Ch. 12: Groups Flashcards
social facilitation
Initially a term for enhanced performance in the presence of others; now a broader term for the effect, positive or negative, of the presence of others on performance
what is Zajonc’s model of social facilitation?
increases arousal and facilitates dominant response tendencies - this improves performance on easy or well learned tasks but hinders performance on difficult or novel tasks
Dominant response
In a person’s hierarchy of possible responses in any context, the response he or she is more likely to make
evaluation apprehension
people’s concern about how they might appear to others or be evaluated by them
distraction conflict theory
a theory based on the idea that being aware of another person’s presence creates a conflict between paying attention to the task at hand and that this attentional conflict is arousing and produces social facilitation effects
Social loafing
the tendency to exert less effort when working on a group task in which individual contributions cannot be monitored
groupthink
faulty thinking by members of highly cohesive groups in which the critical scrutiny that should be devoted to the issues at hand is subverted by social pressures to reach consensus
Self censorship
withholding information or opinions in group discussions
conditions that promote group think
high cohesiveness
insulation of the group
directive leadership
lack of procedures for information search and appraisal
high stress with a low degree of hope for finding a better solution than the one favored by the leader or other influential people
What is the motivation behind group think?
Group consensus
What are the symptoms of group think?
illusion of invulnerability collective rationalization belief in inherent morality of the group stereotypes of outgroups direct pressure on dissenters celf-censorship illusion of unanimity
Risky shift
the tendency for groups to make riskier decisions than individuals would
group polarization
the tendency for group decisions to be more extreme than those made by individuals; whatever way the group as a whole in leaning, group discussion tends to make it lean further in that direction
power
the ability to control ones own outcomes and those of others; the freedom to act
status
the outcome of an evaluation of attributes that produces differences in respect and prominence, and which contributes to determining a person’s power within a group
