Maintenance actions

Maintenance actions, historically referred to as socio-emotive actions, are those leadership actions taken by one or more members of a group to enhance the social relationships among group members. They tend to increase the overall effectiveness of the group and create a more positive atmosphere of interaction within the group.

Concept

Maintenance actions are contrasted with Task Actions which are those actions taken to enable the group to complete a specific task or goal.

Conceptually developed by social psychologist Kurt Lewin in his extensive research into group interaction during the 1940s, maintenance actions were extended into the discipline of leadership studies through the work of Douglas McGregor in his definitive statement of principles of leadership, The Human Side of Enterprise. Countless texts and "how to" manuals on group and team leadership since Lewin's work have sought to identify those activities which can then be used in group situations to maintain as well as increase friendship, warmth, and attachment among the participants of a group.

Maintenance actions can be understood as those activities which maintain the functioning of the group just as a driver of a car maintains the car by putting oil in the engine or making sure that the tires have enough pressure.

Types

Lewin specifically identified ten types of maintenance actions: encourager of participation; harmonizer and compromiser; tension reliever; communication helper; evaluator of emotional climate; process observer; standard setter; active listener; trust builder; and interpersonal problem solver.

The most identifiable and popular of the ten types is the tension reliever or the person who relieves the tension within the group by telling jokes and stories, suggesting breaks or fun (as opposed to task) activities. (Later group and leadership writers frequently identify the person taking on this role as the group "clown".)

In contrast, often the hardest to identify is that of the process observer, similar to a participant observer, or the person who watches the interaction within the group as it unfolds and shares their observations with the other group members by continually pointing out ways in which the group behaviors become inconsistent or erratic which could throw the group off track in its attempt to accomplish a goal.

The type considered by group facilitators to be the most valuable role is that of interpersonal problem solver or the person who has the natural ability to help people solve their problems in a non-professional manner and draws other people in the group to them by their warmth and openness.