SPCH 1311 Lone Star College Small Group Movie Analysis Paper Small Group Movie Analysis Paper After completing this learning activity, you will be able to

SPCH 1311 Lone Star College Small Group Movie Analysis Paper Small Group Movie Analysis Paper
After completing this learning activity, you will be able to identify types of groups, analyze the characteristics of healthy groups, list the stages of group development, identify group roles, and analyze and apply the problem-solving process.
This is a big project worth a lot of points so give yourself the time to do a great job!
Choose a Movie

After reading Chapter 9 and 10 in your textbook, view one of the films below (click the links beside each title to see a brief synopsis of the movie). You are responsible for obtaining access to the film you choose. Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu, Apple, HBO, cable, are all options. Many of these services include a free trial period that you may want to use to access the film of your choice.

Stand By Me: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092005/
Little Miss Sunshine: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0449059/
The Internship: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2234155/
Apollo 13: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112384/
Oceans 8: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5164214/
Look for Examples

After viewing your chosen film, you will write a paper in which you address the following small group communication concepts with specific examples from the movie. I recommend you view the film twice. The first time to familiarize yourself with the story and the second time to take specific notes on each of the items below.

What type of group is exemplified in the film?
Assess the health of this group using the Characteristics of Healthy Groups guidelines found in chapter 9. For each of the 6 characteristics, assign the movie’s group a score between 1 and 5, with 1 being very unhealthy and 5 being very healthy. Use specific examples from the film to explain your rating.
Explain how the group progressed through the 5 stages of group development. Provide examples of each stage from the movie.
Review Roles in Groups. What roles did each group member play? Give a specific example of something each group member said or did that demonstrates the role they played.
Explain how the group worked through systematic problem solving. Pick a particular obstacle or challenge they faced. Provide specific examples of how the group did (or did not) progress through each of the 6 problem-solving steps explained in Chapter 10 of your textbook.
Paper Requirements
INTRODUCTION
A thesis statement
Your film choice – How/why you decided to watch that movie
A BRIEF summary of the film
A preview statement (an introductory explanation of the concepts you analyzed in the film)

