work

Abstract: The growing management practice of teamwork relies on the notion that a team will produce a greater level of performance than a group of individuals working alone. Yet all too often the whole is less than the sum of its parts. Teams can work well but they must be planned and developed to maximize their potential. "A Team of Equals" demonstrates how to build and develop successful teams. Built around a self-assessment questionnaire to be answered by all team members, the technique builds on the strengths and management styles of each individual in the team. No team role is seen as better or worse than another, but all management roles (planning, controlling, adminstering) must be covered by one or more of the team members in order for a team to work successfully. This is the key to increasing team satisfaction and to building a team that will hold together when the pressure is on.

The Interdisciplinary Team in Geriatric Rehabilitation.

Abstract: The expertise of the interdisciplinary team is essential in devising and implementing an optimal rehabilitation plan for the geriatric patient. However development and maintenance of skills in team functioning are not routinely part of training for practitioners in geriatric rehabilitation, including social work. Multidimensional assessment forms the basis of the team's activities, and the components of this process are outlined. A review of relevant team dynamics is presented, along with a description of the key elements and activities associated with geriatric rehabilitation team practice. Practical information on identifying barriers to effective team functioning and ideas for enhancing effectiveness are provided.

Team Skills Development: An Experience‐based Framework for Management Training

Abstract: Presents an experience‐based model which is an approach to management training and development, and describes a management course with an integrated framework. Distinguishes between team process and team task, and introduces team building as a way of achieving organizational objectives as well as a vehicle for overcoming “any other unspoken bottlenecks” to team skills acquisition.

The Delicate Balance of Team Leadership

Abstract: An excerpt from The Wisdom of Teams: Creating the High-Performance Organization Successful team leaders put team performance first. Their goal is team, not individual, achievement -- their own included. In working groups, where performance depends entirely on optimizing discrete individual contributions, the leadership task is, quite naturally, to promote and coordinate such contributions. But in teams, real teams, it is altogether different: to help clarify shared purpose, goals, and working approach; to help ensure a complementary mix of skills; to help define joint work products; and to help build a strong sense of mutual commitment and accountability. The leaders who do all this must also do a fair share and more of a team's real work themselves. But their additional responsibilities mean that, in whatever they do, they must be continuously aware of how their own actions can hinder the team -- and of how their patience and support can energize it. Theirs is the special challenge of striking just the right balance between doing things themselves and knowing when and how to let other people do them. Theirs is the double burden of motivating collective performance of a group while enabling the personal growth of each member. THINK FOR a moment about the most effective team leaders you have known, whether at work or in other parts of your life. Think about how they managed the delicate balancing act between doing and supporting. Chances are, they did not act as if -- nor believe that -- they themselves had all the answers. They did not insist on dominating discussions. They did not try to make all the key decisions. They certainly did not take all the credit. They knew that they could not succeed unless the team did -- and you knew that they knew. More than that, they knew the best way to promote team success was not to focus on individual efforts but on overall team performance. Their actions and their attitudes sent a single clear message: they were the shepherds -- no more and no less -- of mutual accountability. These attitudes, as well as the behaviors that flow from them, are neither difficult to learn nor hard to practise. Striking the right balance is possible. Most of us can do it. At various points in our lives, most of us have. The problem is that few of us practise such things automatically, especially in business contexts. This is because, in the managerial world, leadership has traditionally been synonymous with authority, and authority has traditionally been understood as the ability to command others, control subordinates, and make all the truly important decisions yourself. For those endowed with such a "divine right" of management, there is no acceptable alternative to having all the answers or making all the decisions. Anything less is evidence of not being in control, of not being successful. If only individuals can be heroes, then there is no point in subordinating personal ego to the needs of the group. Such attitudes about leadership may be tolerable -- perhaps even quite productive -- in the context of working groups. But they cripple potential team leaders. It is not that decisiveness and control are bad; all teams need both. Achieving true team performance levels, however, ultimately requires the team to be decisive, the team to be in control, and the team to be the hero. Holding the reins tightly to one's own chest is anything but divine. The balance point As part of their development, teams must learn to take risks involving conflict, trust, interdependence, and hard work. And that does not happen when the leader calls every shot and has the final say on every action. Nor when the leader "never makes a mistake." For a group to become a real team, the leader must give up some command and some control -- and take some real risks, too. But simply abandoning all responsibility for decisions does not work. The leader's challenge is more difficult than that. …

The Interdisciplinary Geriatric/Gerontological Team in the Academic Setting.

