ABSTRACT
Group processes are an important component of the workplace. Be it group decisionmaking, work teams, or leadership, groups are vital to the functioning of many industries. This chapter reviews the major group-related topics of interest in the workplace. It focuses on factors that arise within the group—the need for leadership, perceptions of how one's outcomes compare to those of fellow group members and the impact of those perceptions on subsequent behavior, and the resolution of conflict within a group. The chapter considers more macro-level factors: teamwork and organizational culture. It argues that a person or group must be aware that another person or group has the object before relative deprivation is experienced. The chapter describes three major motives that may drive social comparisons—self-assessment, self-improvement, and self-enhancement. It also describes some examples of how social comparison processes can help one to understand group reactions in the workplace.