Note: the introduction should not surpass 1 page of text

BODY
Organize the body into 5 sections to address each question listed above.
Use subheadings for each concept in the body
Each section of the body should first start with a BRIEF definition of the small group concept you will be discussing.
Describe and analyze the communication in the film’s small group using the selected concepts that apply. Use concrete examples from the film and examples of dialogue that will show how the concept is useful in explaining communication between characters. Each section in the body should have several examples from the movie.
With the exception of the first question, each of the remaining sections should be at least one page long.
CONCLUSION
A clear summary of your main points of analysis
What you have learned about small group communication as a result of this analysis. Roles in Groups
Benne and Sheats (1948) identified three broad types of roles people play in small groups: task roles,
building and maintenance roles, and self-centered roles.
Task Roles: Focus is on completing group’s goal
Coordinator: Relates statements made by one group member to another
“Krista’s comment relate well to what Erik was saying.”
Energizer: Stimulates group to take action
“How many of you are willing to bring in a video on conflict for the next class?
Elaborator: Expands upon another’s ideas
“I think what Kristina and Jennifer are suggesting is that we first explain nonverbal before we turn to verbal
communication.”
Evaluator-critic: Assesses the group’s work by higher standards
“This is okay, but I think Lisa needs to give more feedback.”
Information-giver: Provides helpful information
“Jake has some books about conflict we could use.”
Information-seeker: Asks for clarification
“Lisa D. or Laura, could you please tell me what you said about disconfirming responses?”
Recorder: Keep notes (minutes) about meeting
“Last class we did not get to J-P’s presentation. Dave and Michelle had just finished theirs.”
Procedural Technician: Takes responsibility for tasks
“I checked out the VCR for Adam and LeighAnne’s presentations.”
Group-Building/Maintenance Roles: Focus building relationships, maintaining
harmony
Encourager: Provides positive feedback
“I think what Heather was saying was totally right.”
Follower: Accepts ideas of others in group
“Let’s follow Cotton’s plan—he had the right idea.”
Compromiser: Attempts to reach a solution everyone finds acceptable
“Nicole, Beth, and Nimat have offered three great solutions. Why don’t we integrate them?”
Gatekeeper: Facilitates participation from everyone in group
“I don’t think we’ve heard from Monique yet.”
Harmonizer: Reduces conflict and tension (often through humor)
“After that exam, we deserve a free meal!”
Observer: Evaluates group progress
“I think we’ve learned a lot so far. Sara and Heather gave us great information.”
Self-centered Roles: Focus is to prevent group from reaching goals; to disrupt
Aggressor: Acts antagonistic towards other group members and their ideas
“Playing desert survival is the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard.”
Dominator: Monopolizes group speaking time
Interrupting—“I’m going to tell you the six reasons why this is a bad idea.”
Blocker: Refuses to cooperate with other’s ideas
“I refuse to play Desert Survival.”
Help-Seeker: Acts helpless to avoid work
“I don’t think I can put together a bibliography. Why don’t you do it for me?”
Loafer: Avoids work
“Why don’t we just go have drinks instead of finishing this project.”
Special Interest Advocate: Presents own viewpoint and needs
“I can’t meet tomorrow. I need to sleep late and call my mom.”
Self-confessor: Discusses topics only of importance to self and not the group
“I really like coffee. Yesterday I went to Kiva Han. Their coffee is better than what you get elsewhere . . .”
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
Small Group Movie Analysis: Little Miss Sunshine
As we progress through life, all people will have many experiences with different groups
consisting of different individuals. As we encounter different groups, we should recollect that the
groups we are a part of have some form of a goal that is meant to be accomplished but will not
necessarily come easy. It is also important to have the proper knowledge on how to approach
different group members, work through challenging situations and problem-solving, as well as
retaining experiences and information we have obtained from that group. The reason why I
choose the film Little Miss Sunshine was because it was focused on family and as stated in our
textbook, “families tend to occupy a central position in the lives of most people.” Meaning
seeing each character in a constant family setting it would be clear to follow along with the
characteristics of each character. With that being said, the film features a family of 6 who goes
on an 800-mile road trip to take the youngest family Olive to Little Miss Sunshine competition.
The family consists of Sheryl, an overworked mother, and Richard who is Sheryl’s husband who
is optimistic and has hopes of becoming a motivational speaker with his “9-step” program.
(Which was unsuccessful) Olive and Dwayne are the children of the family. Olive has dreams of
winning in Miss America, and after receiving a phone call, she qualifies to compete in the Little
Miss Sunshine competition in California. Dwayne is Sheryl’s son from a previous relationship
who has vowed to not speak until he can attend flight school. Frank is Sheryl’s brother who
recently moved in with the family after a recent suicide attempt. He attempted suicide after being
left and rejected by a former male student that he fell in love with. He lost his job and has been
living in a mental institution, Sheryl has taken responsibility to watch him until he “gets better.”
Lastly, Grandpa is Richard’s father, who was removed from his retirement home due to snorting
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
cocaine. It is later discovered he has an addiction and dies later in the film. Upon receiving the
phone call about Olive’s eligibility to compete in the competition, the family takes a tumultuous
road trip in an old beat down family van (which causes a lot of troubles.) During the trip the
family makes many self-discoveries, ultimately bringing the family closer together, as Olive
reaches her dream to compete. While viewing the film many concepts arose relating to small
groups, including how they develop and function as a healthy group. As well as roles that
individuals play and how the group solves problems systematically.
Type of Group
A group is defined as “a collection of about three to 20 people who feel a sense of
belonging and attempt to influence each other to accomplish a common purpose.” (Sellnow. 109)
The type of group displayed in the film was a family, more specifically both an extended and
