Considering Kidder

Our given scenario:
A member of the executive board of your fraternity, sorority, or student organization does not have the minimum GPA to continue serving on the executive board, per the written and codified bylaws of the organization. This fact is brought to the attention of the entire board, which, as a group, must decide whether this executive member should be able to remain on the executive board. It is close to the end of the executive board members’ terms. What do you do?

Our breakdown relating this to Kidder's Framework:
We said that this is Justice vs. Mercy because the board could let this person stay, but they have the power to say that they can't stay. Some may even have a personal connection with this person, but at the same time that isn't fair to all the people that weren't able to get onto the executive board because they didn't have the GPA. This is what also makes this a Truth vs. Loyalty scenario. This could be considered Short-Term vs. Long-Term because the board could be thinking that they could keep him for this short time, but how will it look on that group in the future? Or if they let this person go now and they have a really important position what will happen to that position in the long run? And lastly, this is also a Individual vs. Community issue because it's this one person against the rest of the committee.

We said that this is mainly going to be thought about on the lines of Rule-Based Thinking because the committee needs to make a decision about weather or not to kick said person out because they don't have the required GPA which is a set type of "law" for the committee. Some members may have and issue with trying not to focus on Care-Based Thinking because they may have a personal connection with the person and they may not want this person to end up not liking them. This member may not want to ruin his friendship with the other person and may consider giving him a second chance because he's almost done anyways and they may need him for the organization. People who run along the lines of Ends-Based Thinking may be thinking about the overall performance without this person, the impact this may have on how the group will look if they don't kick him off, and if they can find someone intelligent enough to replace this person, or if maybe they could find someone even more intelligent.

What would you do?

Group Dynamics - Avengers Initiative

Characters:
Tony Stark/Iron Man (Information seeker/Opinion Giver)
Steve Rodgers/Captain America (Opinion Giver/Summarizer)
Bruce Banner/ The Hulk (Information seeker/Clarifier)
Thor (Mediator)
Natasha Romanov/Black Widow (Follower)
Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Follower)
Nick Fury (Encourager/Summarizer) 

 

 

The Avengers is a group of heroes, and with that comes varying leadership styles, personalities, and ways of executing their work. Tony Stark is both an information seeker and an opinion giver. He is smart, always trying to gather more details about the situation. That being said, he constantly gives his opinion, serving as one of the biggest personalities in the room at all times. His voice and viewpoint are always heard. Steve Rodgers, better known as Captain America, is a summarizer, always wanting to make sure everyone is on the same page. Additionally, Captain is an opinion giver who wants to ensure that everyone else knows all of the facts and details before proceeding. He is a reasonable person to have in the group. Bruce Banner/The Hulk is the information seeker and clarifier. A doctor by nature, the Hulk is always gathering information so he can calculate a plan of action. His natural intelligence also makes him a clarifier, elaborating on the plan of action for everyone to understand. 

Thor is the mediator of the group, attempting to create harmony among all of the differing views. Despite having a strong personality, within The Avengers he takes on a mediation role in order to straighten out the issues. Nick Fury, the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., is the encourager and summarizer among his team. As the man who assembled the group, Fury is responsible for welcoming and ensuring the

success of everyone. Finally, both Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Clint Barton/Hawkeye are the sole followers of the group. Although they each bring a unique personality and skillset to the group, they are both active participants in the dynamic of The Avengers. Black Widow is strong-willed as the lone female of the group, but she has conviction and will always follow through. 

The forming of The Avengers begins over a period of time in which the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. assemble the group. To “bring together a group of remarkable people and see if they can become more” was the vision of Nick Fury, who led the formation. Along with Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, Fury assembles the heroes from across the globe. The members, including Tony Stark/Iron Man, Steve Rodgers/Captain America, Thor, Bruce Banner/Hulk, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, Clint Barton/Hawkeye, and Nick Fury all come together under S.H.I.E.L.D.’s “Avengers Initiative.” 

 The initial conflict and storming of the members of the group is evident due to the dominant personalities of each Avenger. Most prominently, we see Tony Stark clashing with Captain America. They both seek the greater good, but have different ideas of how to reach their goals. This conflict is followed by Stark butting heads with Thor, also due to their varying opinions. As the entire group is formed, storming occurs on a normal basis. Each member of The Avengers is used to playing by their own rules, so working together as a team is a huge adjustment. 

 After the shocking and devastating loss of Agent Coulson, the members of The Avengers begin norming as a team. The death of their friend is the catalyst for normalizing them together. After working through their issues, they understand the greater purpose for their team to work together. The group’s personality is defined by the varying members’ headstrong qualities. United with the drive to succeed, The Avengers buckle down and work together as a unit. 

The Avengers clearly begin performing as a team when the Battle of New York breaks out. The group’s purpose is to answer their call to action: fight to save the world. This lofty goal can be worked towards once the Chitauri invades New York. They effectively utilize their specialized skills in a united front, working against the clock to save New York. Building upon their established foundation of forming, storming, and norming, the group works flawlessly together towards achieving their goal. 

Finally, the adjourning occurs once their mission is complete. The Avengers, despite not knowing how long their group would be together for, are proud of their accomplishments together. The end of their job doesn’t mean the end of the group, as they understand that they may need to unite again if they are needed.