Chapter 4

Question 1

Tendency to join a group has to do with:

Answer 1

1. Personality
2. Anxiety and attachment
3. Social motivation
4. Gender
5. Attitudes, experiences, and expectations

Question 2

Social anxiety

Answer 2

when a person feels threatened in group settings.

Question 3

Smith: four different group level attachment styles

Answer 3

1) Secure, (2) Preoccupied (=

wanting to belong to others but afraid of rejection), (3) Fearful, and (4) Dismissing.

Question 4

Need for affiliation

Answer 4

motivating state of tension that can be relieved by joining with other people, which frequently includes concerns about winning the approval of
other people.

Question 5

Need for intimacy

Answer 5

motivating state of tension that can be relieved by seeking out warm, positive relationships with others.

Question 6

Need for power

Answer 6

need to exert control over other people.

Question 7

Schutz: Fundamental interpersonal relations orientation (FIRO) theory

Answer 7

explains how people use groups to satisfy their need to receive and express
inclusion, control, and affection.

Question 8

relationality

Answer 8

the degree to which one’s
values, attitudes, and outlooks emphasize and facilitate establishing and maintaining
connections to others.

Question 9

Karau & Moneim: Beliefs about groups (BAG) inventory

Answer 9

assesses an individual’s
general orientation toward working in a group. Measures three aspects: (1) group
preference: preference to join a certain group, (2) effort beliefs: expectations about
how hard people work in a certain group, and (3) negative performance beliefs and
positive performance beliefs: expectations about the positive and negative effects
that groups have on the performance.

Question 10

Affiliation

Answer 10

gathering together of individuals in one location. Why do people feel the need to do
this?

Question 11

Festinger: social comparison theory

Answer 11

people like to compare themselves to others. Also,

they prefer to share their misery with others.

Question 12

Downward social comparison

Answer 12

comparing yourself to individuals who are

performing more poorly than you. Bolsters own sense of competence.

Question 13

Upward social comparison

Answer 13

comparing yourself to individuals who are performing
better than you. Refines the expectations you have of yourself, but it also lowers self-
esteem.

Question 14

Tesser: self-evaluation maintenance (SEM) model

Answer 14

individuals maintain and
enhance their self-esteem by associating with high-achieving individuals who excel in
areas that are not relevant to the individual’s own sense of self-esteem, and avoiding
association with high-achieving individuals who excel in areas that are important to
the individual’s sense of self-esteem.

Question 15

Schachter: in threatening situations:

Answer 15

• “misery loves company” = people prefer to affiliate when fearful.
• “misery loves miserable company” = people prefer to join individuals who have
  useful information about a situation and others who are in a similar situation.
• “embarrassed misery avoids company” = fear of embarrassment reduces affiliation.

Question 16

Basic types of support from groups include:

Answer 16

1) Belonging: feeling that you belong to
a group,
(2) emotional: feeling that others care about you,
(3) informational: feeling
that others want to give advice to you,
(4) instrumental: feeling that others want to
provide sources to you (e.g., money, transport), and
(5) meaning: giving meaning to
what you have experienced.

Question 17

Buffer effect

Answer 17

groups and their support can work as a buffer when an individual is
experiencing negative life events.

Question 18

Newcomb: interpersonal attraction depends on several principles:

Answer 18

1. Proximity principle
2. Elaboration principle
3. Similarity principle
4. Complementarity principle
5. Reciprocity principle
6. Minimax principle

Question 19

Proximity principle

Answer 19

people tend to like those who are situated nearby, because; (1)
There is more interaction between people who are nearby each other, and (2) familiarity
principle / mere-exposure effect = people prefer familiarity rather than unfamiliarity.

Question 20

Elaboration principle

Answer 20

groups often emerge when new people become linked to the original
group members.

Question 21

Similarity principle

Answer 21

people tend to like others who are similar to them.

• Consequence: among groups, there are increasing levels of homophily = “love of the
  same”; the tendency for group members to be similar to one another (e.g., in
  demographic background, attitudes, values, etc.).

Question 22

Complementarity principle

Answer 22

people tend to like others whose qualities complement their own qualities.

-Schultz: two forms of compatibility: (1) Interchange compatibility = when members have
similar expectations about the group’s intimacy, control, and inclusiveness (based on
similarity), and (2) Originator compatibility = when people have dissimilar, but
complementary, needs with regard to expressing and receiving control, inclusion, and
affection (based on complementarity)

Question 23

Reciprocity principle

Answer 23

people tend to like those who like you as well.

Question 24

Minimax principle

Answer 24

individuals are attracted to groups that offer them maximum rewards and minimal costs.

Question 25

Thibaut & Kelley: social exchange theory

Answer 25

similar definition as minimax principle. The decision to
join a group depends on two factors:
1. Comparison level (CL)
2. Comparison level for alternatives (CLalt)

Possible situations that can occur:
- Satisfied and dependent of membership: membership is satisfying (M above CL),
and you have no alternatives so you’re dependent (CLalt above M).

• Satisfied and independent of membership: membership is satisfying (M above CL), but
  you have better alternatives so you’re independent (CLalt above CL).
• Dissatisfied and dependent of membership: membership is dissatisfying (M below CL),
  but you have no alternatives so you’re dependent (CLalt below CL).
• Dissatisfied and independent of membership: membership is dissatisfying (M below
  CL), but you have better alternatives so you’re independent (CLalt above CL).

Question 26

Comparison level (CL)

Answer 26

the norm that the individual uses to measure how much he/she likes
to be a member of the specific group. CL is largely influenced by the prior experiences the
individual has with groups. CL determines the satisfaction an individual will experience with
the group membership.

Question 27

Comparison level for alternatives (CLalt)

Answer 27

the norm that the individual uses to evaluate the
other groups whereby he/she possibly likes to join. CLalt determines whether members will
join, stay in, or leave a group.