blended family. This being because Richard’s father, Grandpa lives with them, as well as
Sheryl’s brother Frank. Sheryl’s son Dwayne, from a previous relationship, lives with the family
also. Although throughout the film the Hoover’s displayed interactions and behaviors of
dysfunction, as the film progressed, they displayed social and emotional support towards each
other. Being with monitoring Frank’s suicidal tendencies, Richard’s ambition to having his “9step” pitch be pushed through to become a life coach, Dwayne wanting to become a test pilot,
and Olive wanting to compete in the Little Miss Sunshine competition.
Healthy Group Guidelines
According to our textbook, heathy groups are “formed around a constructive purpose,”
and are characterized by different elements. (Sellnow 116) The first of which is how ethical the
group’s goal is. The primary goal of the film was to allow Olive to reach her dream of
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
performing in (and potentially winning) the Little Miss Sunshine competition. Although there
was plenty of turmoil along the way of the trip, I would overall rate this goal of the group a 5,
due to most of their actions being honorable. For instance, upon trying to leave from a diner,
Sheryl decides she wants to have a turn driving, however, the van’s gearshift is jammed. They
push their van to a mechanic who tells them that their “clutch is shot” and the only way they will
be able to switch gears is if the car is moving at 20 mph. Knowing that they have made a promise
to Olive to make it to the competition by Sunday, after every stop, they push the car by hand
until it reaches 20 mph to continue driving. Another event of the film that displayed honorability
was when the Hoover family was at the hospital after Grandpa’s death. Although taking
Grandpa’s body away from the hospital was not the most honest thing to do, Richard stated he
knew that “Grandpa more than anyone would want to see olive perform in the competition.”
With that being said, the decision to continue even with Grandpa’s corpse in their trunk,
although outrageous, in a sense proves honorable for the family to keep their promise to Olive.
The second characteristic of a healthy group is interdependence. Interdependent groups
“rely on each other’s skill and knowledge to accomplish the ultimate group goal.” (Sellnow 116)
I would rate the Hoover family with a 4. For instance, Frank is now completely dependent on
Sheryl to provide for him. After his attempt at suicide due to being rejected by the student he fell
in love with, he lived in an institution and had no job. Although, Sheryl and Richard did not have
the finances to afford to take care of Frank they still took him in. Similarly, with Richard’s
father, Grandpa. He was removed from his retirement home for snorting heroin, yet they have
taken him in, and he relies on the support of the family. Moreover, Grandpa has been the main
individual involved in training olive for her competitions.
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
The next characteristic is cohesiveness, which is “the force that brings the group closer
together.” Furthermore, cohesiveness involves how well the group respects one another and how
well they work together. (Sellnow 116) I would rate the Hoover family a 3 on cohesiveness. The
reason being is that at the beginning of the film Dwayne did not want to participate in the road
trip or go to the Little Miss Sunshine competition. Sheryl had to bribe him into going by stating
that if he came along, she would allow him to enroll in flight school upon returning. Another
instance of the family having low cohesiveness was a scene where Dwayne finds out that he is
colorblind, and Frank informs him that you cannot be colorblind and be a pilot. This enrages
Dwayne to a point to where Richard is forced to pull over the van. After getting out of the van
Dwayne begins speaking and shouting for the first time in 8 months. He runs down a hill and
begins refusing to continue onto the competition, as well as expressing his anger and frustrations
towards his family and the trip. He calls them all “losers” and exclaims they all have serious
issues dealing with “divorce, bankrupt and suicide.” One of the turning points of the family’s
cohesiveness is when Sheryl asks Olive to go and speak to Dwayne. Olive hugs Dwayne and
after apologizing to everyone he rejoins the group and they continue their journey.
Another characteristic of a healthy group is how they develop and abide by productive
norms. Norms are defined as, “expectations about the way group members are to behave.”
(Sellnow 117) I would rate the Hoover family a 2 with norms. For example, in one scene of the
film, Grandpa begins questioning Dwayne about whether he is sexually active or if he uses drugs
while they are on the road. He begins using vulgar language, which upsets Richard because
Olive is in the van as well. Richard tells Grandpa to not use that language around Olive and he
just responds by saying, “eh, she has her headphones on.” Olive then turns around the ask
Grandpa and Dwayne what they were talking about and he tells her “politics.” After watching
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
this scene, it is inferable that Grandpa is an explicit individual and that is normal for him to
potentially speak that way around anyone.
The next characteristic of healthy groups is accountability. Accountability means “all
group members are held responsible for adhering to the group norms and working toward the
group’s goal” (Sellnow 118) I would rate the Hoover family a 2 on being accountable. During
one scene of the film, the family takes a stop at a gas station. Most of them get out of the van,
and Olive asks Sheryl if she can get out and practice more for her routine. Sheryl tells Olive,
“yes”, but to make sure she does not go too far as Sheryl goes to the restroom and Richard tries
to reach stan from a payphone. After getting into contact with Stan Richard discovers that his
plan fell through with the company he tried to partner with. Once he tells Sheryl she gets upset
and they begin arguing, and both become frantic to leave the gas station. They leave the gas
station without Olive, and they only realize when Dwayne writes a note to Frank stating,
“Where’s Olive?”
The last Characteristic of healthy groups is synergy. Synergy is defined as, “the
multiplying force of a group of individuals working together that results in a combined effort
greater than any other parts.” I would rate the Hoover family a 4 concerning synergy. In different
parts of the film, each character became more determined in getting to the competition on time.
For instance, in the scene of the film when the family arrives at the hotel where the competition
is being held the realize it is exactly 3 o’clock. Frank bursts through the van’s door as it falls off
