Editing Teamwork (section)

== Drawbacks and benefits ==
Utilizing teamwork is sometimes unnecessary and can lead to teams not reaching their performance peak. Some of those disadvantages include:<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title=Self-Directed Work Teams: The New American Challenge|last1=Osbrun|first1=Jack|last2=Moran|first2=Linda|last3=Musselwhite|first3=Ed|publisher=McGraw-Hill|year=1990|isbn=978-1556233418|location=Homewood, IL|pages=[https://archive.org/details/selfdirectedwor00orsb/page/1 1]–26|url=https://archive.org/details/selfdirectedwor00orsb|url-access=registration}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite book|title=The Wisdom of Teams: Creating the High-Performance Organization|last1=Katzenbach|first1=Jon|last2=Smith|first2=Douglas|publisher=Harvard Business School Press|year=2015|pages=1–26}}</ref>
* '''[[Social Loafing|Social loafing]]''': This phenomenon appears when a person working in a group puts in less effort than they can towards a task. If other members of the team are exerting comparatively more effort, this can create conflict and lead to lower levels of performance.
* '''Behavioral conflicts''' or '''ingrained individualism''': Employees at higher organizational levels have adapted to positions that require more individual initiative, and therefore have trouble engaging in collaborative work. This creates a more competitive environment with less communication and more conflict. This disadvantage is mostly seen in organizations that utilize teamwork in an extremely hierarchical environment.
* '''Individual tasks''': Certain tasks do not require teamwork, and are more appropriate for individual work. By assigning a team to complete an 'individual task', there can be high levels of conflict between members which can damage the team's dynamic and weaken their overall performance.
* '''[[Groupthink]]''': This is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people when, from a desire for conflict-avoidance, the desire for cohesiveness is greater than the desire for the best decisions. When a team experiences groupthink, alternative solutions will not be suggested due to fear of rejection or disagreement within the group. Group members will measure success based on the harmony of their group and not by the outcome of their decisions. One way to counteract groupthink is to have members of a group be from [[Diversity ideologies|diverse backgrounds]] and have different characteristics ([[gender]], [[Ageing|age]], [[nationality]]). Another way to avoid groupthink is to require each member to suggest different ideas.

Working in teams has also shown to be very beneficial. Some advantages of teamwork include:<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" />
* '''[[Problem solving]]''': A group of people can bring together various perspectives and combine views and opinions to rapidly and effectively solve an issue. Due to the team's culture, each team member has a responsibility to contribute equally and offer their unique perspective on a problem to arrive at the best possible solution.<ref name="Chin 2015">{{Cite journal|title = Examining teamwork and leadership in the fields of public administration, leadership, and management|last = Chin|first = Roger|year = 2015|journal = Team Performance Management|doi = 10.1108/TPM-07-2014-0037|volume=21|issue = 3/4|pages=199–216}}</ref> Teamwork can lead to better decisions, products, or services. The effectiveness of teamwork depends on the following six components of [[collaboration]] among team members: communication, coordination, balance of member contributions, mutual support, effort, and cohesion.<ref name=Hoegl2001>{{cite journal |title=Teamwork Quality and the Success of Innovative Projects: a Theoretical Concept and Empirical Evidence |last1=Hoegl|first1= Martin |first2=Hans Georg |last2=Gemuenden |journal=Organization Science |volume=12 |issue=4 |year=2001 |pages=435–449 |jstor=3085981 |doi=10.1287/orsc.12.4.435.10635}}</ref>
* '''Healthy competition''': This can motivate people and help the team excel.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}
* '''[[Interpersonal relationship|Relationship development]]''': A team that continues to work together will eventually develop an increased level of bonding. This can help members avoid unnecessary conflicts since they have become well acquainted with each other through teamwork.<ref name="Chin 2015" /> By building strong relationships between members, team members' satisfaction with their team increases, therefore improving both teamwork and performance.<ref name=LePine2008 />
* '''[[Social quality|Individual qualities]]''': Every team member can offer their unique knowledge and ability to help improve other team members. Through teamwork the sharing of these qualities allows team members to be more productive in the future.<ref name=":0" />
* '''[[Motivation]]''': Working collaboratively can lead to increased motivation levels within a team due to increasing accountability for individual performance. When groups are being compared, members tend to become more ambitious to perform better. Providing groups with a comparison standard increases their performance level thus encouraging members to work collaboratively.

Paulus describes additional benefits of teamwork:<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Paulus|first1=P.|title=Groups, teams, and creativity: the creative potential of idea-generating groups|journal=Applied Psychology|volume=49|issue=2|pages=237–262|doi=10.1111/1464-0597.00013|year=2000}}</ref>
* shared [[workload]]
* [[Opportunism|opportunity]] to achieve [[leadership]] and social [[Contenement|satisfaction]]
* sense of belonging to a successful team
* ability to accomplish more than if team members worked individually