Group Motivation and Evaluation Group Motivation Inventory

I work very hard in my group.

I work harder in this group than I do in most other groups.

Other members work very hard in this group.2

I am willing to spend extra time on group projects.

I try to attend all group meetings.4

Other members regularly attend group meetings.

I often lose track of time when I'm working in this group.

Group members don't seem to mind working long hours on our project.2

When I am working with this group, I am focused on our work.

10.I look forward to working with the members of my group.2

I enjoy working with group members.

Group members enjoy working with one another.3

I am doing an excellent job in my group.

I am doing better work in this group than I have done in other groups.4

The other members are making excellent contributions to this group.2

I am willing to do whatever this group needs in order to achieve our goal.

I trust the members of my group.2

18. The other group members are willing to take on extra work.1

19. I am proud of the work my group is doing.3

20. I understand the importance of our group's work. 4

21. Everyone is committed to successfully achieving our goal.2

22. I am proud of the contributions I have made to this group.5

23. This group appreciates my work.4

24. I am proud to be a member of this group.2

25.This group really works well together.2

Total Score: 76, moderate motivation

Motivation Evaluation

The group work evaluated here consisted of an assignment that was very difficult The assignment itself was very complex, and given with little direction and little support. As a group, we were expected to work largely under our own direction....

While this can be effective, studies have show collaborative work is best carried out when done with input and advice from outside sources ( Lei, Kuestermeyer & Westmeyer 2010). In addition, our group was assigned at random. Because of this, we had no close social ties to one another, and no need to produce our best work through social pressures (Lei et al. 2010). Most of the group members were willing to put in the basic work necessary, however two individuals had no interest in being involved in the group. They simply did not do the work they were assigned, and instead allowed themselves to benefit from the work done by the other group members. This made the group as a whole suffer, since the work was broken down into parts. The group attempted to give each person an uninteresting task paired with an interesting one, however for the non-performing members even the interesting tasks did not engage them.
While working with this group, one individual stood out in that he was most vocal and took the most dramatic leadership role. This may have been an example of Nihalani, Wilson, Thomas and Robinson "superstar effect" (2010) wherein one individual performs at a significantly higher level than the other individuals in the group, which tends to result in lower overall performance for the group. The group member who worked the hardest was also the highest performing student in the class. Because he was such a good student, several other members of the group, myself included, felt as though he dominated the conversation and the work that we were doing. Our group was made up of a variety of different types of individuals, and mixed genders, which should have boosted our performance (Lei et al. 2010). However the difference in the ability level of the group members counteracted that. As a result, our group performed adequately, neither well nor poorly.

This exercise has emphasized to me the importance of working in a group at approximately the same ability and knowledge level as…