Steiner Task Mapping Question Megathread

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Use this thread to ask questions about task mapping related to Steiner (1966, 1972).

To start, here is an introduction to this model by Larson (2010):

Steiner pre- sented his model first in a short journal article (1966), then in a highly influential book-length monograph (1972). In these two works, Steiner sketched a deceptively simple framework that set the direction and tone for a generation of subsequent small-group researchers. According to this model, the actual productivity of a group is a direct function of its potential productivity minus any losses that result due to faulty group process, or:

Actual Productivity = Potential Productivity − Process Loss.

According to Steiner (1966, 1972), potential productivity is a joint func- tion of task demands and member resources. Task demands include all the requirements imposed by the task itself and by the rules under which that task must be performed. Task demands specify not only the resources that members must bring to bear in order to complete their assignment (i.e., the knowledge, skills, abilities, and tools they must pos- sess), but also how those resources must be applied in order to achieve the best outcome possible (cf. Roby & Lanzetta, 1958). Thus, the members of a bicycle racing team must all possess balance and stamina. Further, if they expect to draft effectively, they also must be able to judge accu- rately the waxing and waning of each others’ strength and energy lev- els so they can rotate the lead at precisely the moment it will do the most good. In like fashion, the task of safely landing a large commer- cial airliner in adverse weather conditions demands that the crew be able to interpret their flight instruments correctly, follow hard-to-hear verbal instructions over a crackling radio, and execute a sequence of coordinated actions in just the right order and at just the right time. Task demands, in other words, specify the behaviors (including their timing, intensity, and duration) that must be enacted in order for the group to perform optimally, as well as the personal characteristics of the group members (physical, mental, and otherwise) that are needed to enact them. When fully documented, task demands provide a complete recipe for success.

The other determinant of potential productivity in Steiner’s (1966, 1972) model is member resources. Whereas task demands specify the knowl- edge, skills, abilities, and tools that any group must possess in order to be maximally effective at that task, member resources are the knowledge, skills, abilities, and tools that a particular group actually does possess. Included here is knowledge of the appropriate timing, intensity, and dura- tion of task-relevant actions. Such information might be stored as explicit procedural knowledge about the task—knowledge that can be articulated verbally—or as implicit knowledge that is part and parcel of the members’ repertoire of skills and abilities. Also captured in the member resources variable is the way in which task-relevant knowledge, skills, abilities, and tools are distributed across members. In group decision-making situa- tions, for example, it is apt to make a difference whether every member possesses a critical piece of decision-relevant information prior to discuss- ing the issue and making a decision, as opposed to that information being possessed by one (or just a few) group members beforehand. At the very least, the latter scenario requires that the member holding the information mention it during discussion. If it is not mentioned, the rest of the group will be unable to take this information into account as they consider the decision. The same is not true for information that is held by every mem- ber prior to discussion. Here, it is possible for the information to be taken into account by all members even if it is not openly discussed (e.g., Gigone & Hastie, 1993, 1997a).

A group’s potential performance—the highest level of productivity it can hope to achieve—depends on the degree to which its members’ resources match the resources demanded by the task. If the members possess all the resources demanded by the task, and those resources are appropriately distributed among them, then they have the poten- tial to perform maximally well. However, if they are deficient in one or more resources, or if those resources are distributed inappropriately, then their potential will be less than maximal. Just how much less will depend on both the degree and criticality of the resource deficiency. Minor deficiencies imply a potential that is only slightly below the max- imum, whereas more serious deficiencies imply a potential that is far worse. Thus, according to this model, one reason why performance var- ies across groups is that groups differ in the resources they bring to the task. Other things being equal, two groups attempting the same task will perform differently to the extent they command different amounts of the required resources.

The final variable in Steiner’s (1966, 1972) model is process loss, which is defined as a reduction in performance that is attributable to faulty or deficient group interaction. Group interaction refers to the actual behav- iors enacted by the group members while engaging in the task. For example, it refers to the cyclists peddling at breakneck speed, following pace, shouting for a new leader, and trading positions. It also refers to the flight crew working methodically through its pre-landing checklist, reconfirming flight system settings after a sudden burst of turbulence, and discussing the likely content of a garbled air traffic control radio transmission. Thus, just as Steiner’s model distinguishes between mem- ber resources demanded by the task and those actually possessed by the group, it also distinguishes between behaviors demanded by the task and those actually enacted by the group. If there is an exact one-to-one correspondence between the two, the group will perform to its capacity. Oftentimes, however, their behavior will deviate from what is required for optimum performance. This may be due in part to a lack of skill or ability (resources), which, as described above, constrains their potential performance. But a group’s behavior will frequently depart from what is demanded simply because the members do not effectively apply the task-relevant resources that they do possess. This is the root of process loss, and it will drive their actual performance downward, below their resource-adjusted potential. This may come about, for example, as the result of poor coordination or low task motivation. The members of a group might enact the right behaviors but at the wrong time or in the wrong sequence. Alternatively, they might choose behaviors that are easier to enact but less effective. Or they may fail to take any action at all for a period of time, perhaps missing important opportunities for a bet- ter outcome simply because they are temporarily paralyzed by conflict- ing opinions about what to do next. And there are innumerable patently counter-productive behaviors that, if enacted, might interfere with the group’s performance. These range from otherwise benign distractions, both private (e.g., worries and daydreams) and public (horseplay), to manifestly hostile actions born of frustration and intragroup tension that are meant specifically to harm the group’s performance. However it arises, process loss detracts from the group’s performance, and, accord- ing to Steiner’s model, constitutes the second reason why task accom- plishment varies across groups. Just as groups differ in the resources they bring to a task, they also differ in the extent to which they effec- tively utilize those resources.

Finally, here is a link to Steiner's Original 1966 Paper [NOTE: need UPenn Login.] and Steiner's 1972 Book [Note: the book link is from the Internet Archive, where you'll have to make a free account. Then you can 'borrow' the book for free.]

PDF copy of paper:
Steiner-1966.pdf

Useful references:
Steiner, I. D. (1966). Models for inferring relationships between group size and potential group productivity. Behavioral Science, 11, 273–283.
Steiner, I. D. (1972). Group process and productivity. New York: Academic Press. Steiner, I. D. (1974). Whatever happened to the group in social psychology? Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 10, 94–108.
Steiner, I. D. (1986). Paradigms and groups. Advances in experimental social psychology, 19, 251–289.