Final answer:
A leader plays a crucial role in creating team norms by outlining roles and responsibilities, managing the group's need for leadership, and choosing the appropriate leadership style to guide the development of norms within the group.
Step-by-step explanation:
The role of a leader in creating team norms is significant across various group settings. In secondary groups where formal leadership is prevalent, such as the military, workplaces, or classrooms, the leader explicitly outlines roles and responsibilities, establishing a clear chain of command and expectations. For instance, democratic leaders encourage group participation and consensus, where members vote on actions, contributing to the establishment of group norms. On the other hand, laissez-faire leaders promote autonomy, allowing team norms to arise from individual members' decisions. The leadership style chosen can significantly shape the team's dynamics, efficiency, and conformity to set norms within the group.
Leaders influence group norms not just by their style or functions but by their ability to manage the group's need for leadership. Some employees perform best with clear guidelines and a structured environment provided by their leaders, which shapes the team's standards. In contrast, others thrive in a more autonomous setting shaped by a hands-off approach, which can also impact the norms that evolve within a team. Therefore, it's evident that leaders play a role in creating team norms, either actively through direct influence or passively by setting the environment for norms to develop organically.