When is a group effort most effective?

A new study examines how effective group work is, and what makes it most productive.

From boardrooms to church basements, almost everybody works in groups at times. A new study examines how effective group work is, and what makes it most productive. Researchers at the University of  Central Florida analyzed information from almost 5000 different groups. They found that groups that share new information and are task-oriented have the best outcomes. Good relationships between members did not improve a group’s effectiveness. WHYY’s Behavioral Health reporter Maiken Scott discussed the findings with psychologist Dr. Dan Gottlieb:

More Info: The article’s lead author is Jessica Mesmer-Magnus, PhD, of the University of North Carolina Wilmington. She teamed up with Leslie DeChurch, PhD, an organizational psychologist at the University of Central Florida to analyze research on information sharing in the workplace, consisting of studies of approximately 4,800 groups and more than 17,000 people. Their findings are reported in the March issue of the Journal of Applied Psychology, which is published by the American Psychological Association.