Group Processes

Question 1

What is a group? How is it different from a collective?

Answer 1

.Set of individuals w/ atleast 1 of following.direct interactions with each other over a period of time.joint membership in a social category based on sex, race, or other attributes.a shared, common fate, identity, or set of goals.collective: assembly of people engaging in a common activity, but little direct interaction

Question 2

Explain how the presence of others affects task performance, and how Zajonc’s social facilitation model accounts for these effects.

Answer 2

.social facilitation, strengthens dominant response for any task.increases arousal, if an easy task, well learned or well practiced, enhances performance.hard task (or not learned well), impairs performance

Question 3

What did Zajonc’s study with cockroaches reveal about social facilitation effects?

Answer 3

.social facilitation universal for other animals!.complex task, presence of audience cockroaches made task performance worse.simple task, presence made task performance better

Question 4

Describe the three alternative accounts for social facilitation effects. Which theory is correct?

Answer 4

.Zajonc’s mere presence theory, ppl automatically increase arousal, arousal increases dominant response.Evaluation apprehension theory, person present must be in a position to evaluate performance.playing violin, someone who knows music, can judge good or bad.someone who doesnt know music, won’t be facilitated.Stereotype threat? ASK OK for third one

Question 5

How does stereotype threat relate to social facilitation?

Answer 5

I believe threat increased arousal, which made easy tasks easier and hard tasks harder (spelling last name either normally, or backwards under a time limit)

Question 6

Describe how working with others on a task affects productivity. Explain the concept of social loafing, and identify when it occurs

Answer 6

.social loafing: group-produced reduction in individual output on easy tasks in which contributions are pooled.occurs when task is easy, individual efforts could not be identified

Question 7

What factors that can reduce the likelihood of loafing, and distinguish between situations likely to lead to social facilitation versus social loafing.

Answer 7

.people believe own performance can be identified.task is important.people believe efforts necessary for success.group punished for poor performance.group is small and/or cohesive.more interdependent in self-concept person

Question 8

How does culture influence social loafing effects?

Answer 8

.prevalent world-wide, some cultural differences found.less prevelant among woman than men, collectivist cultures than individualist cultures.sometimes more social loafing in collectivist cultures, because don’t want to stand out, more concern with matching group norm, want ot be seen as fitting in

Question 9

How can we unify the social facilitation and social loafing effects? What factors determine which outcome will result from the presence of others?

Answer 9

 Individual evaluation: Easy task  Social facilitation  Enhanced Difficult task  Social facilitation  Impaired Group evaluation: Easy task Easy task  Social loafing Social loafing  Impaired Difficult task  Social security  EnhancedUNDERSTAND GRAPH IN NOTES

Question 10

What is deindividuation and why does it occur?

Answer 10

.loss of person’s sense of individuality and the reduction of normal constraints against deviant behavior.caused by: arousal, anonymity, lack of individual responsibility

Question 11

Describe how environmental cues and a sense of identity can affect this process.

Answer 11

.accountability cues: low, les likely to be caught and punished.deliberately engage in behaviours that usually would inhibit but are gratifying.attentional cues: less sensitive to internal standards, react more to immediate situation, act more impulsively

Question 12

What does a classic study by Diener, et al. (1976) illustrate about how deindividuation can lead to such antisocial behavior?

Answer 12

.1300 trick or treating children.halloween, prime environment for individuation, in groups and wearing masks that obscure identity.some children came alone, some in groups.came to door, one condition, asked for name and where lived, another condition, didn’t.experimenter said only take one piece of candy and left, watched through camera.group and anonymous, much more candy, alone and not anonymous only one, right

Question 13

Does a loss of personal identity always lead to antisocial behavior?

Answer 13

.no.sometimes being less accountable or self-aware allows us to be more responsive to the needs of others.you adopt whatever norm of group is most salient to you, if it’s positive, you’ll engage in positive behavior.like online comments, sometimes outrageously negative, sometimes crazily supportive and positive

Question 14

What does the SIDE model predict about deindividuation effects?

