As I sit down to create my second post, no longer the virgin but not a veteran...I want to ponder this idea of boundaries. I thought this was a fascinating topic of discussion. As we have discussed in classroom discussions we all belong to multiple and many types of groups throughout the course of both our professional and personal lives. as I ponder the groups that I am a member of they include parent groups, management groups, family, friends, political, community, etc. I had never considered the versatility of my roles in these groups, nor did I consider that I am "in" as opposed to "out" of the group. After all, what defines the group? What about the boundaries of these groups? Who is the decider? Who gets to decide. This is particularly interesting to me at this point in my professional life. I have been part of the same management group for sixteen years with the same five people....recently because our unit grew we needed to hire two more managers and this has been a strange process. Although I am a senior member of this group, I suddenly felt a bit threatened, I felt the need to "claim" my space! I wanted the new managers to understand my history with the organization, as well as my contributions. Smith & Berg wrote with great clarity on this topic, "...for individuals and for the group as a whole, the joining process is a continuous one.(Smith & Berg 89) I would have never believed how just adding a new member to my group that I feel so confident in and supported by would unsettle by own belonging and identity within the group. I would have never contemplated this feeling without this course and dialogue.
So, now I am on some level rejoining my long time group. I will refine my ideas about my role in this group, will reflect once again on my history and future with this group....will I "up the ante" of my own game to maintain my status with the group? Would that be necessary? Group dynamics and identity...playing out together. I have a very interesting road ahead of me.
Amazing thought that the addition of one or two to a group can cause the entire group to review its identity, individuality, involvement, and boundaries. I too have experienced the shift of roles - it is very unsettling. Like beginning again, but perhaps even more stress provoking because you don't want to lose your past contributions & history! I also felt driven to think more on the belonging of individuals in groups. I considered the concept of familiarity in my first blog post. Thanks for the great coffee break time!
ReplyDeleteLinda, thanks for the additional thoughts, sounds as though many of us have experienced this shifting in our roles/group life.
ReplyDeleteTracy,
ReplyDeleteYour reflection is the perfect segue into Smith & Berg Chapter 6 - Paradoxes of Engaging. On page 111, they state that the paradox of disclosure can occur "when an established group goes through the process of bringing in new members, but it can also be seen in the behavior of the "old" members as well (sic)." Both old and new group members are disclosing and/or being reticent in order to jockey for positions in light of the newly out of balance dynamics.