and begins sprinting to the registration desk to register olive into the competition. Frank is joined
by the rest of the family when they catch up to him and they are told they cannot enroll Olive
into the competition because it is “now 3:04.” Richard begins to beg on his knees explaining how
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
much of a rough trip they have gone through to get to the competition. They are eventually
enrolled by a man named Mr. Kirby who can see the frustration in the family’s expressions.
Stages of Group Development
Stages of group development focuses on how members of a group communicate with one
another as they progress to reach their goal. The first stage of group development is forming,
which is characterized by “orientation, testing, and dependence.” (Sellnow 119) During this
stage, members try to figure out what their goal is and how they will achieve that goal. From
viewing the beginning of the film is it evident to see that the hoover family is not fond of one
another. For instance, when Olive asks Frank why he was away and why he has bands around his
wrist he opens to her about how he attempted to commit suicide due to being rejected by his
male student. In this scene, Richard is bothered by Frank telling her the details of his incident,
but Sheryl encourages the conversation, while Grandpa interjects with derogatory terms towards
Frank. As well as when Sheryl receives the phone call about the competition and brings up flying
or taking a road trip everyone is reluctant to go. However, with Olive being the youngest they all
eventually attest to the promise that Sheryl made to Olive. It can be inferred that another reason
why Sheryl was adamant about going on a road trip was to bring the family closer together, case
in point, Dwayne not speaking to anyone for months because he wants to go to flight school.
The next stage of group development is storming, which is characterized by conflict and
power plays.” (Sellnow 119) In the film, Richard attributes to this characteristic, due to an
interaction with olive and Frank. In the scene of the film when the Hoover Family is at the diner,
Olive decides to order “waffles a la mode.” Not knowing what a la mode means Frank begins to
explain to Olive that she will get ice cream along with her waffles. In the middle of explaining
Richard tells Frank to “shut-up” and tells Olive that ice cream will make her fat, and she should
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
not want to be fat because all the Miss America girls are skinny, implying that she would not win
the competition if she is not “skinny” enough. Olive becomes discouraged after hearing this and
refuses to eat her ice cream. This upsets Sheryl, however upon receiving their food Grandpa and
Frank induce Olive to eat some ice cream.
The next stage of group development is norming, and is characterized by “cohesion,
collaboration trust and motivation to achieve the group goal.” (Sellnow 119) One scene of the
movie that correlates with norming is when Grandpa passes away in the hospital. While the
Hoover family is waiting to hear an update on Grandpa, Sheryl begins to break down crying. She
tells Olive and Dwayne, “no matter what happens to Grandpa he loves them, and she loves them
very much” as well. Dwayne writes to olive to “go hug mom” and the all gather in for a group
hug. After finding out that Grandpa did not make it, they are faced with a problem of the hospital
not being able to hold Grandpa’s body overnight until returning from the competition. Knowing
they will not be able to continue; Richard decides to take Grandpa’s body. They then plot a way
to remove Grandpa’s body from the hospital room and place him in their trunk.
The next stage of group development is performing which is characterized by, “harmony,
productivity, and problem-solving. The Hoover displayed performing in the scene prior to Olive
competing in the “talent” section of the competition. Upon watching the other girls compete and
perform Richard and Dwayne become uncomfortable in letting Olive perform. One reason being
they feel the young girls are dressed and act too mature and do not want Olive to be viewed that
way. Additionally, they do not want Olive to get embarrassed while performing in front of the
crowd considering the talents of the other girls. They run to the dressing room to convince Sheryl
to not let Olive perform however Sheryl knows this Olive’s dream, and replies by saying, “just
let olive be olive.” Subsequently, they decide to let her fulfill her dream and perform.
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
The last stage(s) in group development is adjourning and transforming. Adjourning is
characterized by “celebrating goal accomplishment and disengagement. The entire family is now
in the performance room of the competition to see Olive perform, and before starting she
dedicates her performance to Grandpa and states, “he taught me this routine.” Olive’s music
begins to play, and it is the song “Super Freak” by Rick James. Once the audience becomes
familiar with the lyrics of the song and sees Olive’s dance moves, some begin to leave, while
others are disturbed. However, the Hoovers stand and begin cheering on Olive, later even joining
her on stage and dancing with her, knowing that she feels accomplished. After causing “chaos”
to the competition they are all removed and taken to a police station, to where they have vow to
never register Olive in a beauty pageant in the state of California. Leading into the transforming
stage, the family leaves happily as they begin to make their journey back home.
Roles in Groups
Roles in groups display how everyone will perform and behave within the group. There
are three types of roles people play in small groups; task roles, building and maintenance roles,
and self-centered roles. Task Roles, “focus in on completing the group’s goal.” Sheryl displayed
the role of an energizer in the film. After receiving the call about the Little Miss Sunshine
competition in California she immediately began thinking of how the family would get there,
even though they were short on finances. She wanted to ensure she kept her promise to Olive that
she would be able to compete in the competition. Richard presented an evaluator-critic role at the
beginning of the film. After Olive expressed how badly she wanted to join the competition,
Richard asked Olive if she is sure she wants to participate, and tells her, “there is no point in
entering unless you know for sure you’re going to win.”
Example “A” Small Group Analysis Paper
Group Building and Maintenance Roles focus on building relationships and maintain
harmony. In some scenes of the film, Grandpa demonstrated an encourager role. After …
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