Group Research Project Reflection Paper Example

Introduction: The Benefits of Working in a Research Group

Working in groups is one of the most efficient and effective ways of completing large volumes of work. My research group was one characterized with an exceptional learning experience. Apart from some few challenges, group work often comes with other benefits, as I discovered during my participation in a research group.

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Enhancing Analytical Skills through Group Work

To better lay down my take-home points from the experience of working in a research group, I will break the benefits into three; analytical skills, communication skills and interpersonal skills. On the analytical skills, I learned how to exercise critical thinking and analyze difficult situations, breaking them down into digestive portions. Part of that was the ability to widen my scope of thinking and a wider consideration of other factors. That was very helpful in the sense that my thinking perspective was improved. Before the experience, I had some problem with being quite judgmental with extreme cultures and thinking perspectives. After the group experience, I was more merciful and accommodative in my thinking perspective.

Developing Effective Communication Skills in a Research Group

On the part of communication skills, I was able to gather the skills of listening, persuading and respecting the opinion of others. That too was the best skill I could gather from my research group. That is, being able to patiently listen to an opinion that was contrary to my belief without feeling offended. I also learned how to communicate my ideas and views in a very careful and calculated manner and being careful not to offend others. The communication skills I gathered from the research group will be helpful in the corporate world.

On the part of interpersonal skills, I gained self-confidence. In my group, every member had to contribute to the group's discussion and that built my self-confidence. I was able to understand some of the best ways to woo an audience to buy what you intend to communicate without being coercive. Another interpersonal skill that I learned is relationship management. I discovered that creating relationships is a simple thing but managing them is a different ball game altogether. To properly manage my relationship with other members, I had to cultivate work ethics. That is, I had to be very respectful and considerate. Sometimes the workload would be too much and pressure would be a bit much for most of the members. To create balance, I had to exercise grace and play a diplomatic role in quelling some of the heated moments. Other skills that I learned include; collaboration, listening and displaying a positive attitude.

Conclusion

The experience did not come without challenges. For one, everybody came with their own dissenting views, especially at the beginning of the group discussions. We would often at times fail to agree on certain decisions. That would stall our work and when it was too late, everybody would be rushing to pick up an idea. Another major problem that I face being part of the group was the fact that everybody worked at different speeds. That is, some people were too slow to propel the group forward, while others were too fast that others could not catch up. To deal with the issue of pace, we had to ensure that we found a moderate speed that would accommodate others. While having a discussion, we had to find a way of articulating issues in a manner that would be understood by everyone in the group. Diplomacy was the means that I used to maintain the group discussions in a moderate state. To advance my professional development, group discussions have taught me about the importance of good analytical, interpersonal and communication skills. In addition, to work well in a group, one ought to be diplomatic and understanding. Generally, I can attest that I gained from the research group and the lessons that I gathered will help me later on in other group research projects.