The Relationship Between Cohesion and Effectiveness

Cohesion is a significant component of comprehending group effectiveness and processes. Organizational teams that are perceived to be highly cohesive demonstrate increased levels of performance, low levels of staff turnovers, and greater levels of member satisfaction. Research has been done on the treatment teams from various hospitals engaged in extremely interdependent work. It was suggested that cohesive teams exhibited high levels of performance than teams that were not cohesive. Essentially, it is important to note that cohesion, which exists within various organizational teams, is a principal determinant of the effectiveness of such teams. Cohesiveness and effectiveness also promote efficient enforcement of the teams’ norms and the overall control of members of the team.

However, if taken to the extreme, it may lead to circumstances of dysfunctional or undue conformity. For example, there are some situations in which raised levels of cohesiveness may lead to reduced levels of productivity. The effectiveness and cohesiveness of a team are also affected by the objective orientation or the reward scheme of the team. For instance, we can consider two situations: the first being the objective interdependence in which team members are assessed and compensated as a team. In this scenario, the development of an individual’s goals is similar to the development of the group or team. The second scenario is one in which team and group members are evaluated and rewarded as individuals. In this case, individuals may realize their potential but at the expense of the other team or group members.