The Development of the Group

Today in religious leadership we listed the four steps that generally occur when a group is created:

1. Forming
   A group is created. This birth can occur in numerous ways. A Task Force can be appointed by the President of a University. A group of like minded individuals can decide that they want to create an organization to formalize their purpose of existing. A new person or persons can enter into an organization, thus recreating a new, hybrid group.
   
   The vision and the values of the group are created and understood.
2. Storming
   This is the tumultuous period of group formation. This is the time when being nice to each other takes a lower precedence than the need to articulate ones own concerns and beliefs. Conflicts inevitably ensue, because people’s beliefs and concerns rarely overlap completely.
   This is the first half of the relational aspects of the group.
3. Norming
   The norming stage solidifies the process of the group. After the storming stage, the group emerges with the understanding of who is going to be listened to and what role each individual is cast as in the process. The second half of the relational process occurs here.
4. Performing
   The group does the work that it needs, wants, and hopes to do. This is the task focused portion of the group process.
   

This is not a linear progression, but a cycle. The group will often repeat this cycle as new people join, tasks are accomplished, and new dreams are created.

So I remind myself that storming is normal. Yet I also realize that a leader needs to recognize that storming is part of this cycle in order to help move the group into the healthy relational aspects of the group. While norming eventually happens by default, it does not necessarily mean that the group that emerges from the storm is a healthy one. Racism, sexism, heterosexism, and classism are default states of being for Americans (and indeed most societies). Unless a leader actively tries to incorporate the diverse viewpoints in the storming stage, the norming will default to the way that we’ve always done things. Norming doesn’t mean the alleviation of hurt, so it takes a leader has strong relational skills the storming process can be negotiated with a minimum of lasting resentments.