Psychology Social Facilitation and Group Dynamics

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Questions and Answers

What is the main conclusion Zajonc derived regarding the effect of audience presence on performance?

The presence of an audience only impairs performance on well-learned tasks.

Audience enhances the emission of dominant responses. (correct)

Audience presence consistently improves performance on all tasks.

The audience has no effect on learning new skills.

What characterizes the deindividuated internal state according to Zimbardo?

Enhanced concern for the evaluation of others

Increased self-restraint and social norms

Increased self-awareness and evaluation

Diminished self-awareness and self-evaluation (correct)

How did Travis's findings differ from Pessin's during their studies involving the presence of others?

Travis's tasks involved well-learned activities, while Pessin's focused on new responses. (correct)

Travis found improved performance, while Pessin found no significant change.

Travis focused on verbal tasks, while Pessin focused on motor tasks.

Both researchers indicated significant impairments in task performance.

Which factor is NOT mentioned as contributing to a deindividuated state?

Increased responsibility Signup and view all the answers

In the context of social facilitation, what role does the dominant response play according to Zajonc?

It is the most probable response, which can be right or wrong. Signup and view all the answers

What phenomenon is suggested by Zajonc regarding well-learned versus poorly learned tasks in the presence of an audience?

Performance on well-learned tasks benefits from audience presence, while poorly learned tasks suffer. Signup and view all the answers

What does the social facilitation theory suggest about the presence of others?

It can enhance performance on well-learned tasks. Signup and view all the answers

What did Diener’s study primarily investigate?

Aggression related to deindividuation Signup and view all the answers

What is hypothesized to increase due to the presence of others according to Zajonc’s observations?

The individual's general drive level. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes the findings of Cottrell's review study regarding audience presence?

Performance was impaired by the presence of an audience in learning tasks. Signup and view all the answers

What outcome is suggested by the term 'self-maintaining' in group dynamics?

Emerging norms promote open discussion and expression. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following concepts relates to reduced responsibility in group settings?

Deindividuation Signup and view all the answers

What type of tasks were shown to have improved performance in Travis's study?

Well-learned tasks such as pursuit-rotor. Signup and view all the answers

How does the presence of an audience impact the likelihood of correct responses according to Zajonc's theories?

It increases the likelihood of emitting the dominant response. Signup and view all the answers

What is a pivotal factor for a warm-up period to affect group dynamics?

There should be a high level of excitement and enthusiasm. Signup and view all the answers

What type of behavior did Diener define as aggression in his study?

Any potentially pain-producing stimuli delivered to a target Signup and view all the answers

What was the major independent variable identified in the study?

The number of other people in the discussion group Signup and view all the answers

What was identified as the dependent variable in the experiment?

The time taken for subjects to seek help Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following social phenomena is most related to the study's findings?

Diffusion of responsibility Signup and view all the answers

What psychological conflict did subjects experience during the experiment?

Guilt about not helping versus fear of overreacting Signup and view all the answers

What did the findings from Petty et al. suggest regarding group dynamics and cognitive effort?

Responsibility diffusion results in reduced cognitive effort Signup and view all the answers

What was a significant result regarding the size of the group in the response time analysis?

Groups of two and three people had comparable response times Signup and view all the answers

Which type of inhibition besides diffusion of responsibility was noted in the findings?

Audience inhibition Signup and view all the answers

What was the purpose of the subjects evaluating an editorial and a poem in the research by Petty et al.?

To assess individual versus group evaluative processes Signup and view all the answers

What was the primary focus of the study conducted by Wallach et al. in 1968?

The relationship between group responsibility and risk-taking behavior Signup and view all the answers

In the personal responsibility condition, how did participants interact with the difficulty levels of the questions?

Each individual decided the difficulty level and also answered the question. Signup and view all the answers

What was the anticipated outcome for individuals in the group responsibility-individual decision condition?

They would make conservative choices in question difficulty. Signup and view all the answers

What was the purpose of having random and group selection in the group responsibility group decision conditions?

To ensure equitable chance among members to answer the question. Signup and view all the answers

How were the questions classified in Wallach et al.'s study?

By the percentage of previous test takers who answered incorrectly. Signup and view all the answers

What demographic was primarily involved in the study by Wallach et al.?

College undergraduates attending summer session courses Signup and view all the answers

What implication did the researchers have about the responsibility of group decision-making?

Individuals may avoid difficult questions to protect group interests. Signup and view all the answers

What were the monetary rewards for answering questions in the study, dependent on?

The level of difficulty of the questions answered correctly. Signup and view all the answers

What effect did the personal responsibility-group decision condition have on risk taking compared to the control group?

Increased risk taking Signup and view all the answers

According to the diffusion of responsibility hypothesis, what happens to individual accountability in group decision-making?

Decreases as responsibility is shared among members Signup and view all the answers

What was the unexpected direction of the shift in question difficulty within the group responsibility-individual decision condition?

Shift towards more conservative decisions Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes Latane's first principle of social impact?

It is a multiplicative function of strength, immediacy, and number of social forces Signup and view all the answers

How does the presence of a group affect an individual's perception of responsibility during decision-making?

It diffuses their sense of personal accountability Signup and view all the answers

What does the second principle of social impact theory indicate about the addition of another person in a social situation?

It leads to a marginally decreasing impact on the individual Signup and view all the answers

What occurs when a responsible group member is designated in a risky group decision?

The group shares responsibility with the designated member Signup and view all the answers

What is the main observation of Wallach et al. regarding the influence of group decisions on risk levels?

Higher risk levels are more tolerable due to group dynamics Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

The mere presence of others can facilitate or hinder individual performance, depending on task difficulty and familiarity.
Well-learned tasks are facilitated by an audience, while poorly-learned tasks are hindered.
Zajonc's Drive Theory: The presence of others increases drive, making dominant responses more likely. Dominant responses are the most probable responses, but they may be correct for well-learned tasks and incorrect for poorly-learned tasks.
Enhanced drive improves performance on well-learned tasks but worsens performance on poorly-learned tasks.

Group Dynamics

Group interaction and discussion can lead to more openness and uninhibited behavior due to a warming-up period and increased social support.

Deindividuation

Deindividuation: A psychological state of diminished self-awareness and self-evaluation, leading to less restrained behavior.
Factors contributing to deindividuation include anonymity, the presence of others, decreased responsibility, and arousal.
Studies show increased anonymity leads to uninhibited behavior.
The effect of group size or audience presence on deindividuated behavior is less consistent.
Arousal can contribute to deindividuation.

Diffusion of Responsibility

The presence of others can lead to a diffusion of responsibility, meaning individuals feel less accountable for their actions.
Bystander Effect: In an emergency situation, the presence of others can lead to delayed or absent intervention, as individuals feel less responsibility to take action when they are among others.
Group decision-making can also contribute to diffusion of responsibility, leading to riskier decisions.

This theory offers a more general explanation of social influence, encapsulating previous theories, such as social facilitation and diffusion of responsibility.
Social impact is defined as “any effect of the presence or actions of other people on an individual.”
Social Impact is a function of the strength, immediacy, and number of social forces present.
The impact of each additional person decreases as the number of people increases.

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Description

Explore the concepts of social facilitation, group dynamics, and deindividuation in psychology. Understand how the presence of others affects individual performance on various tasks and the psychological states that lead to less restrained behavior in groups. Dive into theories such as Zajonc's Drive Theory and discover the factors influencing group interactions.