 If you come from a family of any size at all, then you can probably relate to the idea that everybody in that family It kind of has a role right if you're the oldest child Maybe you're the responsible one right if you're the youngest Maybe you're the slacker somewhere between you're the one with the temper the one who's good at math or whatever it is Everybody in that family kind of has a role even as you grow up and maybe grow out of that personality type You still in that family probably still have that role That's a discussion for another time really but but the same thing Is true that the same thing that is true in families really is true in groups as well We have different types of group roles different functions and and personality types and Things that people do in groups different roles that people play in these groups and so it's important that we kind of identify what these are and Discuss them and how we can best use those to the benefit of the group as opposed to To the detriment of that group. So just real quickly to define group roles What do we mean by that? Roles are simply the expected behaviors or functions of group members the way that we expect them to behave not necessarily in the explicit rules These aren't necessarily, you know, you're you're assigned to do this thing But these are more again personality types or functions that in the inner workings of the group that are more unwritten behaviors and rules of that group that that people perform So this will make a much more sense as we get into these things But a few things I want to talk about before we get into actual roles the rules of the rules some things that we need to understand about roles in general First of all these roles can be formal or informal So as I just mentioned, they don't have to be things that are explicitly outlined Sometimes you do you identify somebody as the leader and say you are the person responsible for keeping us accountable in these Areas and in these ways and for following these tasks But much more often to we see Informal roles within a group things that people just kind of take on Somebody's the group therapist or somebody's group class clown or whatever, you know, those things are more informal roles We're not specifically identified by the group, but they still can perform a very important function So we need to identify those as equally important as the formal rules These roles can be played by more than one person. Maybe it's a more than one person at the same time Maybe those things change over time, but but it can be played by more than one person These roles can so you can have more than one person in each of these things It just depends on the the people in your group and the group needs and all those types of things It's also important to note that one person can fulfill multiple roles. You're not just limited to well No, I'm I'm the task leader So I can't be the social emotional leader as well And I can't be the the whatever else because because this is my role You can have more than one role especially in smaller groups You're gonna have people that fulfill more than one role You're gonna need to because there's not enough to go around So one person can fulfill multiple roles more than one person can fulfill a single role It just kind of depends on the makeup of the group and the people in that group and again the needs of that group as they develop and Then I note that roles can change over time somebody who does Who fulfills this role at this time may not always fulfill that role It could be handed off to another person as that person that first person takes on different roles And needs to give up some of those other things or you know There's a lot of reasons that these things change especially groups that are around for longer periods of time if it's a real short term You know group or team you're not gonna see as much of this But groups that are kind of standing groups and exist for a long period of time You're gonna see roles change over time as people change over time as the group needs change over time So we just need to understand that these roles can change over time then as well Okay, so let's get into the different types of roles that we see in these groups and and just in general Here there are three categories of roles that we see generally and then we're gonna get into the specific roles within each of these But the first are what we call task roles task roles have to do with what the group is doing what they're actually functional What functionally doing what are they they're they're completing a task or achieving its purpose Those all have to do with task roles task roles feed into that the ability of the group to achieve its purpose and and And complete their goals We also see what we call maintenance rules which it has to do with how group members and get along Can the group maintain social cohesion and fulfill the interpersonal needs of the group members so that the other things can be Accomplished those are important things there. They're you know, they may seem like well That's not you know, the group is here to do something. Well, that's true but there are also people involved so they're these maintenance rules that we have to To fulfill as well in order to get people to do their best and to be able to perform at their top Abilities so we have maintenance rules so task and maintenance roles I can all function toward helping the group accomplish what they're doing in some way or another But then we also see different kinds of negative roles which are disruptive behaviors that detract from effective group functions So negative roles as you might assume are disruptive. They're things that that really keep a group from performing to the best of its ability So these are the three categories of roles that we see Let's let's dig a little deeper into each of these and identify some specific types of roles within each of these categories So when the task roles we see a few different things happening I'm the first one that we can see is the expediter the expediter keeps things moving forward without Pushing or too much or losing sight of the disparate details the different details of things that are happening So it's a lot happening in a group, right? So we need to be able to the expediter needs to be able to keep Keep tabs on all these things if you're familiar with the restaurant business at all You know that an expediter in a restaurant is critically important There's a person who's calling out the orders and maybe at different times to make sure the food comes out hot because some things take Longer than others to prepare and some things are cold and so forth So they're they're distributing the work in such a way then when things are prepared They're making sure that everything is on the is on that plate in that order properly and and so they have a lot of Responsibility they're the one keeping tabs on all of these different things while everybody else is focused on their specific Job in in a group the expediter does much the same thing They're keeping tabs on all these different details that kind of need to happen at the same time But may have different deadlines and things the expediter performs a very important role in the group by keeping