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Discussion: Teamwork in the Work Place

Think about a time when you worked in a group to achieve a specific goal. This may have been planning a party, working in a collaborative group for school, or working through a project for work. Consider the benefits and challenges as you worked through to achieving your goal. Now, think about if you added diversity to your group. Your group members may be from another country or even have very little experience or education. How might this impact the overall outcome of your project? As you begin to consider your future professional work, you might find that it will be necessary to work and collaborate with others to accomplish specific goals. Because of this, group think, individualism, and collectivism will be critical to understanding the behavior of others in the work place.

For this Discussion, you will you will explore individualism and collectivism and how each might impact the dynamics of a group.

To Prepare:

• Review the Learning Resources for this week and think about how group think, individualism, and collectivism impact your daily life as well as your professional work.
• Consider the following:Imagine you are on a team at work and have a deadline quickly approaching. The project is critical to your employer’s success. Your eight-person team is composed of diverse workers. There’s a range in age, gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, and experience level, among other distinctions. Your team’s progress has encountered some challenges. Some team members are managing home and work life duties, and other team members are having difficulty working together across their differences.

QUESTION******

Post and provide a definition of individualism and collectivism. Based on your knowledge from culture and psychology, list three possible solutions to accomplish the looming deadline of the project in the scenario provided and why these solutions would be the best possible solutions. Learning Resources

Required Readings

Aycan, Z. (2002). Leadership and teamwork in developing countries: Challenges and opportunities. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 7(2).

Credit Line: Aycan, Z., & International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology. (2002). Leadership and Teamwork in Developing Countries: Challenges and Opportunities. Retrieved from ​dx.doi.org/10.9707/2307-0919.1066​. Used with permission of International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology.  

Hwang, A., Francesco, A. M., & Kessler, E. (2003). The relationship between individualism-collectivism, face and feedback and learning processes in Hong Kong, Singapore and the United States. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 34, 72–91.

Liu, J. H. (2012). A cultural perspective on intergroup relations and social identity. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 5(3).

Credit Line: International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology, & Liu, J. H. (2012). A Cultural Perspective on Intergroup Relations and Social Identity. Retrieved from ​dx.doi.org/10.9707/2307-0919.1119​. Used with permission of International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology. 

Sanchez-Burks, J., Lee, F., Choi, I., Nisbett, R., Zhou, S., & Koo, J. (2003). Conversing across cultures: East-West communication styles in work and non-work contexts. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85(2), 363–372.

Credit Line: Conversing Across Cultures: East-West Communication Styles in Work and Non-Work Contexts by Sanchez-Burks, J.; Lee, F.; Choi, I.; Nisbett, R.; Zhou, S.; Koo, J., in Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 85, Issue 2. Copyright 2003 by American Psychological Association. Reprinted by permission of American Psychological Association via the Copyright Clearance Center

Smith, P. B. (2015). To lend helping hands: In-group favoritism, uncertainty avoidance and the national frequency of pro-social behaviors. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 46(6), 759–771. doi: 10.1177/0022022115585141