Week 2 Groups Psychology Notes PDF

Group Influence, In Group and Out Groups WEEK 2 How Can Groups Help Us?  Legitimize Decisions  Sense of Security  Broader Perspectives  Divide and Conquer Social Identity Theory (Tajfel and Turner)  Explains how people form identities and how these identities shape int...

Group Influence, In Group and Out Groups WEEK 2 How Can Groups Help Us?  Legitimize Decisions  Sense of Security  Broader Perspectives  Divide and Conquer Social Identity Theory (Tajfel and Turner)  Explains how people form identities and how these identities shape interactions with others.  We form in groups and out groups to give ourselves a sense of security, identity and belonging.  We grow to favour those in our in-group while being more likely to have negative evaluations about out-groups.  We engage in behaviour which we believe will continue our membership within an identity group. Groupthink  A psychosocial process that places the group above the individual which leads to harmony and conformity  Can cause codependency and a lack of diversity within the group  Loss of individuality  The group tends to make inefficient decisions without considering alternatives which might exist outside the group Symptoms of Groupthink (Janis)  Feeling invulnerable  Collective Rationalization-False sense of conviction in opinions  Moral superiority within the group  Stereotyping of Out-Groups Symptoms of Groupthink Continued  Pressure on those who oppose decisions  Censorship or unwillingness to express one’s own opinion  False Feelings of Unanimity  “Mind guards”- protecting the group from outside opinions which could cause dissonance Fundamental Attribution Bias/Error  FAB: We attribute other people’s mistakes to their personal nature while attributing our own mistakes to situation/environmental factors.  Example: Being late for a meeting; Me- “I was late because of traffic” Them- “They were late because they are disorganized” Confirmation Bias  Our tendency to pay more attention to information which confirms our pre-existing beliefs while ignoring information which challenges our beliefs.  Example: Stereotyping  Echo chambers- false perceptions and polarization Cognitive Dissonance  Feelings of discomfort which can occur when our actions are not in line with our beliefs.  We might engage in confirmation bias to avoid the feelings of dissonance.  Avoiding the reality of dissonance can make us ignore flaws. Realistic Group Conflict Theory  Groups can become hostile with each other as they compete for common resources  Robbers Cave Experiment: 22 Boys were sent to a camp in Oklahoma to explore intergroup conflict  3 Stages: 1. Group Formation 2. Group Conflict 3. Conflict Resolution Realistic Group Conflict Theory  In stage 1, the boys were split into 2 groups of 11 and were told to bond. They were unaware of the other group.  In stage 2, the groups met and competitions were held to allocate resources and prizes. During this stage, the two groups became verbally and physically hostile with each other  In stage 3, the researchers arranged for situations with “superordinate goals” which required both groups to work together towards a common goal. This reduced intergroup hostility. Realistic Group Conflict Theory Implications  Hostility between groups can be about more than just individual differences.  Hostility can increase when resources are scarce.  When there is hostility, discussions are not effective.  Working on common goals can decrease group hostility.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PRuxMprSDQ Solutions?  Have a devil’s advocate  Value diversity in members and perspectives  Embrace debate  Intentionally seek out external perspectives