Answer 14

That people do not always act in a negative fashion. They don’t just lose themselves in a mob, but instead take on the norm that is most salient to them at the time. If it is a mob of people cheering, they’ll cheer. If it is a mob of people rioting, they’ll riot.

Question 15

What is the difference between the risky shift phenomenon and group polarization?

Answer 15

.risky shift: tendency for groups to be riskier than individual’s decisions (but subsequent studies found mixed support, so….).group polarization: exaggeration through group discussion of group members’ initial tendencies

Question 16

Why does group polarization occur?

Answer 16

.Persuasive Arguments Theory: the greater the number and persuasiveness of the arguments, more extreme attitudes become, tons of justification for decision, intensifies decision.Social Comparison: we make a comparison between us and others, if already favouring a cautious position, make yourself more cautious to stand out as an individual wee woo.Social Categorization: overestimate group’s position to distinguish ingroup from outgroup

Question 17

What does research comparing various perspectives indicate about the processes involved in group polarization?

Answer 17

.According to persuasive arguments theory, the greater the number and persuasiveness of the arguments to which group members are exposed, the more extreme their attitudes become. If most group members favor a cautious decision, for example, most of the arguments discussed will favor caution, giving the members more and more reasons to think caution is the correct approach.A second explanation is based on social comparison theory. As described earlier, individuals develop their view of social reality by comparing themselves with others. In the case of group discussions, as individuals learn that most of the other group members lean in one direction on some issue, they may adopt a more extreme attitude in this same direction. In other words, people who are members of a group that believes that X is good may be willing to state to the group that twice X is even better. By advocating for twice X, individuals can distinguish themselves in the group in a manner that is approved by the group..Additional: For example, groups may polarize as a way to differentiate themselves from other groups. Each of these accounts spotlights particular processes, but taken together they all seem to contribute to the emergence of group polarization

Question 18

Define groupthink and its antecedents, behavioral symptoms, and consequences. Address how groupthink can be prevented.

Answer 18

.excessive tendency to seek concurrence among group members.emerges when need for agreement takes priority over the motivation to obtain accurate information and make appropriate decisions.antecedents: homogeneous members, group isolation, directive (as opposed to impartial) leadership, unsystematic procedures (don’t look at alternatives), stressful situation, time constraints.symptoms: overestimation of logic behind decisions, mindgaurds (ppl who pressure others towards conformity), self-censorship (don’t share contrary ideas), illusion of unanimity.prevention: consult widely with outsiders, leaders should explicitly encourage criticism (step back from initial meetings), establish a strong norm of critical review.divide big group into smaller groups, people given role of devil’s advocate in each group.second chance meetings, come back and think, concerns

Question 19

What are escalation effects and when do they occur?

Answer 19

.aka ENTRAPMENT, occurs when commitment to a failing course of action is increased to justify prior investments.like the sunken-cost fallacy, but you keep sinking more funds to try and justify prior investments!.groups much more likely to do this, and in extreme ways

Question 20

Describe the roles of biased sampling, information-processing biases, and transactive memory in group communication and performance.

Answer 20

.biased sampling of ideas: group members assume that others have the same knowledge that they do, so they are reluctant to introduce new information.information processing biases: groups are susceptible to same biases as individuals, like the base-rate fallacy

Question 21

When is biased sampling less likely to occur?

Answer 21

.less likely to occur if leaders encourage group participation.groups gain more experience with each other

Question 22

How is information processing in groups different and similar to the information processing done by individuals?

Answer 22

.Even if a group has all the available information, group members must process that information and use it to make judgments or perform tasks. How well do groups process information compared with individuals? In general, groups are susceptible to the same information- processing biases as individuals, only more so. If some bias, error, or tendency predisposes individuals to process information in a particular way, then groups exaggerate this tendency. However, if this bias, error, or tendency is unlikely among individuals processing the information ( e. g., less than half the sample), then groups are even less likely to process information in this fashion. One key advantage of groups is that they can divide a large body of information into smaller portions and delegate different members to remember these more manageable portions, ideally by matching information to individuals based on their expertise and interest. This shared process is known as transactive memory, which helps groups remember more information more efficiently than individuals.

