Kevin is a junior at State University. He has taken a summer job in the biggest factory in his hometown. He was told to report to the warehouse supervisor the first day at work. The supervisor assigned him to a small group of workers who were responsible for loading and unloading the boxcars that supplied the materials and carried away the finished goods of the factory.After two weeks on the job, Kevin was amazed at how little the workers in his crew had accomplished. It seemed that they were forever standing around and talking or, in some cases, even going off to hide when there was work to be done. Kevin often found himself alone unloading a boxcar while the other members of the crew were off messing around someplace else.When Kevin complained to his coworkers, they made it very plain that if he did not like it, he could quit, but if he complained to the supervisor, he would be sorry.Although Kevin has been deliberately excluded from any of the crew’s activities, such as taking breaks together or having a Friday afternoon beer after work at the tavern across the street, yesterday he went up to one of the older members of the crew and said, “What is the problem with you guys, anyway? I am just trying to do my job. The money is good, and I really don’t care about this place. I will be leaving to go back to school in a few weeks, and I wish I could have gotten to know you all better, but frankly, I am glad that I’m not like you guys.” The older worker replied, “Son if you’d been here as long as I have, you would be just like us.”
Using some of the theories, explain the possible reasons for the group formation of this work crew. What types of groups exist in this case? Deduce the effect of informal group on overall organizational objectives. Also assess the position of Kevin wrt his other group members.