chapter 10 behavior in groups. behavior in the presence of others the presence of others sometimes...
TRANSCRIPT
Chapter 10
Behavior in Groups
Behavior in the Presence of Others
The presence of others sometimes enhances and sometimes impairs an individual’s performance.
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Social Facilitation: People sometimes perform better in the presence of others than when they are alone
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Social facilitation occurs: Whether others are performing the
same task, or whether the others are merely observers
In many species others than humans
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Social inhibition occurs when the presence of others inhibits a person’s performance.
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Zajonc’s theory:
Presence of others
Arousal Dominant Response
If dominant response correct, SOCIAL FACILITATION
If dominant response wrong, SOCIAL INHIBITION
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Why does the presence of others motivate us? Innate tendency for arousal in the
presence of others Evaluation Apprehension Distraction-Conflict Presence of others evokes challenge
reaction when resources are sufficient, threat responses when insufficient.
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Social facilitation and inhibition occur when a person’s performance is individually identifiable
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Social Loafing: When an individual’s contribution to a collective activity cannot be evaluated, individuals often work less hard than they would alone.
Behavior in the Presence of Others
The noise produced by each person cheering decreases as group size increases (Latané, Williams, & Harkins, 1979)
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Social loafing depends on How important the person believes
his/her contribution is to group success
How much the person values group success
Karau & Williams, 1993
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Reducing Social Loafing Make each person’s contribution
identifiable Provide rewards for high group
productivity Make task meaningful, complex, or
interesting
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Social compensation occurs when a person expends great effort to compensate for others in the group. When others are performing
inadequately, and the person cares about the quality of the group product
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Across cultures Social loafing has been found in India,
Thailand, Japan, & China However, social loafing may be
greater among people from the U.S. than among Asians
Behavior in the Presence of Others
In summary: whether social facilitation or social loafing occurs depends on Whether individuals are identifiable Task complexity How much participants care about the
outcome
Behavior in the Presence of OthersSocial Impact Theory (Latané, 1981)
Impact depends on Number, Strength, Immediacy
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Deindividuation may occur in crowded, anonymous situations when people lose a sense of responsibility for their own actions and feel free to express aggressive and sexual impulses
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Zimbardo (1970) had groups of four young women deliver electric shocks to another person Groups were either easily identifiable or not
(wore “KKK”-type garb). Unidentifiable groups gave twice as many shocks
Johnson & Downing (1979) replicated the study using surgical scrubs for the unidentifiable group. Here, this group shocked less.
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Deindividuation increases when individuals are anonymous and as group size increases. Might create a special psychological
state in which people are focused externally and unaware of own values
Or might heighten individual’s identification with the group and increase conformity.
Behavior in the Presence of Others
Crowding refers to the psychological state of discomfort & stress associated with wanting more space than is available.
Social density is the objective number of people in a given space. High social density may or may not
be experienced as unpleasant
Behavior in the Presence of Others
When do people experience the presence of others as crowding? Sensory overload Loss of control Arousal and attribution to
presence of others
Behavior in the Presence of Others
People from collectivist cultures are less likely to experience high social density as crowding.
However, the negative health effects of high social density occur regardless of culture.
Basic Features of Groups A group involves multiple people
who are interdependent Typically, but not always, have
regular-face-to-face contact. Different from a social category
Basic Features of Groups Social norms are shared rules and
expectations about how group members should act.
Social roles are norms that apply to people in a particular position.
Social status refers to social position based on prestige and authority.
Basic Features of Groups Cohesiveness refers to forces that cause
members to remain in a group Positive Factors
Liking of members for each other Extent to which members act effectively together Success of group in meeting goals
Negative Factors Cost of Leaving Lack of Alternatives
Group Performance Types of Group Activities
Additive tasks Success is sum of each person’s effort
Conjunctive tasks Success depends on least competent member
Disjunctive tasks Success depends on most competent member
Subdivided tasks Success depends on both skill & coordination
Group Performance Brainstorming asks group
members to think of as many different suggestions as they can in a short time
Despite the popularity of this technique, research shows that individuals usually produce more and better ideas working alone
Group Performance When discussing matters of
opinion, groups tend to use a majority-rules decision rule.
When discussing matters of fact, groups tend to use a truth-wins decision rule.
Unanimous decisions are harder to reach but tend to leave group members more satisfied.
Group Performance Groups do not necessarily make
wise decisions because they are vulnerable to special social forces that can bias decision-making.
Group Performance Group Polarization = Group discussion
may lead to more extreme decisions. Persuasive arguments theory suggests this is due
to new information Self-presentation theory suggests this is due to
trying to “one-up” other members Social identity theory suggests group members
try to conform to the group but perceive the group norm as more extreme
If members of a group are evenly split, groups compromise rather than polarize.
Group Performance Groupthink is a process of faulty decision-
making that can occur in groups (Janis, 1982)
Occurs when group has a strong leader and is under stress
Group members become more concerned with group acceptance than correctness Group members censor themselves, do not do
a full information search, and evaluate information in a biased way.
Group Performance Overcoming groupthink:
Leader remains impartial and encourages the expression of dissent
Use separate subcommittees to discuss same issue separately
Appoint “devil’s advocates” Consult outside experts
Group Performance Group members tend to discuss
shared rather than unshared information
Groups may also use meetings to confirm rather than challenge their initial beliefs
Thus while groups have the potential to make better decisions than individuals, they do not always do so.
Competition vs. Cooperation Participants in laboratory studies
on competition tend to compete, even when cooperation would be a more rewarding strategy.
Competition vs. Cooperation The Deutsch & Krauss Trucking
Game The optimal strategy is to alternate using the one-lane road in the middle. However, players rarely cooperate.
Competition vs. Cooperation The Prisoner’s Dilemma Game
Both get one year
“A” gets 15 years;
“B” is released
“A” is released;
“B” gets 15 years
BOTH get 10 years
PRISONER “A”
PR
ISO
NER
“B
”
Competition vs. Cooperation There is a strong tendency to
compete rather than cooperate in the prisoner’s dilemma game Only about a third of choices are
cooperative Cooperation typically goes down over
time
Competition vs. Cooperation Determinants of Competition vs
Cooperation Reward Structure Personal Values Communication Reciprocity
Competition vs. Cooperation Culture and Competition
The United States has one of the most competitive cultures on earth.
Cultural values about competition are conveyed at home, at school, through the media,and through sports and games.
Competition vs Cooperation A Social Dilemma is a situation in
which the most rewarding short-term choice for an individual will ultimately lead to negative outcomes for all-concerned. Some Real-World Applications:
preserving environmental resources, avoiding littering
Leadership The leader of a group is the person
who has the most impact on group behavior and beliefs. Leaders may be appointed, elected,
or emerge over time
Leadership Leaders must perform two types of tasks,
task leadership and social leadership. An effective task leader is efficient, directive,
and knowledgeable. An effective social leader is friendly,
agreeable, concerned with feelings and socially oriented.
Sometimes a group will have a different leader for each task; sometimes the same person will serve both roles.
Leadership The great-person theory of leadership
suggests that leaders possess particular characteristics Excelling in abilities that meet the group’s
goals; strong interpersonal skills; high motivation; confident; optimistic.
An interactive perspective focuses on the match between the needs of the situation and the characteristics of the person.
Leadership Fiedler’s contingency model of
leadership effectiveness suggests that task-oriented leaders are most effective in high-control and low-control situations, while emotion-focused leaders are more effective in moderate-control situations.