11 Problem-Solving Discussion

This section of the text (Chapters 11 through 13) proceeds from the more general to the more specific, beginning with problem-solving concepts in general, to decision-making procedures, to the effect of conflict on group problem solving and decision making. Chapter 11 attempts to get the students to think about overall approaches and procedures that improve problem solving. The exercises are designed to show students the effects of various communication behaviors on the group’s problem solving.

1. Decision making involves choosing among alternatives. Problem solving entails creating or discovering the alternatives. Every problem includes an unsatisfactory situation, a desired goal, and obstacles that must be surmounted in order to reach the goal.
2. The problem-solving process should be tailored to fit the problem’s specific characteristics: task complexity, degree of solution multiplicity, intrinsic interest, cooperative requirements, population familiarity, level of technical requirements, acceptance requirements, and the area of freedom.
3. Groups need some structure in the problem-solving process to ensure that no important step is overlooked. No single sequence is better than all others; any structure is better than none at all. All sequences should conform to Vigilant Interaction Theory.
4. Whether and when the group should explicitly discuss criteria for evaluating proposed solutions depends on whether evaluation clarity is high or low.
5. The Procedural Model of Problem Solving (P-MOPS) is a general procedure that includes problem description and analysis, a search for and evaluation of alternatives, a decision, and an implementation plan. It can be modified to suit any problem, from simple to complex.
6. The Single Question format is a less structured alternative that simply asks members to agree on key sub issues before reaching the overall solution.
7. Computer technology can be highly beneficial for generating ideas, evaluating alternatives, and helping a group make decisions. To maximize the value of group support systems (GSS), they should be used in a way that is faithful to their intent, and members should be well trained in how to use them.

Review Questions

1. Analyze a current problem experienced by a group you belong to into its three major component parts.

2. What is the difference between problem-solving and decision-making?

3. Why should groups pay attention to the various characteristics of problems?

4. What is the main difference between systematic and intuitive problem-solving?

5. Describe vigilant interaction theory and its relevance to small group problem-solving.

6. What is problem mapping and when might you want to use it?

7. What are the five steps of the P-MOPS procedure, and what is the main goal for each step?

8. Describe the single question format, and explain when you might want to use this procedure.

9. How does computer technology help in group problem-solving? How does it hurt?

Discussion Topics

1. Describe exactly what you do when you have a problem to solve. How well does this procedure work for you?

2. Analyze a problem you currently have according to its present situation, obstacles, and goal. What are ways that you could get around or go through the obstacles?

3. Are you more of an intuitive or systematic problem solver? How well does your typical process work for you? What is it like for you when you have to work with someone whose approach to problem solving is very different from yours?

4. Have you ever been a part of a group that used technology (GSS) in problem-solving? Were you satisfied with the results?

12 Decision-Making in Small Groups

Chapter 12 concerns choice-making among alternatives. The exercises are designed to demonstrate the advantages of group decision-making for certain types of decisions and to encourage students to think about how these advantages can be realized.

1. Group decisions are usually better than individual ones, but this depends on several factors, including the type of task, the abilities of the members, whether group norms support high or low production, and the decision-making procedures used. Ideally, groups achieve an assembly effect— that is, the group’s decision is superior to the summative effect of all the individual members’ decisions.
2. Group decision making entails not only rational but other psychological processes that can lead to a group polarization effect, or the tendency of people in groups to adopt more extreme solutions.
3. Group decisions can be made by the designated leader, by majority vote, or by consensus. Consensus takes more time.
4. To help achieve valuable consensus, envision the process as a cooperative rather than competitive one. Don’t be stubborn, avoid win–lose thinking, be on guard against groupthink, don’t use conflict-suppressing techniques, and use differences of opinion to improve group outcomes.
5. Groups often pass through predictable phases during decision making, such as the four Fisher identified (orientation, conflict, decision emergence, and reinforcement). Recent researchers, such as Poole, suggest that the types, lengths, and sequence of phases depend on several group and individual factors.
6. There are several ways to improve group decision making: defining the problem carefully, agreeing on criteria, thoroughly evaluating the positive and negative characteristics of all the options, second-guessing the tentative choice, and, most important, thinking critically.
7. Both the information available to the group and also the reasoning that links that information to conclusions must be carefully evaluated. Members should be especially watchful for common fallacies that impair reasoning, such as over generalizing, ad hominem attacks, making inappropriate causal links, posing a false dilemma, and making faulty analogies.
8. Cohesive groups need to guard against groupthink, characterized by a failure to evaluate information and reasoning thoroughly. Overestimating a group’s morality, close-mindedness, and pressure to conform indicate groupthink. Establishing a devil’s advocate role can help counteract this tendency.

