Most of us can probably think of examples in which working with others led to great insights and helped our motivation. But we can probably also recall some counter-examples, in which we felt as if other people got in the way of clear thinking, made us inefficient, or we felt unfairly saddled with the work of others who were not performing.

In this webinar, Dr. Mary Rose will review the social science of groups, including exploring:

• • Under what circumstances do we perform better in the presence of others, and when do groups get in our way?
  • Are some tasks better suited than others to teamwork?

The discussion will ultimately point to some practical questions to ask about whether team efforts will likely help or hurt in getting work done.

About the Speaker

Mary Rose, Ph.D. is a professor in the Department of Sociology at The University of Texas at Austin and an award-winning teacher, receiving an award as Outstanding Teacher in the HDO (MA) Program in 2022, serving as a Distinguished University Lecturer for Undergraduate Studies and receiving the Cale McDowell Award for Innovation in Undergraduate Studies in 2019. She was also selected as one of the Alcalde’s Texas 10 in 2015.

Dr. Rose’s research focuses on people’s participation in and perceptions of the legal system, as well as people’s views of justice. She was named an academic fellow with the Pound Civil Justice Institute in 2021 and published four papers in 2022 alone.

The Human Dimensions of Organizations (HDO) program brings together UT Austin’s finest researchers and teachers in the humanities and the social and behavioral sciences with an interest in educating leaders (current and aspiring) about the ways these disciplines can improve organizations.

HDO offers one-day courses, four-day certificate programs, and a 15-month executive master’s degree examining how and why the key components of every organization — people — behave and work the way they do and why they sometimes don’t.