IPEC Domain/Competency 

Teams and Teambuilding

Sub-Competency

TT1 Describe evidence-informed processes of team development and team practices

Goals and objectives

Upon completion of this activity, learners will be able to:

• Describe the stages of team development
• Identify the team’s developmental stage based on the observable behaviors of team members
• Identify strategies to advance team development toward higher performance

Materials 

• Tuckman’s Stages of Team Development (or use another source you prefer)
• Interprofessional Case Vignette
• Interdisciplinary Case Vignette

Activity description

Introduce the Tuckman’s stages of team development. Distribute the case of your choice (interprofessional or interdisciplinary) to students. In small groups students analyze the case, determine which stage of development the team is in and come up with suggestions of what they would do if they were in that team to move towards higher performance (the next stage of development). Engage all groups in sharing and debrief.

Notes for the instructor: Both IPE and IDE cases describe teams in storming stage of team development, as observed by expressed team members’ frustration, unfairness, power imbalance, dismissal).  It is very important to normalize conflict as a part of team development process and emphasize that team moves to higher performance over time and requires intentionality. Finally, address the impact of role ambiguity and unilateral decision making by team members; both lead to mistrust and inefficiency.

Debrief Questions

1. What evidence from the case most strongly supported your group's decision about the team's stage of development?
2. Which team practices (e.g., role clarity, communication, psychological safety, shared leadership) appeared to be missing or underutilized, and how did that affect team functioning?
3. How might role ambiguity, hierarchy, or decision-making processes contribute to the challenges described in the case?
4. Which strategy would be most important for helping this team move from the Storming stage to the Norming stage, and why?
5. How can understanding team development stages help you recognize and respond to challenges in your own teams more effectively?

Optional Closing reflection:

Imagine this team has successfully moved to the next stage of development. What behaviors, interactions, or outcomes would you expect to see?

Variation for IPE or IDE Experiences

Both interprofessional and interdisciplinary case vignette are provided for the Storming stage of the team development. Similar case vignettes can be developed for other stages of team development in both interprofessional and interdisciplinary contexts.

Adapted by: CHBS IPE and IDE Council, James Madison University
Suggested Citation: CHBS IPE and IDE Council. (2026). Team Development Mapping Exercise. CHBS IPE & IDE Instructional Toolkit. James Madison University.