Review Questions

1. What is the difference between a conjunctive task and a disjunctive one? Give an example of each.

2. What is the assembly effect? Give an example.

3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of consensus decision-making?

4. How can you tell when a group has moved into Fisher’s decision emergence stage?

5. What factors did Poole say affect the types of phases a group experiences? Give examples of each.

6. What is the difference between a fact and an inference? Give an example of each one.

7. Explain why the following statement is a false dilemma and how could you counteract if you heard it during a discussion: “Studies show that most parents do not teach their children about sex. If parents aren’t going to assume their duties in this area, then the schools will have to step and do the job.”

8. What is Groupthink? What are the signs that Groupthink is occurring in a group?

Discussion Topics

1. Of the three types of decision-making (consensus, majority vote, by the leader), which do you prefer and why?

2. Think of the best (or worst) group decision you’ve ever been involved with, then describe how that decision was made. What were the factors that made it such a good (or bad) decision?

3. What reasoning errors bother you the most? How do you handle them in a group situation?

4. What factors make information seem credible to you? Do you think other people feel the same way you do about credibility?

5. Have you ever been in a group that experienced Groupthink? Describe what happened.

13 Managing Conflict in the Small Group

Individuals tend to be uncomfortable with conflict and often are not able to separate task-oriented from personal or power-related conflict. Hopefully students will recognize the potential value of issue-centered conflict to group decision-making. The exercises for this chapter are designed to give students confidence in their abilities to express and handle conflict appropriately.

1. Conflict occurs when interdependent parties perceive incompatible goals, scarce resources, and interference in achieving their goals and express this struggle outwardly. It has perceptual, emotional, behavioral, and interactional dimensions.
2. Although conflict can cause bad feelings, lower cohesiveness, or even group disintegration, it can also stimulate member involvement and understanding, increase cohesiveness, and produce better decisions. An opinion or innovative deviate expresses disagreement and may cause or experience discomfort, but contributes to critical thinking.
3. Types of conflict include substantive (task-oriented), affective (over personality and power differences), procedural (over how the group operates), and inequity (over unequal workloads or contributions by members). One type can lead to another in an actual conflict situation.
4. A distributive orientation to managing conflict assumes winners and losers, but an integrative orientation assumes the possibility of a win–win solution. Degrees of cooperation and assertiveness underlie the five common conflict management styles of avoidance, accommodation, competition, collaboration, and compromise, and the tactics used with each style.
5. Ethical principles governing appropriate conflict-management include expressing one’s views sensitively, focusing on the issues, and, while expressing disagreement, challenging the idea but not the person. Disagreements should be based on substance, not innuendo. Members should respond non defensively, with a spirit of inquiry, and remain open-minded to contradictory ideas. Finally, members should avoid fight-to-the-death conflict resolution strategies.
6. Group members should try to use procedures, such as the principled negotiation procedure, that are ethical and help parties find solutions satisfactory to all.
7. If a group cannot achieve consensus, other options include mediation by the leader or voting. Forcing or third-party arbitration, where someone decides for the group, is a last resort.
8. Common Ground dialogue can be used to discuss polarizing public issues, such as abortion, by helping participants discover genuinely shared values that can lessen tension and violence

Review Questions

1. What are the positive and negative outcomes of conflict?

2. What are the four types of conflict group experience? Give an example of each.

3. What is the difference between the integrative and distributive orientations to conflict?

4. When might compromising be a good way to resolve a conflict? What factor would likely determine whether a compromising would work or not?

5. Describe the four steps of the principled negotiating procedure, and then explain the importance and relevance of each step.

Discussion Topics

1. Think of the most serious group conflict you have ever observed. Describe what happened and what effects, short- and long-term, it had on the group.

2. What is the most effective resolution of conflict that you have ever observed. What happened? Why was it effective?

3. Imagine that you run into the person with whom you are most in conflict. What do you do and say? Are you satisfied with the encounter? Is there anything you would like to do differently?

4. What do you think are the most important qualities a mediator should have? Why is each important?

5. Do you have a “natural” conflict resolution style that you prefer to use? Why, or why not? Does whatever style you use work for you? What would you like to change about your conflict management style?