Social Groups: Formation, Bonds, and Dynamics

• Human existence is centrally influenced by social groups
• This lecture explores what groups are, how they form, fitting in, and their purpose

What is a group?

• Characterized by more than two people, recognition as a group ("us"), and external acknowledgement
• Differentiated by common bonds, common identity, and distinctiveness

Group bonds

• Strong bonds within a group often correlate with higher performance
• Lack of bonds within a group can result in poor performance

Defining a group from social psychology perspective

• A collection of two or more people who perceive themselves as members of a shared social category (Tajfel, 1981)
• Exists when two or more people define themselves as members, and this is recognized by at least one other (Brown, 2000)
• Groups are defined by "us" versus "them" dynamics (Turner, 1982)
• Ingroups are groups we belong to
• Outgroups are groups we do not belong to

Group formation stages (Tuckman, 1965)

• Forming involves acceptance, avoiding conflict, and establishing roles/structure
• Storming addresses issues and conflict (potentially suppressed for harmony)
• Norming involves listening, support, flexibility, and establishing common identity/purpose
• Performing is task-oriented
• Adjourning means the task is complete, and the group disengages

Group socialization

• Explains the group's dynamic nature over time
• Interrelationships between the group and its members are important (Moreland & Levine, 1982)
• Individuals and the group evaluate each other to determine if membership is rewarding and worthwhile
• Commitment is influenced by group socialization

The five phases of group membership

• Prospective member (investigation)
• Marginal member (socialization)
• Member (maintenance)
• Marginal member (re-socialisation)
• Ex-member (remembrance)

Group socialisation outcomes

• Groups can benefit from positive socialisation
• Socialisation outcomes are how group members feel about how they functioned
• The most prominent component of that is group cohesion
• Group cohesion describes how well the group holds together as an entity
• Group cohesion depends on mutual support and consistent behavior

Fitting into groups (Norms)

• Norms are uniformities of behavior and attitudes defining, organizing, and differentiating groups
• Norms can be formal or informal
• Norms regulate and guide behavior
• Norms can be universal or vary across cultures

Milgram's subway study

• Able-bodied people asked others to give up their train seat
• 68% of passengers complied
• Those asking felt very uncomfortable

Littering behaviour

• Highest when there is a role model and the area is already dirty, establishing a de facto norm

How norms operate successfully

• Norms are often enforced
• People often internalize them
• They are fixed during socialisation
• They are consensual
• They are frequently activated
• They act as action heuristics to make life easier
• Group effectiveness can be increased by allowing groups to make their own norms (Coch & French, 1948)

Roles

• Shared expectations for behavior within a group
• Specific positions dictate behavior and include the division of labor, expectations, and providing information
• Groups with set roles tend to exhibit higher satisfaction and better performance (Barley & Bechky, 1994)

Role downsides

• Roles can sometimes cause the loss of sight of right and wrong
• Stanford Prison Experiment (Haney et al., 1973)
• Can be problematic when they seem illegitimate or gendered

Deviants in groups

• Deviants are people who violate norms and go against the roles and status within groups
• May be marginal group members, deviate from group prototypes, and are generally disliked
• "Black sheep" studies (Marques et al., 1988) involve presenting people with good or bad speeches
• Participants presented with good or bad speeches from ingroup or outgroup member
• Criticism is more accepted from within the group than from outsiders (Hornsey et al., 2002)
• Deviants can be constructive

How groups help us

• People in groups can often achieve more than individuals (Thibaut & Kelley, 1959)
• Grouping together with people who have the same attitudes (Baumeister & Leary, 1995)
• People look for structure to confront death (Greenberg et al., 1986)
• Positive self-image and motivation to protect the group (Tajfel & Turner, 1979) promote social identity
• It allows people to distinguish themselves from others and need to affiliate with others (Brewer, 1991)

Exclusion from Groups

• Ostracism and social exclusion can cause people to feel sad, angry, and psychologically distressed
• Being excluded hurts even if you do not want to be part of the group (Gonsalkorale & Williams, 2007)
• Ostracism and social exclusion resembles physical pain (Eisenberger et al., 2003)

Social influence

• An attempt to explain thoughts, feelings, and behaviors affected by others' presence (Allport, 1954)
• Influence can be direct or indirect
• Direct influence includes orders, persuasive information (propaganda), or threats
• Indirect influence occurs over time, regressing towards norms

Conformity

• A tendency to change perceptions, opinions, or behaviors to align with group norms (Brehm et al., 2002)
• Compliance is publicly acting in accordance with social pressure, while disagreeing
• Acceptance is both acting and believing in accordance with social pressure

