CHAPTER SEVEN: GROUP INFLUENCE

Question 1

what is a group?

Answer 1

two or more people who, for longer than a few moments, interact with/influence one another and perceive one another as “us”

Question 2

the mere presence of others

Answer 2

• in the position to evaluate, creates social facilitation (ability to preform better when in the presence of evaluative others)
• social facilitation theory

Question 3

social facilitation theory

Answer 3

• the presence of “evaluative” others in the “performance environment” increases an individual’s arousal level
• zajonc noticed that performance on well-learned and simple tasks improved in presence of others (dominant response = skilled performance)
• he also noticed that performance on poorly learned and complex tasks decreased in the presence of others (dominant response = unskilled performance)

Question 4

crowding

Answer 4

• the presence of many others
• effect of others’ presence increases in numbers (can cause choking)
• intensifies positive/negative reactions
• enhances arousal: being in a crowd is similar to being watched by a crowd

Question 5

social loafing

Answer 5

the tendency for people to exert less effort when they pool their efforts than when they are individually accountable

Question 6

ringlemann effect

Answer 6

• tendency of the average effort of group members to decrease with an increase in group size
• effect levels off after a group of 4

Question 7

when does social loafing occur?

Answer 7

• output cannot be independently evaluated
• tasks perceived to be low on meaningfulness
• personal involvement in task is low
• comparison against group standards in not possible
• working with strangers
• contribution is deemed redundant
• competing against a weaker opponent

Question 8

eliminating social loafing

Answer 8

• keep individual effort and evaluation identifiable (break down team in smaller parts)
• increase individual responsibility
• make tasks personally relevant/challenging (less likely with friends, rotate positions to understand roles, increase communication)
• allow uniqueness/creativity
• discuss social loafing

Question 9

deindividuation

Answer 9

abandonment of sense of self

Question 10

group polarization

Answer 10

• group-produced enhancement of members’ pre-existing tendencies
• strengthening of the members’ average tendency, not a split within the group

Question 11

group polarization in everyday life

Answer 11

schools, communities, the internet, terrorist organizations

Question 12

explaining polarization

Answer 12

• informational influence: active discussion (we’re involved because we want to be right)
• normative influence: social comparision (comparing opinions: who do i want to be liked by?; pluralistic ignorance)

Question 13

groupthink

Answer 13

the mode of thinking that people engage in when concurrence-seeking (group harmony) becomes so dominant in an in-group that it overrides critical thinking / independent thinking

Question 14

symptoms of groupthink

Answer 14

• overestimating the group’s might and right
• closemindedness
• pressure toward uniformity

Question 15

preventing groupthink

Answer 15

• be impartial (think independently)
• assign a “devil’s advocate” (someone who consistently presents arguments)
• subdivide the group
• invite outside expert critique
• call a second chance meeting to acknowledge doubts

Question 16

leadership

Answer 16

• the process by which certain group members motivate / guide the group
• transactional leadership: concerned with how work is progressing, sensitive to subordinate needs
• transformational leadership: consistently stick to their goals, self-confident