Question 23

What is transactive memory?

Answer 23

.transactive memory: individuals responsible for different information, each have a role

Question 24

Define social dilemma.

Answer 24

.a situation in which what is good for one is bad for all, war between competing and cooperating

Question 25

Describe the prisoner’s dilemma and resource dilemmas. What is the key factor in deciding whether to cooperate or compete in the prisoner’s dilemma?

Answer 25

.prisoner’s dilemma: one-time, two-person dilemma, decision to cooperate or compete.you both confess, you just get 10 years in jail each, you both don’t confess, you only get 3 years.if one of you confesses and the other doesn’t, one gets 0 years and the other 30.cooperating in NOT confessing is the best option, .key factor: DO YOU TRUST THE PERSON.resource dilemma: concern how two or more people share a limited resource (commons dilemma, limited non-replenishing resource like a pasture for cows) (public goods dilemma: blood bank)

Question 26

Discuss mixed motives in the context of these dilemmas, and delineate psychological and structural factors that influence behavior in social dilemmas.

Answer 26

Mixed-motives: In each case, the individual can gain something by pursuing his or her self- interests, but if everyone in the group pursues self- interests, all of the group members will ultimately be worse off than if they had cooperated with each other. Each option, therefore, has possible benefits as well as potential costs. When you are in a situation like this, you may feel torn between wanting to cooperate and wanting to compete, and these mixed motives create a difficult dilemma. What do you do? The notion that the pursuit of self- interest can sometimes be self- destructive forms the basis for what is called a social dilemma. In a social dilemma, what is good for one is bad for all. If everyone makes the most self- rewarding choice, everyone suffers the greatest loss. Fear and greed are two critically important factors in determining reactions to these dilemmas— the fear of being exploited by others and the greedy desire to maximize one’s own outcomes. Trust, therefore, is essential in promoting cooperation because it reduces the fear of being exploited (and it is the most important factor in determining how someone will react in the prisoner’s dilemma). Similarly, a sense of belongingness and identity with the greater group also promotes cooperation, because this perspective can reduce fear and greed. Another important factor is threat of punishment. Groups that punish members who exploit the rest of the group are more likely to thrive. Indeed, evolutionary psychologists point to how punishing those who do not cooperate with the group is an evolved psychological mechanism because cooperation was crucial for survival.

Question 27

What is the tit-for-tat strategy and why is it effective?

Answer 27

.start with cooperation.they cooperate on one trial, you cooperate on the next one, they then follow your lead.vice versa for competing.offers you the best chances of both getting more than you would on average.effective because it’s nice, not exploitable, forgiving, and transparent (ppl can figure out quick what you’re doing)

Question 28

What are the 2 types of resource dilemmas and how do they differ?

Answer 28

.(commons dilemma, limited non-replenishing resource like a pasture for cows) .(public goods dilemma: blood bank)

Question 29

How are individual differences, gender differences, and culture related to solving social dilemmas?

Answer 29

..individual differences in SOCIAL VALUE ORIENTATION (pro social, individualist, or competitive).pro social/cooperative: tend to pursue joint interests more than individual goals.individualist orientation: maximize own gains.competitive social orientation: seek to maximize own gain relative to other people (don’t necessarily want best can get, but more relative to other people).mixed evidence on gender differences, some research say men more likely to be competitive in resource dilemmas, women more cooperative out of fear of being exploited.culture: collectivist may cooperate more with friends or ingroup members, but compete more aggressively with outgroup members.american playing with friend or stranger made no difference in prisoner’s dilemma, friend much more cooperative with than stranger, more cooperative on a whole as well

Question 30

What causes conflict between groups? What factors promote conflict escalation? Discuss how threat capacity and perceptions of others can lead to the escalation of group conflict.

Answer 30

.NUN

Question 31

Explain how GRIT can reduce group conflict.

Answer 31

.NUN