Ch.5 Social Groups + Formal Organizations Flashcards
red-tape
excessive bureaucracy or adherence to rules or formalities
What are dysfunctions of bureaucracies?
- red tape
- lack of communication between units
- bureaucratic alienation
- resisting alienation
- bureaucratic incompetence
Peter principle
hard workers go higher up in the hierarchy until they cant confidently do their job anymore
Self-fulfilling stereotypes
everyone that becomes higher up must be similar to current person in power
Small groups
each member interacts with another
Dyad
two people
Triad
three people
What happens as groups become larger?
they have more stability and less intimacy
How does group size affect attitudes and behaviors?
- increase in size increases formality
- also diffuses responsibility
What are the types of leadership?
- instrumental
- expressive
Instrumental
the person that keeps people on task
Expressive
keeps group emotionally and socially cohesive
What are the leadership styles?
- authoritarian
- democratic
- Laissez-Faire
Authoritarian
make orders and expect compliance
Democratic
gives options to develop consensus from the group
Laissez-Faire
unstructured when it comes to guidance of the group
Asch Experiment
- proved that people succumb to peer pressure
- people told to match two lines on cards while other people were saying the wrong answer
Milgram experiment
- proves people follow orders from authority figures
- subjects were giving “learners” severe shocks because they were told to
Aggregate
individuals who temporarily share the same physical space but who do not see themselves as belonging together
Category
people, objects, and events tat have similar characteristics and are classified together
Primary group
a small group characterized by cooperative, intimate, long term, face to face relationships
Secondary group
compared with a primary group, a larger, relatively temporary, more anonymous, formal, and impersonal group based on some interest or activity
Voluntary associations
groups made up of people who voluntarily organize on the basis of some mutual interest
Iron law of oligarchy
the tendency of formal organizations to be dominated by small, self-perpetuating elite
In-group
a group toward which one feels loyalty
Out-group
a group towards which one feels antagonism
Reference group
a group whose standards we refer to as we evaluate ourselves
Social network
the social ties radiating outward from the self that link people together
Clique
a cluster of people within a larger group who choose to interact with one another
Bureaucracy
a formal organization with a hierarchy of authority and a clear division of labor
Goal displacement
an organization replacing old goals with new ones
Mcdonaldization of society
the process by which ordinary aspects of life are rationalized and efficiency comes to rule them
Alienation
Marx’s term for workers lack of connection to the product of their labor
Hidden corporate culture
stereotypes of the traits that make for high-performing and under-performing workers which end up producing both types of workers
Coalition
the alignment of some members of a group against others
Groupthink
a narrowing of thought by a group of people, leading to the perception that there is only one correct answer and that to even suggest alternatives is a sign of disloyalty
What do all bureaucracies have?
- separate levels with assignments flowing downward while accountability flows upwards
- a division of labor
- written rules
- written communications and records
- impersonality and replaceability