Sherif's (1935) experiments on group norms

• Sherif was interested in social norm formation
• Subjects from Columbia University sat in a dark room and saw a pinpoint of light 15 feet away
• The light appeared static, then moved and disappeared.
• Each subject estimated how far the light moved
• The procedure was repeated the following day with groups of three
• As the trials advanced, subjects changed opinions and regressed towards a common average
• Group norms are a part of everyday life and reach common consensus on fashion, music, and political opinions, etc.
• Autokinetic Phenomenon occurs when a stationary light appears to move in the absence of other stimuli
• Group Norm in Sherif's experiments was actually wrong
• One year later, Sherif asked subjects if they stood over earlier estimates; almost all of them did

Reason for Sherif's results

• One feels more vulnerable when making decisions/forming opinions
• People looked to others as a source of information (informational social influence)
• Erratic dot movements led to uncertainty and others were reference points to form opinions
• Once opinions are formed, people are reluctant to change them

Asch (1951) experiments on majority influence

• Confederates gave the correct answer for the first two trails
• On the third trial, the 5 confederates each gave the incorrect, but same answer
• 75% of subjects subsequently gave the same wrong answer as the confederates
• The real answer was ambiguous in Sherif’s study, but in Asch's study it was clear
• The subjects gave what they thought was an incorrect answer because the consensus of impression was there was something wrong
• Some participants conformed because they wanted to "fit in"
• Conformity has decreased across replications

Reason for conformity

• It is adaptive and leads to better decisions in uncertain situations (informational influence)
• Conformity increases when accuracy is needed
• People want to be liked (normative influence)
• Some resist influence (Independence)
• People can rebel against influence (anti Conformity)

Boen et al 2006 conformity in sports judging

• Conformity investigated in sports judges with multiple scores over trials
• 27 judges divided into panels watched videotaped acts
• Had feedback and control conditions
• Feedback increased conformity in scores
• the study was set in Belgium using rope skipping

Key Points

• Think about factors determining conformity and compliance
• Apply the literature to every day life

Obedience

• Obedience is a social norm and part of ‘shaping’
• We are socialized as children to obey authority figures whom we view perceive as legitimate
• People obey even without an authority figure, for example, following traffic laws
• Obedience can have grave effects
• Adolf Eichmann said "I was just doing what I was told"

Why Obey?

• Obedience is done by powerful social forces that operate on all people
• Stanley Milgram researched this and made famous studies in social psychology

Stanley Milgram Experiment

• Participants arrive at a laboratory and meet another participant
• Experimenter, wearing a lab coat, explains that one of the participants will play the role of a teacher, and the other a learner
• The real participant will then draw a slip of paper and be designated 'teacher'
• The teacher will then teach the learner through word pairs
• When the learner makes a mistake, the teacher is prompted to shock them
• The experimenter instructs you to keep shocking the learner.
• 62.5% of participants delivered 450 volts
• 80% continued to shock

Role of Normative Social Influence

• Unclear about how to define what was going on, they followed the orders of the expert, the authority figure/
• Experiment was a confusing situation

Other Reasons for Obedience

• Wrong norm was followed by them and they continued to obey authority when it was no longer appropriate
• It was difficult to abandon the norm for the following 3 reasons:
  • Fast paced nature to the experiment
  • Shock level increasing in small increments
  • Loss of feeling of personal

What Determines Levels of Obedience?

• Determined by characteristics as perceived by "expertise" and "proximate distance"
• Subsequent study was done and 20% of people went all the way when receiving over the phone- compared to 21% with instructions done by a clerk
• Closeness as 40% went all the way when they were in the same room with the learner- followed by 30% holding down a learner
• Psychological dissonance leads to participants already punishing 29 times wanting to continue instead of admitting their error decisions
• Obedience is low in France and Norway

Moscovici's (1969) studies of minority influence

• Large social movements begin with small disgruntled minorities through all the anecdotal evidence
• Notes individuals have agency; a conformity bias has obscured this in psychological research
• Naming blue slides as green, minorities will influence only a slightly/significantly small minority
• acceptance from the subjects happens due to the minorities raising a “suspicion and therefore siding with the judgement" - minorities suggest that, for their constancy and influence: -Draws attention to alternative perspective and disrupt commonly accepted norms -Demonstrates more commitment

Conformity and Obedience

• Applied to inter-group conflicts

  • To gain trust, terrorist organizations persuade members to stay within

  -Desire for belonging is appreciated through lacking psych and social structures
  - Seek substitute family
  

Issue to Inter-Group Conflict

-Diffusion of Responsibility -Obedience to Authority in conjunction groups -Group psychology is most powerful way for terrorist group to express this behavior