Abstract: Geriatric health care requires the services of an interdisciplinary health care team to assess, treat and order the social service needs of the older person, and this concept needs to be included in geriatric social work education. But while the necessity of interdisciplinary team care is recognized, little focus has been placed on the actual process of developing a functional team. The issues that arise-disparate terminologies, organizational and administrative differentials, turf-and the steps needed for a team to become viable are described, using an interdisciplinary team based in academia as a case model. The academic interdisciplinary team may easily become a forum for 'hot air' rather than a catalyst for good practice. This danger is reviewed with reference to stages in the interdisciplinary team development-- goal development group affiliation; team awareness; and goal evaluation. The chapter concludes with a discussion on the impact of the interdisciplinary team on faculty, students and the acade...

Developing Teamwork in Primary Health Care: A Practical Workbook

Abstract: Part 1 Questions about teams, goals and tasks: the nature and purpose of teamwork team diagnosis team goals and tasks. Part 2 Who does what in our team: roles within the team. Part 3 How we get things done here: meetings, decisions, procedures and use of time team leadership new team members working in a team. Part 4 The team environment: the world outside the team patients as team members. Part 5 Evaluation of teamwork and the way forward: evaluating the effectiveness of the team the way forward.

Facilitating quality improvement team performance: a developmental perspective

Abstract: Quality improvement project teams play a prominent role in the implementation of organizational quality improvement efforts. Yet, once formed, not all such teams reach a productive and effective level of functioning. This paper presents a model of quality improvement project team development that describes patterns of development that these teams commonly experience, identifies the principal developmental issues that emerge throughout the course of such teams' life span, and outlines specific strategies and interventions that team leaders and facilitators can use to assist their team in managing and influencing its own development, and ultimately its performance.

Dynamics of Innovation: Understanding and Influencing Communication Behaviours

Abstract: Studies of communication patterns in technical teams have confirmed the importance of three roles (critic, erudite and idea generator) identified in earlier Russian work. Interpersonal needs and innovation-adaptation style preferences were also examined. The results demonstrate that the roles are taken up by team members with differing interpersonal needs and innovation-adaptation biases. The authors suggest that greater attention to such factors will assist in the design and management of more effective scientific teams, and describe an easy-to-apply survey-feedback method for facilitating team learning and development.

Beyond the group: enhancing team training effectiveness

Abstract: Three organizational factors are considered that can enhance team training effectiveness: culture; leadership; and performance appraisal systems. How the content of team training is affected by changes in team membership is described. Recommendations include greater emphasis on the examination of organizational factors in needs assessments to ensure optimal training. The authors explain that organizational factors should be compatible with the team training in order to enhance its effectiveness. >

STEAMWORK: An Effective Approach to Team Building.

Abstract: Changes in leadership of organizations will affect many people. This article suggests an approach that can effect positive transitions through team building. An application of the model is presented.

The roles of team skills training and team building in improving performance

Abstract: Team skills training has been a part of control room crew development for a number of years. Team building has been receiving attention as an effective approach to continued improvement of team performance. Although both team skills and team building are focused on the process of team effectiveness, they are not interchangeable. Team building with a group that has not yet been exposed to team skills is not likely to be successful. Conversely, the fact that a control room crew possesses superior team skills does not necessarily ensure team success. Both team skills training and team building play an important role in the ability of control room crews to become high performance teams. >

Measures which Help You Work Together as a Team

Abstract: Looks at instruments which can be used in team development. The Types of Work Index provides personal feedback to team members on their job. The Team Management Index helps team members understand the way they like to work. The Linking Skills Index measures how well a person implements “linking skills”.