The power of the group - How the team becomes unbeatable!

Since the beginning of human existence, man has been a social being who lives and survives in a group. Only if the group is sufficiently identified, motivated and structured can the power of the group fully unfold. The well-known evolutionary biologist Charles Darwin published his theory of evolution towards the middle of the 18th century and coined the term "struggle for existence" alongside various hypotheses. But why do we already cooperate as children? Which groups are good for us today? And how can I make positive use of social media to Stress and create happiness? Coaching can be a solution, can sometimes also make no sense.

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The power of the group - functions and forms of groups

Klaus Stanjek, who studied psychology and biology and completed his doctorate at the Max Planck Institute of Behavioral Biology, has worked intensively with his colleague Rainer Beeken on the topic of "social groups". The two researchers differentiate between groups in terms of their function and their form (see Stanjek & Beeken, 2017, p. 150 ff.).

1. Functions of the group

• Mediation and control function (external mediation of interests in order to protect the norms of society through control tasks)

Examples: Political parties, religious groups, customs

• Relief and protection function (a group that shares the work - normative and structural relief)

Examples: Work group, family

• Supply function (groups to secure livelihoods and social-emotional factors such as recognition, affiliation or love)

Examples: Company boss, parents

2. Forms of the group

• Primary group (Group with a manageable number of members, with clear boundaries to the outside and a long-term structure - it is the most important group of all others for its members)

Example: Family

• Secondary group (Less strong bond within the group with more members compared to the primary group. There is usually a more short-term structure with a common goal)

Examples: Soccer club, reading circle, school class

• Formal group (Group with common goals that are regulated by standards - violations have fixed consequences)

Example: Board of directors of a company, school

• Informal group (Groups that arise spontaneously and in which the members are involved in the organization - their Goals are not regulated by common standards)

Example: circle of friends, family, club

• Open group (characterized by high variability and indeterminate size)

Example: open self-help group

• Closed group (Groups with a fixed and stable number of members)

Example: closed therapy group

• Membership or reference group (members with the same goals and values, but without the necessary identification as a group)

Example: Religious community, gym membership

Identification as a group - 3 key facts for strong identification

1. Basic assumption as a human being

Before we can even talk about the power of the group or a group-like situation, it helps to recognize that all the people in the group in question are living beings. The group is now called living beings. Each individual in this group will probably also feel that they belong to the human group - they have dignity and need to breathe. People are either motivated "away from" or "towards". If this fact is recognized at the beginning of a group-like setting, a basic prerequisite for a sense of community is created that exists regardless of ethnic origin or other supposed differences. You can also read our article on the topic Systemic coaching.

2. Recognition of common values, standards and goals

The second step is to define concrete shared values, norms and goals for the group. The more agreement there is here, the stronger and more stable the group can develop.

3. Experiencing the meaningfulness and added value of the group

However, the standards, values and goals are not enough to achieve a high level of group identification. Each individual should know what is actually in it for them and everyone else. What added value do I get from it, what added value does the group get? The positive emotions that arise from many group dynamics are particularly worth mentioning here. The limited time that people invest in this group should be fun for them, support them in their goals and, in the best case, give them support and security even in difficult phases.

The power of the group - how a group brings happiness and reduces stress?

The fact that and how social support has a positive effect seems very obvious. The idea is this: The more people define themselves as members of a social group, the more they should give, receive and benefit from social support.

Semmer et al. (2008) emphasize that social support only has positive effects if it is provided with an appreciative attitude. The type of identification is therefore a decisive indicator of whether support is accepted positively or whether it is met with mistrust. Accordingly, a well-intentioned action by the boss is more likely to be accepted as something good by his employees if the team members regard the boss as an equal employee. If there is a strong hierarchical divide, it is more likely that the boss who gives with a clear conscience will be seen as suspicious, distrustful or cunning.

Research therefore shows that the question of whether social support is always good is not at all common. It depends on how the social support is interpreted by the people receiving it.

To get to the point, the theory that has now been verified by numerous scientific studies is that a strong identification with the group (be it the company, the team, the circle of friends or the family) helps to reduce stress and deal better with stress because there is more support in a group with a strong shared identity, the support is more likely to be accepted and therefore everyone benefits more from the support (cf. van Dick & Haslam, 2012).

Concrete assumptions of this theory to increase the power of the group are:

1. Shared social identity helps people to cope better with stress because the burdens are evaluated more positively through identification.
2. It helps you to deal with stress better because you feel more supported and therefore more confident that you can cope with the strain.
3. A shared identity not only strengthens the individual feeling of being able to cope with the stresses themselves, but also the self-efficacy of the entire group (example: basketball team in an important and resource-challenging game, with a high level of group identification and the attitude: "We can do it!")

Effects of the power of the group in the world of work with "hotdesking" and working from home

Ritual acts have always strengthened the identification of a group. This can be the joint "team huddle" - which originates from American football and is firmly established in many well-known companies such as Nike - for an energetic start to the working day or simply the joint coffee break at 10:30 am.

However, the flexible, demand-driven relocation of work to the office, also known as "hotdesking", and the large number of Home office These rituals are often hardly practiced or not practiced at all by working people. This can of course have a strong effect on the "sense of unity" and therefore on employee motivation. We will probably only be able to show exactly how this manifests itself in the future. Nevertheless, there are ways of creating virtual rituals in order to achieve a high level of identification within the group. Mediations and Coaching are two of them.

Corona and groups - How can we identify ourselves as groups, both professionally and privately, despite all the measures?

Small talk is a kind of ritual that is practiced all over the world. Talking about non-work matters lightens the mood. At the same time, we learn that we are all human beings with feelings and similar challenges. Conscious and regular small talk along the lines of: "Hey colleague! How are you? What's on your mind at the moment?" can reduce stress and create a touch of happiness that comes from genuine appreciation. The advantage of this is that it can also be done virtually.

It is an uncomplicated and natural way of Approach of communication that works wonders on a walk, the nation's current hobby, or even with complete strangers while shopping.

Conclusion: The more each individual can open up to their environment, the stronger their identification with the respective group will be. The connection and power of the group can only be felt if it is lived!

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