The group observation was diffecult to plan and visualize but was simple in its execution and in the paper. It was useful in many ways. One thing that helped me with the project was that I was taking a few othe rcomm courses during the time. I used a lot of what I was learing in my other classes in my observation and paper. A lot of what I watched had more to do with comm theory that with what we were learing in our book for this class. When It got closer to researching time I found that many of the same authors of the theories I saw were in our book too.
I liked watching another group that was so much like the group I work in. It was fun to see how they could improve and what I could take back to my group for advancement. I think that the biggest struggle was that teh book talked alot about thing that I think happen in more formal groups and less about what can be applies to less formal companies and professional environments that are more laid back. IN a way I think that watching the group made me realize that groups that are less formal can be more prodeuctive they take on the systems of more formal groups and larger organizations. I did see some places however that things could have been more humble and considerate of the "little" people. In the end I used the book to refer to what the group should have been doing in stead of what was happening.
I did like the assingment. It was eye opening to get to write about support for your observations.
Hey Blanch! I thoroughly agree with you on this. Watching the group communicate brought all the concepts and theories from the book alive. I also think that the group performs great when they are given free space to exchange ideas and thoughts in comparison to an organized strict setup. The informal setup boosts raw and creative talent, which dares to do things differently. For example: Steve Jobs thought about Apple Computers with his friends in a casual meeting held in his garage. I think small group communication has an added advantage over big groups because everyone knows each other closely, so working out differences and focusing on a common goal is easier.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the group observation project as well since we get to see the lively emotions and critical decisions of the group's efforts playing out live in front of us during our visits. Personally I feel the word limit was a bit too high seeing as how we were only to attend 2-3 meetings only, I felt 2-3 meetings was a bit too little of a source to be stretched out and used for a 2500 word paper. But anyways I also feel the project was a good way to prevent group mistakes seeing as how you may have an opinion on what a good group should and shouldn't do. Good Post!
ReplyDeleteHi Midwest Digress,
ReplyDeleteYou make a good point when you say that the group observation project was difficult to plan and visualize but simple in its execution. At first I struggled with choosing a group to observe but once I did so and conducted my observations, the rest of the process was fairly easy. I too felt that the other comm classes I am taking helped me with the assignment, particularly my comm 156i course which consisted of a semester long research project that also used observations. I ended up choosing to observe my old softball team for the assignment which was very interesting as it forced me to view the group from an outside perspective which is something I hadn’t done prior.