Track of all that and managing those aspects of things. So again, they keep the group moving forward without really pushing too hard Pushing group members too hard or or losing sight of the different details that are happening Another kind of task role that we see an important one here is the information provider The information providers is someone who offers relevant knowledge from their area of expertise So they don't have to know everything they don't have to be Google right for the whole group But for their area, they need to be the person who can say yes This definitively is what you need to know about this topic or about this this detail or whatever it is This is the information provider somebody who can have that knowledge at their fingertips and really Provide it when things come up now when would that come up? That would be the information seeker right an information seeker and another important role is somebody who requests more information They request clarification or they request Elaboration on items that come up in the group. So there's somebody who's willing to say I'm not sure about this. Can we can we come back to this? Can we focus on this for a second and really? Help me understand this odds are as any teacher will tell you if somebody asks a question in class It's likely that five other people have the same question and just aren't willing to ask it In a group you really can't have that you have to have somebody speak up and say I'm not quite clear on this Can we can we explain this a little bit further? So can we get a little more detail on this can we elaborate on this that information seeker is an important role in the group? You need those folks So we have the information provider the information seeker kind of two sides of the same coin We also have the gatekeeper. This is the person who helps manage the flow of the conversation during your group meetings They they pull in quieter members and and they try to balance discussion time try and you know Again, if you have a quieter member try and balance that out and pull them in with somebody who's maybe a little more vocal and a little more Talkative and say okay We haven't heard from this person over here Can we can we do that and can we keep the conversation on track or can we can we divert into this important area? They manage that the flow of that conversation the gatekeeper of the the flow of the the meetings and the information I'm throughout the group. So that's an important role. Then you also have and this is not very not very Now not really kind of one of the the Roles regarded as some something that's more important, but truthfully Rook order the person who keeps track of the discussion and the decisions for future reference and they keep notes So they keep minutes. This is an absolutely critical role in a group You have to have a record of these things you have to have the ability to go back and say This is what we decided and this is what the discussion Can't how the discussion came about and this is where it went and this is what decision was made as a result Here's what the vote was and keep in track of who voted what if you need to so forth So you can go back and do this you may think you're gonna remember things forever You will not you need to have a record of these things so you can remember what you decided when you decided it and so forth So that recorders a really important task role And so all of these are things they keep the group moving forward they keep the group on task They help the group accomplish each of the things they need to in order to accomplish their their larger goal Those are easy kind of to see but let's take a look at some of the the more You know socialized roles and interpersonal roles when we look at the maintenance roles of a group What are we talking about here? And these are critically important as well So you have for example the social-emotional leader This is the person who's who's keeping touch with the whole group and and really kind of And not to be pejorative about this But they're kind of the the den mother of the group, right? They're the person who's really keeping in touch with how are people feeling about this who's upset? Who's who's feeling good about things? How can we help everybody feel good about what we're doing and just keeping tabs trying to keep you know The social-emotional aspect front and center because we know that again will affect task performance as well That may seem silly, but it does obviously it affects task performance If somebody's upset and they're feeling unheard or they're feeling whatever it is They're they're in their feelings about something that they're not going to be performing at their peak So that social-emotional leader needs to be somebody who can keep track of those things really identify those things and and work with Those folks to help them Feel better about things and feel like they're they are contributing and feel like they are part of this group You also have the supporter somebody who steps in and says hey, you're doing a great job I know this was a rough day, but you're doing wonderful and just want to thank if you it's an important thing for people to hear So we have the supporter again people in in any group are gonna have good days and bad days You need that supporter there to to help boost people in their down days and help encourage people as well And they're good days and help them recognize those things Then you have the tension releaser the tension releaser, which is different than a class clown I want to be clear about that attention releaser is somebody who can find those outlets in appropriate moments in Appropriate and sensitive ways for the group members. It's not calling anybody out It's not feeling you know dragging anybody down or anything like that The tension releaser is finding appropriate ways to Again help find some humor in something and bring joy to the group experience and and do so in a positive way for everybody Right where that rising tide lifts all shifts no ships Nobody's being brought down as a result of what the tension releaser is doing So that's really really important that we have those ability those moments of levity and laughter and and and enjoyment in these groups as well You have the harmonizer. This is the kind of the The peacemaker in the group right the harmonizer when you have some conflict come up, which is okay in a group You can have conflict We just want to make sure that we're having it in the right way and that harmonizer helps do that It helps manage those times of conflict in Appropriate ways in ways that are positive to the group and constructive for the group So you need that harmonizer to help kind of smooth over the rougher edges sometime Then you need the interpreter at times you sometimes need the interpreter now This is somebody who can help make sense maybe of what someone else is saying or help provide that You know understanding between group members if they're just not getting they're seeing eye to eye or whatever So, you know, I always think interpreter famously of the scene from stepbrothers if you're familiar with that movie where they go into a job interview and they both go into this interview together and so the One is trying to help interpret