Group Processes and Social Roles

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Questions and Answers

What was the sole factor that influenced the desire to date again at the first-year orientation dance?

Shared interests

Gender of the participant

Symmetry of facial features

Attractiveness of the person (correct)

What do people believe about very attractive individuals based on the 'what is beautiful is good' stereotype?

They are often judged by their looks

They have more social support (correct)

They are less intelligent

They possess negative traits

According to Sternberg's triangular theory of love, which type of love includes intimacy, passion, and commitment?

Infatuation

Consummate love (correct)

Romantic love

Companionate love

Which type of relationship is characterized by the sharing of resources without a strict expectation for return?

Communal relationship Signup and view all the answers

What phenomenon describes people being less likely to take action in a group situation?

Diffusion of responsibility Signup and view all the answers

What are microaggressions commonly associated with?

Daily verbal slights Signup and view all the answers

What are the three main components of prejudice?

Affect, behavior, cognition Signup and view all the answers

In the context of relationship satisfaction, which scenario reflects an equitable relationship according to equity theory?

Both partners contribute equally Signup and view all the answers

Which gaslighting term describes the phenomenon where bystanders assume others will take action in an emergency?

Bystander effect Signup and view all the answers

What is outgroup homogeneity?

Believing all members of an outgroup are similar Signup and view all the answers

What is social loafing?

The tendency to exert less effort when working in a group Signup and view all the answers

What does the Stanford prison study demonstrate about social roles?

Social roles can lead to extreme behavior changes Signup and view all the answers

What is groupthink?

A mode of thinking where consensus overrides realistic appraisal Signup and view all the answers

What factor is most likely to predict friendship formation according to the propinquity effect?

Functional distance Signup and view all the answers

What is social facilitation?

The enhancement of performance in a crowd Signup and view all the answers

What is process loss in group decision making?

The deterioration of group performance Signup and view all the answers

Which of these reflects normative social influence in group polarization?

Desire to conform to group consensus Signup and view all the answers

According to researchers, when is performance enhanced due to social facilitation?

When the task is easy and well-practiced Signup and view all the answers

What are the symptoms of groupthink?

Illusion of invulnerability and self-censorship Signup and view all the answers

What is the shared information bias?

Prioritizing familiar perspectives over new ideas Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Group Processes

Group Definition: A social group is defined as two or more individuals who interact and are interdependent, meaning their needs and goals affect one another.
Need to Belong: The need to belong to groups is present in all societies, according to researchers like Baumeister and Leary (1995), as it is essential for survival and well-being.
Social Roles: Social roles are the behaviors expected of individuals in particular social positions. The Stanford Prison Experiment demonstrated the power of social roles, with participants readily adopting the roles of guard and prisoner, leading to abusive behaviors by guards. This mirrors real-life instances, including the abuse of prisoners by U.S. soldiers (as reported by Zimbardo).
Social Facilitation: Enhanced performance on simple tasks in the presence of others. Performance is diminished on complex tasks.
Zajonc’s Cockroach Study: Zajonc et al. (1969) studied cockroaches to investigate social facilitation. Their study revealed that cockroaches perform better on simple tasks in the presence of others and worse on complex tasks.
Zajonc’s Theory: The presence of others causes arousal due to the evaluation apprehension, drive, and the mere presence.
Social Loafing: Reduced effort by individuals when working in a group compared to when working alone. It can unexpectedly improve performance on a task if the contribution is easily measured and if individuals are motivated to perform well.
Minimizing Social Loafing: Techniques to minimize social loafing include clear roles, individual accountability, group cohesiveness, and emphasizing importance of contributions.
Gender and Cultural Differences: Social loafing is often more pronounced in Western cultures than in collectivistic cultures. Men are more likely to engage in social loafing than women.
Social Facilitation vs. Social Loafing: Social facilitation involves improved performance in others' presence while social loafing entails decreased individual effort. Deindividuation does not always result in antisocial conduct; the context matters.
Process Loss: Reduced productivity in groups relative to that expected.
Shared Information Bias: Groups tend to focus more on shared information and less on information held by only one member of the group.
Reducing Shared Information Bias: Ways to encourage discussion of unshared information include specific instructions and requiring members to write down ideas before meeting the group.
Groupthink: A mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group and strived for unanimity overrides their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action.
Groupthink Symptoms: Symptoms of groupthink include illusions of invulnerability, belief in inherent morality of the group, rationalization, stereotyping of outgroups, self-censorship, illusions of unanimity, direct pressure on dissenters, mindguards.
Preventing Groupthink: Leaders can take preventive steps like encouraging critical evaluation, remaining impartial, seeking outside opinions, and creating subgroups for discussion.
Group Polarization: Discussion strengthens the initial inclinations of group members.

