H. 15 Groups in Context Flashcards
Ambience
atmosphere and/or psychological response (feeling, mood, emotions) as a response to a setting (activation ↔ deactivation, pleasure ↔ displeasure). This response is based on personal preference, expectancies (attitude) and the physical aspects.
Cognitive overload
psychological response on situations and experiences that are so cognitive, perceptual, or emotional stimulating that they surpass the capacity of the information assimilation (to much is happening around you).
Attention restoration theory
conceptual analysis of executive functioning on a high level (attention and self-regulating), that states that cognitive sources can be refilled by interaction with natural surroundings. Direct attention is mentally tiring, because the attention needs to keep on being directed to one stimulus, where the other aspects of the surroundings need to be ignored. Natural surroundings can cause renewed mental energy.
Climato-economic theory (Vliert)
climate asks different things from people that live in different places → predict differences in economical, political and group-processes.
(warmth leads to aggression)
Extreme and unusual environments (EUEs)
surrounding’s context that is not equal to the places where people live usually, including isolated and limited surroundings. Groups that survive this kind of circumstances become better groups (more organised, coherent and efficient).
Equilibrium model of communication
explanation of detached behaviour in a personal setting. States that the amount of eye-contact and the intimacy of the subject influence the amount of personal space. Relaxed and personal subjects → closer, more eye-contact.
Crowding
psychological, experienced state that happens when someone has the idea that he or she doesn’t have enough space. This causes negative emotions and stress. There doesn’t need to be a high density for these causes! It depends on your attribution: which reasons do you give for your negative feelings? → crowded feeling, but it can also be appointed to for example fear.
Density-intensity hypothesis
explanation of crowding, that predicts that high-density make unpleasant situation even more unpleasant, while making pleasant situations even more pleasant. Crowding makes the experience more intense. A feeling of control also leads to a better feeling about the situation.
Sociopetal spaces
setting of the surroundings that promotes the interaction between members, like how the arrangements of the seating improves that communication.
Sociofugal spaces
keeps the members of the group from interacting with each other’s (in a waiting-area or public space this is often the case, and it causes people to go to cafés more often)
Steinzor effect
Individuals rather talk after the one sitting across from them has spoken
> Especially when there’s no leader
Head of the table effect
the inclination of group members to associate leadership and accompanying responsibilities with the position at the head of the table. This results in that when there is no clear leader, people who sit in that position automatically become the leader (that position has the most eye-contact → Steinzor effect).
3 Territories
1) Primary: high control and defence, often on the long run like a house or your own room.
2) Secondary: there where you come more often, the responds to intruders is less – parking space, chair in a classroom.
3) Public: no expectations on future use, the space is only used temporarily. Think of an elevator, a park, a restaurant, or the beach.
Synomorphy
the size of the fit between the human users and the physical situation (a higher fit indicates that the objects of the situation are used in the appropriate way).
Staffing theory
That it is harmful when there are too many or not enough people in a setting.
Overstaffed: often there are adequate performance (there are enough people present to work), but there is often dissatisfaction and more refusal among group members. Understaffed: positive responds to the challenge of the workload, more involvement with the tasks.
