Chapter 5: Cohesion and development Flashcards
d: group cohesion
With a strong group cohesion, the members are joined together by strong interpersonal bonds and by shared commitment to the group and its goals
What are the positive and negative consequences of cohesion?
Positive: increased member satisfaction, decreased stress. Cohesive groups, in general, perform better.
Negative: can be psychological demanding, dependence, pressure to conform and influence is stronger in cohesive groups and can result in bad decisions.
Do initiations increase cohesion?
Yes, most of the time, if the initiation is not a form of severe hazing. Initiations can make groups seem more exclusive and therefore more prestigious. Initiations increase members’ commitment to the group.
What are the sources of a group’s unity? (different types of cohesion)
-Social cohesion: the attraction of members to one another and to the group as a whole.
-Task cohesion: a shared commitment among members to achieve a goal and the resulting capacity to perform successfully as a coordinated unit.
-Collective cohesion: unity based on shared identity and belonging. How much the members identify with the group, how united the members are.
-Emotional cohesion: group-based emotions, including pride, sv: “kåranda”, and overall affective intensity. The emotional intensity of the group.
-Structural cohesion: the group’s structural integrity, including normative coherence, clarity of roles, and strength and density of relationships linking members.
d: collective efficacy
The belief, shared among a substantial portion of the group members, that the group is capable of organizing and executing the actions required to attain the group’s goals and successfully complete the tasks.
d: group potency
The level of the group’s shared optimism regarding its collective capabilities
d: entitativity
To which degree a group seems like one entity, one unit.
Explain: Identity fusion theory
A theory that explains the extreme self-sacrifice (such as heroism in the face of danger and terrorism) that sometimes occurs when individual identity is fused with group identity.
Explain: relational cohesion theory
A theory that argues that members of groups develop stronger ties to groups that are perceived to be sources of positive feelings or emotions. They also develop weaker ties to those perceived to be sources of negative feelings.
According to the Five-stage Model of Group Development, there are five stages that groups go through towards cohesion. What are the stages?
-Forming
-Storming
-Norming
-Performing
-Adjourning
Explain: the Equilibrium (sv: jämnvikt) model
A theory that assumes that groups cycles back and forth between norming and performing stages: a period of group effort and hard work towards the goal must be followed by a period where the group can work on its cohesion and relationships.
Explain: the Punctuated Equilibrium Model
A group development theory that assumes groups change gradually over time but that the periods of slow growth are punctuated by brief periods of relatively rapid change.
Explain: Old sergeant syndrome
A psychological disturbance (with symptoms including depression, anxiety, guilt) that occurs when a group is so cohesive that a person feels responsible for the group to the extent that they withdraw psychologically from the group to protect themselves when the group suffers from loss or defeat.
Are cohesive groups, in general, more productive than non-cohesive groups?
Yes
d: hazing
An initiation into a group that subjects the new member to mental or physical discomfort, harassment, embarrassment, ridicule, or humiliation
