The Tuckman ladder, also called Tuckman’s steps of group growth, is a plan that shows the different stages that groups go through as they work together to reach a shared goal. The psychologist Bruce Tuckman came up with the model in 1965, and it has since become a common way to understand how groups work.
There are four steps on the Tuckman ladder:
During the forming stage, people are just getting to know each other and figuring out their jobs and tasks in the group. As people try to figure out where they fit in, there may be some doubt or pause.
Forming: Storming: As people in a group get to know each other better, they may start to say what they think and feel more freely. This can lead to stress and conflict when different points of view are shared and different goals are made clear.
Norming: During this time, people in the group start to work out their differences and build a sense of togetherness and harmony. They start to have the same goals and beliefs and start to work better as a team.
Performing: When the group is in the performing stage, it is fully functional and able to reach its goals quickly and easily. Members work well together, they can talk to each other well, and they can adapt to changes and new problems as they come up.
Some forms of the model also have a fifth step called “adjourning” or “mourning,” which is when the group breaks up and thinks about what it did well.
Not all groups will go through all of these stages, and some groups may go through them in a different order or in a more complex way. Still, the Tuckman ladder is a good way to understand the different stages of group growth and the problems that groups may face as they work together.
Key Points
– Tuckman Ladder, also known as Tuckman Model that uses Forming-Storming-Norming-Performing paradigm that outlines the stages that the teams usually go through when collaborating.
– Consider a ladder with steps that a team must climb while cooperating.
– Forming is the initial stage in which everyone meets and gets to know one another.
– Storming is similar to arguments or conflicts that may arise among team members as they begin to work together.
– Norming occurs when they begin to operate well together, understand each other, and find methods to collaborate.
– When a team is performing, it is completely functional, operating efficiently and successfully together.
– As they progress up the ladder, they move from meeting strangers to becoming a close-knit team.
