Team communication breakdown in the Apollo 13 re-entry scene

Film Critique (Apollo 13)

The scene concerns the re-entry point of Apollo 13. The team appears to experience some difficulty at the re-entry position, and are attempting to resolve these by talking about it. The concepts of Task and Maintenance Functions, Work Team Structure and Work Team Process, as well as Dysfunctional Conflict can be applied to the conversation among the team members in the scene.

Task Functions refer to the practical activities to complete the work at hand, while Maintenance refers to the member satisfaction of team members by promoting a sense of team spirit. The Functions aspect also relates closely to the Work Team Structure, in that this refers to practical tasks for the team, while Team Process refers to building functional relationships. In the film, the problems experienced in the Task and Team Structure functions lead to a breakdown in the Maintenance and Work Team Process functions. There is a basic lack of trust among team members to accomplish their assigned tasks correctly, as well as in the home base to help them with this. This lack of trust further leads to dysfunctional conflict.

Dysfunctional conflict refers to a destructive and unhealthy disagreement among people. In a team, this could lead to a removal of focus from the task at hand. This occurs in the scene, where all the members of the team allow their emotion of fear to control their behavior. Rather than seeking solutions, they appear to look for scapegoats upon whom to blame their situation. The scene ends with the potential to resolve the conflict.