Interpersonal Attraction

Propinquity Effect: Proximity influences attraction. Festinger, Schachter, and Back (1950) found that people in close proximity in an apartment complex were more likely to become friends.
Functional Distance: Architectural design influences interaction patterns and thus friendships.
Similarity vs. Complementarity: Research generally supports similarity in attraction over complementarity. The matching phenomenon showcases people tend to pair up with those who are equally attractive.
Reciprocal Liking: People are more attracted to those who like them. Koranyi and Rothermund (2012) showed decreased attention to attractive faces when participants think the person likes them less.
Hatfield’s Dance Study: Physical attractiveness was the primary factor in dating preferences in a first-year orientation dance.
Facial Symmetry: Symmetrical faces are considered more attractive. Computer-generated composite faces including averages of features are often considered more attractive.
"What Is Beautiful Is Good" Stereotype: Attractive people are perceived to possess other positive attributes.
Evolutionary Approach to Mate Selection: The evolutionary perspective on mate selection says we are attracted to characteristics that signal good genes and reproductive success with men prioritizing indicators of fertility in women and women prioritizing indicators of resources in men.
Companionate vs. Passionate Love: Companionate love is characterized by affection and intimacy and passionate love encompasses romantic feelings and intense emotion.
Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love: Love involves intimacy, passion, and commitment. Consummate love manifests all three.
Attachment Styles: Ainsworth and colleagues (1978) identified secure, avoidant, and anxious attachment styles. Attachment styles have an effect on relationship quality.
Attachment Dimensions: Attachment is characterized by anxiety about abandonment and avoidance of intimacy.
Social Exchange Theory: This theory suggests relationships are based on reward maximization and cost minimization. This includes comparison level and comparison level for alternatives.
Investment Theory: Rusbult’s investment model posits that investments, including time, effort in commitment (as well as financial resources and shared memories) determine relationship stability. Factors include satisfaction, comparison levels for alternatives, and investments.
Equity Theory: Happiest and most stable relationships involve a balance of rewards and costs for both partners. Discomfort exists for people who perceive imbalance.
Exchange vs. Communal Relationships: Exchange relationships are based on reciprocity while communal relationships are characterized by mutual responsiveness to other's needs.

Prosocial Behavior

Prosocial Behavior vs. Altruism: Prosocial behavior is helping behavior, while altruism involves helping without expecting anything in return.
Evolutionary Explanations for Altruism: Kin selection, reciprocal altruism, and group selection are evolutionary perspectives on altruism.
Social Exchange Theory and Helping: According to social exchange theory, people will help if the rewards outweigh the costs.
Empathy-Altruism Hypothesis: Empathy motivates helping behavior regardless of personal gain. Batson et al. (1982) showed that empathy strongly influenced helping.
Bystander Effect: Individuals are less likely to help when others are present.
Bystander Intervention Decision Tree: Darley and Latané (1970) proposed a five-step model for helping in emergencies.
Diffusion of Responsibility: Reduced sense of responsibility to help when others are present.
Pluralistic Ignorance: Mistaken assumption that others do not perceive a situation as an emergency because of others' perceived lack of reaction.
Emergency Intervention Experiments: Darley and Latané (1968) and Darley and Batson (1973) studies illustrate the role of factors like group size and situational pressure on helping behaviors.

Prejudice

Components of Prejudice: Prejudice involves beliefs, emotions, and behaviors.
Prejudice, Stereotypes, and Discrimination: Stereotypes are beliefs about characteristics of a group, prejudice is an attitude of disapproval or dislike directed toward a group, and discrimination is an action based on prejudice or a stereotype.
Stereotype Use: Stereotypes are used by humans for efficiency. Stereotypes can be adaptive but can result in harm.
Hostile vs. Benevolent Sexism: Hostile sexism involves negative feelings toward women, while benevolent sexism involves seemingly positive feelings, but actually underlying negative feelings.
Microaggressions: Brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages.
Shooter Bias Study: Participants were more likely to shoot unarmed black suspects (relative to white suspects) when presented with ambiguous images.
Outgroup Homogeneity: Perception that members of an outgroup are more similar to each other than members of an ingroup. This contributes to the cross-race effect.

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Description

Explore the dynamics of group processes and the impact of social roles in this quiz. Learn about the importance of belonging and how social facilitation affects performance during tasks. Delve into experiments like the Stanford Prison Experiment to understand real-life implications of social influence.