for the other that was not effective and not appropriate in that situation, right? But an appropriate interpreter will be able to help you know people find understanding in a group that will help Somebody who maybe doesn't understand the concept will help them understand that or maybe you somebody who's having trouble Expressing themselves expressing their idea the interpreter can help them find a way to express that clearly so that other people do understand it So sometimes we need that third party there We need that interpreter as a maintenance role as well to help people understand the other people in the group Interpersonally if they're just very different. So you need those kind of third-party interventions sometimes Okay, so task roles maintenance roles all very positive all help the group achieve its function, right? But as we talked about there's a third category where we have these negative roles which are things that detract from group performance and Detract the group from achieving what it's doing Right so and there are two kinds of negative role to two categories really have negative roles So let's take a look at each of those and then the the specific roles within that the first Type of negative roles what we call self-centered role a self-centered role which has to do with that person It's all about that person, right? So you see things like the central negative role Which this person is constantly Giving the thumbs down to everybody's idea, right? They because they're upset with the group or whatever they there ticked off that They're not the leader for whatever reason they just keep Downing everybody's idea and it's different than playing devil's advocate This is not just you know trying to make sure that we're all the best idea This is just somebody who just outright is just nope. Nope. That's about I know and I don't like that. Nope That sounds terrible. You don't want that. That's it's gonna demoralize the group in every way So that's not a great thing to have you have the monopolizer somebody who has to be the center of attention, right? So this can play out to be like the stage hog. I was thinking of the the Diversity seminar that they had on the office if you've seen the office diversity Seminar that they had which of course they were having because of Michael But he can't not be the center of attention, right? So he tries to take over the seminar from the person who's sent to conduct it and trudge and ends up Monopolizing everything ruining the entire seminar right which was hilarious in the context of the TV show But in real life is not so funny. You don't want a monopolizer or somebody who just Whether they know anything or not has to be the center of attention takes things over monopolizes the conversation monopolize You don't get anything done that way There's the self-confessor who treats a group like it's their private therapy session, you know and so they just kind of Derail everything because they treat it like a like a group therapy session and and that's not productive And then you have the compliment seeker somebody who's constantly fishing for compliments Even though it may have nothing to do with what the group is doing, but they're constantly looking for that Affirmation right that they want the and so this totally derails the function of the group as well And then finally the Joker which we mentioned before kind of but this is different from the tension release, right? the Joker does so in a negative way either because it it Pulls somebody else in the group down or it distracts from what the group is doing It's inappropriate in the timing or in the context or whatever it is So the Joker is not an appropriate form of tension release. You want to you want to Know the difference between those things. So you have the Joker sometimes these are all things that are designed to Pull attention to that individual to that specific person because they want to be the center of attention So you have these self-centered roles which all detract from group performance Other type of negative role that you have is the unproductive role where people are just not Not functioning. They're just not being productive, right? And there are a couple of different forms of this you have the blocker, which is somebody who just Basically sabotaging the group doing the opposite of what they can to help the group be productive Just doing whatever they can to kind of undermine what the group is doing you have that blocker, right? For whatever reason they don't want to be there. They don't like that. They're not the leader They don't like whatever they're just going to do whatever they came to kind of sabotage things You have the social loafer who sees this as an opportunity to To rely on the rest of the group to do their work for them They they feel like they can coast by and float on you know on the groups coattails They can grab on the go the coattails the group and ride the groups good performance and their good work Without really doing much themselves easy that a lot in groups at times You have the aggressor somebody who's just you know getting combative and and conflict-oriented and really Pushes others even if it has nothing to do with what the group is doing They're just constantly trying to get into a battle with somebody else in the group Or you have the doormat somebody who like Milton from office space if this is going back a little ways But if you've seen the movie office space Milton is the is the you know perpetual doormat people just kind of walk all over Forget he's there goes to this party where everybody's getting cake and they keep having a pass it a long pass a long pass long He ends up with no cake, right? He's the doormat He's always the person who's getting stepped on and walked over and and and in the end You know as we've seen that movie it can become combat of it and that Doesn't always it's not always as extreme as Milton's case where he burns down the building, right? But but we see this lot when people feel ignored then they just aren't productive They don't they don't feel like they need to do anything in the group. So they just kind of Drift off and become forgotten. So you don't want that either. These are all unproductive things if you have a group member there You want to make use of them, right? So what we know from you know the office and from your office and any group that you've been in is that one one of the Things we see in the office is that it really does take all these different types Hopefully not the negative ones we see the impact that that has but but we see that it does take all types for an Office to be successful. I mean they have different types of personalities in the office and and in any group really It's he needs somebody feeling as many of these tasks and maintenance roles as possible To to really have the group fulfill its full potential and to fill all of these lanes If you have questions about the types of group roles or anything else to do with small group communication Please feel free to email me. I'd love to hear from you there in the meantime I hope you have a renewed understanding of the different types of group roles and the important Important ways that they play into the function of small group performance