Which stage is characterized by conflict and testing boundaries before cohesion?

• A. Forming
• B. Norming
• C. Storming
• D. Performing

Answer: (C)

Teams develop through stages, and the one where members clash and test boundaries before the group becomes cohesive is storming. In this phase, people push back on ideas, challenge leadership, negotiate roles, and wrestle with how decisions will be made. It’s a natural, often turbulent step as the group moves from uncertainty toward agreed ways of working. Once norms and relationships are clarified, the team enters norming, where cohesion grows, and eventually performing, where collaboration runs smoothly. So the described stage is storming.