Wheelan’s Integrated Model of Group Development (1994) describes
work groups progressing through five developmental stages – dependency and
inclusion, counter-dependency and fight, trust and structure, work, and
termination. Politeness, uncertainty and anxiety characterize the environment in
the first stage, dependency and inclusion. Most of the group’s energy is focused
on the social aspects group dynamics, rather than task completion, and group
members are tentative in their dealings with other group members. In the second
stage, counter-dependency and fight, social structure begins to form, group
procedures begin to become defined, and power struggles can sometimes occur.
Similar to the first stage, more energy is expended on social-emotional dynamics
rather than task orientation. Task orientation begins to emerge more clearly in the
third stage, trust and structure. Group members become less tentative and engage
in open conversation about goals, procedures, and roles. In the fourth stage,
work, the group focuses on accomplishing the task and is comfortable engaging in
open communication that drives toward task completion. The fifth stage,
termination, acknowledges the group’s closure. Similar to the first stage, anxiety
and conflict can emerge. According to Wheelan, addressing issues around
anxiety and conflict in this fifth stage can establish the groundwork for success in
subsequent work group experiences.