A Multifaceted Concept of Group Maturity and Its Measurement and Relationship to Group Performance

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate two psychological group characteristics as indicators of the level of group development. These two characteristics, congruence of group goals and individual goals and congruence of attitudes, were studied in their relationship to performance and group cohesion. Participants were 53 firefighters in a small city in the Southeastern United States who were members of 20 groups of 2 to 4 members each. The hypothesis that linked agreement on group goals with congruence of attitudes was supported. Agreement on group goals was found to be a necessary but not a sufficient condition for a high congruence between group goals and individual goals. There was also supportfor two of three hypotheses about the relationships between various indicators of group maturity and group performance. The study suggested that instead of trying to salvage the concept of cohesion, we should abandon it. In its place, we should construct more than one conceptually clear variable that describes social groups. Furthermore, the overall level of group maturity can only be useful if we know which specific variables contributed to it.