I really enjoyed Harvey’s explanation of why groups exist and the functional role they play in pursuing a shared purpose. He stated that groups aid in the ability to “achieve some collective labor that requires coordination and collaboration”. While I was reading this I came up with and played around with several group scenarios in my head, and was able to apply the factors mentioned to a simple sports team dynamic. In the description of a purposeful group he stated “they need members and ways of organizing them”; a soccer team requires a minimum amount of players with different skill sets, offense, defence, and the transitional middle players. The resources could be applied to uniforms, water, or even substitution players on the sidelines. The “capacity to capture inputs and transform outputs” relates to the ability to translate what is collaborated and worked on in practice onto the field on game day. Harvey states that they “ have a setting, a culture, a history, and a claim of some kind on their members’ participation and commitment”. This highlights the role of narrative can have on the performance of a group; the joint goal and expectation to be a successful team with comradery and heart that comes together to win

A more complex group phenomenon like war or microeconomics considered by a business connects strongly to the  “Where are we?” question. Harvey explains the “importance of external analysis” in the assessment of how a group should proceed; it sets the tone for their social reality. When a group shares the same understanding of where they stand, especially in comparison to outgroups, they are more likely to function as a unit.