Characteristics of Groups

A group, once it exists, has its own internal life. Roles, norms, and cohesiveness describe that internal life. These three characteristics shape whether the group performs well or badly, and what kind of culture it produces.

Roles

Behaviours expected of a member as per position in the group. Some roles are assigned formally (G.M. = General Manager) but additional roles are assumed informally, influencing group performance. In high-performance groups formal roles are clearly defined.

A role is the bundle of behaviours that go with a position. In a school’s grade-3 team, the team coordinator has a role: she runs meetings, holds the team accountable, communicates with the principal. The senior teacher on the team has a different role: she mentors junior colleagues, holds institutional memory, advises on hard cases.

Formal and informal roles

Formal roles are written. Job descriptions. Position titles. Reporting lines. A teacher knows she is a teacher; the school’s HR document says so.

Informal roles are unwritten but real. The “morale officer” who lifts the staffroom mood. The “skeptic” who pushes back on new initiatives. The “fixer” who finds practical solutions. The “wise elder” whom colleagues consult before making decisions.

Both kinds of roles shape group behaviour. A school head who only sees formal roles misses half of what is happening. A skilled head notices informal roles too and works with them.

What high-performance groups do

The handout notes:

In high-performance groups formal roles are clearly defined.

This matters because role ambiguity produces inefficiency. When two members both think they are responsible for the same task, both do it (duplication) or neither does it (gap). When no member knows who is responsible, no one is.

Clarifying roles is not bureaucracy; it is necessary structure. A grade-3 team where each teacher knows her own scope and the coordinator’s scope operates faster than one where these are unclear.

Norms

Informal standards of behaviour that govern members’ actions. Roles are behaviours that differentiate; norms are behaviours common to all. Members pressurise each other and new members to conform.

A norm is what is expected of every member of the group, not just those in particular roles.

Common school staffroom norms

1. Punctuality. “We arrive on time. We do not arrive five minutes late.”
2. Respect. “We do not talk over each other.”
3. Effort. “We give honest effort. We do not coast.”
4. Collegiality. “We help each other. We do not undermine.”
5. Honesty about results. “We name what is not working. We do not pretend.”

Or, in less healthy schools, opposite norms:

1. “Five minutes late is fine.”
2. “Talking over juniors is normal.”
3. “Coasting is accepted as long as the basics are covered.”
4. “Help only when convenient.”
5. “We pretend results are fine even when they are not.”

The norms a school has are not the norms it claims. The actual norms are revealed by behaviour, not by the staff handbook.

Norms shape new members

Members pressurise each other and new members to conform.

A new teacher arrives. Within weeks she has absorbed the norms of the staffroom. If the norm is to arrive five minutes late, she starts arriving five minutes late. If the norm is to give honest effort, she gives honest effort. The norms shape her behaviour faster than any onboarding programme.

This is why staffroom culture is so important. A school head who changes the formal procedures but leaves the staffroom norms unchanged finds that the procedures get bent to fit the existing norms.

Changing norms is hard and slow. It requires the school head to model the desired norm consistently, support staff who model it, and confront those who violate it. The change takes years, not weeks.

Cohesiveness

Degree of loyalty to the group and its goals. Strong commitment and desire to remain within the group increases group cohesiveness. Encourages members to perform at a high level. But, low output if norm is low productivity.

Cohesiveness is the strength of the bond among group members. A highly cohesive group sticks together, supports each other, and works hard for the group’s goals. A weakly cohesive group has people technically in it but not really part of it.

Cohesion is a multiplier

The handout makes a subtle but important point. Cohesion multiplies whatever norm the group has.

Encourages members to perform at a high level. But, low output if norm is low productivity.

A cohesive group with high-performance norms produces excellent results. The members push each other to higher work; the group’s energy lifts everyone.

A cohesive group with low-performance norms produces consistently low results. The members enforce the low standard on each other; anyone who tries to work harder gets pulled back into line.

This means cohesion alone is not enough. The school head has to attend to both: build cohesion AND set high-performance norms. Either alone is insufficient.

Building cohesion in a school

A school head can build group cohesion through:

1. Shared goals. Real goals the team owns together.
2. Shared experience. Working through challenges together.
3. Mutual recognition. Members notice and value each other’s contributions.
4. Stable membership. Cohesion takes time; high turnover destroys it.
5. Common identity. A sense of being “us” with shared purpose.

A cohesive team produces work that the same individuals could not produce alone. The grade-3 team that has worked together for three years, with shared goals and stable membership, outperforms a grade-3 team of equally talented teachers who do not know each other well.

How the three characteristics interact

Roles, norms, and cohesiveness reinforce each other.

A school head can diagnose any group in her school by checking all three. The diagnosis points to the intervention.

1. Unclear roles? Define them.
2. Low-performance norms? Confront and reset them.
3. Weak cohesion? Invest in shared goals and shared experience.

A group with clear roles, strong norms, and high cohesion is a real asset to a school.

Flashcard

What are the three characteristics of groups, and how do they interact?

Tap to reveal

Answer

Roles, Norms, Cohesiveness.

1. Roles. Behaviours expected of members by position. Formal and informal. Clear roles help; ambiguity hurts.

2. Norms. Standards of behaviour common to all members. Punctuality, respect, effort, honesty. New members are pressured to conform.

3. Cohesiveness. Loyalty to the group and its goals. A multiplier of the group’s norms: high cohesion plus high-performance norms produces excellent work; high cohesion plus low-performance norms produces consistent mediocrity.

The intervention depends on the diagnosis. Unclear roles need definition. Low-performance norms need confrontation. Weak cohesion needs investment in shared goals and stable membership. A group that scores well on all three is highly valuable.