PSY 263

[Audio] Good day. I will be sharing with you my analysis of the development of T-club, a fitness club, using Tuckman's model of group development. The development of a group, like many other social relationships, involves many key processes that are crucial in its formation and its outcome (Othman et al., 2023). For this output, I will be analysing and documenting the formation of a fitness club I belong in along with Jane, who is a fellow member of this fitness club. For confidentiality and privacy purposes, I will be using Jane as a pseudonym for my fellow fitness club member..

[Audio] To start, I will briefly talk about Tuckman's model of group development. This model was created by Bruce Tuckman in 1965 which featured 5 stages that describes a group's development. In this model, Tuckman identified the stages in a group's formation with a specific focus on the interpersonal relationship of the members and the activities that their group will perform in accordance to their key goals and objectives. It involves 5 key stages namely: Forming Storming Norming Performing Adjourning I will define each stage as we go over how the T-club developed their group and underwent these 5 stages..

[Audio] Before we proceed with the 5 stages, I will briefly share with you my fitness club. My fitness club is called T-club. T stands for Toned and Trimmed. Personally, I joined the club because I wanted to have a support group whom I can workout with. I find it easier to maintain a regular workout schedule if I have someone who is also working towards the same goal. The club initially started as an invite I saw on Facebook. The invite was posted in a Facebook group comprised of the members of our locale. It sparked my interest and made me want to at least try and attend their first meetup. Its key characteristics are: Composed of 10 individuals living in close proximity with each other. Ages 25 to 36. Share the same goal: to be healthy and fit. The club is an invite-only club which means that an individual could only be a member via invitation of someone within the group. The T-club is divided into 3 subgroups. Each subgroup focuses on a physical activity and has their own specific schedule. More on this will be discussed in the following slides. In sum, T-club is an interest club which focuses on fitness and health. The members motivate and encourage each other to sustain a regular workout schedule alongside eating healthy..

[Audio] Tuckman defined forming as the stage where the individuals are assessing their interpersonal relationships with the other group members and their position with respect to their group activity or key objective (Purwanto et al., 2018). Understandably, the development of our group also started with a little awkwardness and shyness. Everyone was observing the physique of one another as they try to compare their own fitness journey with other people. While each and everyone was at a different point in their fitness path, everyone shared the same identity of wanting to be healthier and fitter. As seen in the word cloud, the prominent words or quotes are cautious and highly conscious of one self. Alongside it are "trying to mingle" and "following the crowd" which can be viewed as an attempt to affiliate with the other members. In all honesty, I was cautious of how I behaved around people when we held our first gathering. One of the key observations Jane and I had was that people mainly talked about the reason why they went to the gathering. Hence, the common topic everyone talked about was their fitness journey..

[Audio] For Stage 2, it is primarily characterized by intragroup conflict as the members share their thoughts which might be met by opposing ideas (Purwanto et al., 2018). In the formation of any team, conflict will always be present in its development and is inevitable especially if the team aims to realize its goals (Vaida & Serban, 2021). Aside from the areas of conflict identified below, the group also had to decide on the name of the group. This first area of conflict is with regards to the leadership position and who gets to decide who presides as the group's leader. A specific member proclaimed themselves as the leader by virtue of their current health status which is deemed as ideal. On the other hand, person B wanted to have a voting process so that everyone get's to choose their preferred leader..

[Audio] The second area of conflict concerns the schedule of regular meetings or workout. Some members prefer a flexible schedule whereas the others prefer having meetings once a week. The third area of conflict is with regards to the differing fitness priorities of the members. Some members prefer yoga and meditation while the others want to focus on their weight training. Jane and I actually talked about how we initially argued about our differing choices in terms of our fitness goals. We ended up in different groups..

[Audio] As the group was able to make compromises during their conflict-ridden "Storming" stage, they now have a better grasp of their roles and responsibilities as well as their fitness protocol. In Stage 3 called Norming, this is where the group is starting to gain momentum as they become more cohesive and cooperative with each other The members of the group demonstrate a shared understanding of their key objectives and are compliant with the rules they have established (Rick et al., 2022). Seen below is the process of norming as T-club grouped people according to their preferred physical activity. They reached a consensus and identified the following groups. Group A will focus on Pilates and Yoga Group B will focus on weightlifting Group C will focus on cardiovascular exercises (running, cycling, swimming).

[Audio] 1.7.2013 For this one, the members finalized the gym where they will regularly meet..

[Audio] Lastly, the members of each respective group also determined their respective schedule. The final schedule is as follows: Group A will meet Friday, Saturday, Sunday Group B will Tuesday, Thursday Group C will meet every Saturday and Sunday.

[Audio] 1.7.2013 At this stage of the group development, the members are already complying with the rules and protocols they have established. They are performing their regular workouts and have been more open with each other. Performing is the stage wherein the members are enacting the roles that they decided on with respect to the group's activities (Purwanto et al., 2018). This stage is also characterized by a highly functioning group where members are cooperative with each other (Wang et al., 2019). The table below illustrates the activities that the T-club performs on a regular basis. Included in this section is decision-making and this is primarily enacted by the T-club through their evaluation of their current activities. They identify their achievements as well as points of improvement and possible solutions for these issues. Taken for example, the attendance of the T-club members have been consistent. However, some would arrive late and others would leave early. After discussions with the members, they decided to allow a flexible schedule..

[Audio] After reaching certain milestones in their fitness journey, some members no longer participated in the regular workout schedules. Despite this, the dwindling attendance and participation has led to the stronger bond of the other members who decided to stay in the fitness club. The remaining members were still consistent with their schedules, but some are already expressing that they want to pursue other physical activities or that they have life milestones that they want to focus on. The group then decided to hold its last meeting where we decided collectively that the time has come to disband the club and move forward with their own individual fitness journeys. The primary reason that any group disbands is because they have already reached their intended goals (Treethong et al., 2021). As seen in the first quote, it was Jane who mentioned that she felt sad about the disbandment of T-club. The last two quotes came from me. After a few months, a lot of things happened and I personally wanted to pursue other things. However, I was thankful that I became a part of a T-club because it helped me realize that I can sustain a workout schedule and make healthier lifestyle choices..

[Audio] Thank you.. Thank you!.