Social Influence and Group ProcessesClass 12 Psychology Notes

Nature and Formation of Groups

Our lives are deeply connected to groups, from our families to our friends and classmates. A group is more than just a collection of people in the same place; it's a structured system that influences our behavior and development.

What is a Group?

A group is defined as an organized system of two or more individuals who interact, are interdependent, share common motives, have specific roles, and follow norms that regulate their behavior.

Think about the difference between your family and the people watching a cricket match. Your family members depend on each other, have expected roles (like parent or child), and share common goals. The crowd at the match, however, is just a collection of individuals at the same place by chance, with no interdependence or defined roles.

Key Characteristics of a Group:

• A Social Unit: Members perceive themselves as belonging to the group, giving it a unique identity.
• Common Goals: Groups work together to achieve a specific goal or to avoid a common threat.
• Interdependence: The actions of one member can have consequences for the entire group. [!example] If a fielder in a cricket team drops an important catch, it affects the whole team's chances of winning.
• Mutual Influence: Members influence each other as they try to satisfy their needs through the group.
• Interaction: Members interact with one another, either directly or indirectly.
• Structured by Roles and Norms: Members have specific roles and are expected to follow the group's norms (unspoken rules of behavior).

• A crowd is a collection of people at a place by chance (e.g., people gathered at an accident site). It has no structure or feeling of belonging.
• A team is a special type of group where members have complementary skills, are committed to a common purpose, and hold themselves mutually accountable. In a team, both individual and teamwork matter.
• An audience is a collection of people assembled for a special purpose, like watching a movie. They are usually passive.
• A mob is an audience that has become frenzied. Mobs have a definite purpose, and their behavior is characterized by shared thought and impulsivity.

Why Do People Join Groups?

We are often members of many groups at once because different groups satisfy different needs. People join groups for several key reasons:

• Security: Being with others reduces feelings of insecurity and vulnerability. Groups provide a sense of comfort and protection.
• Status: Membership in a group that is seen as important by others can give us a sense of recognition and power.
• Self-esteem: Being part of a prestigious group can enhance our self-concept and provide a positive social identity.
• Satisfaction of Psychological and Social Needs: Groups fulfill our need for belongingness, attention, love, and power.
• Goal Achievement: Groups can help us achieve goals that would be impossible to attain alone. There is power in numbers.
• Provide Knowledge and Information: Group membership broadens our perspective by providing us with information and knowledge that we might not have as individuals.

Group Formation

The formation of a group begins with contact and interaction between people. Three conditions facilitate this process:

• Proximity: Repeated interactions with people who are physically close to us (e.g., living in the same neighborhood or attending the same school) give us a chance to know them and discover common interests, which can lead to group formation.
• Similarity: We tend to like people who are similar to us. This is because similarity provides consistency in relationships and validates our own opinions and values, making us feel that we are right. [!example] If you love playing football and meet a classmate who shares your passion, you are more likely to become friends and form a group.
• Common Motives and Goals: When people share a common goal, they often form a group to help achieve it. For instance, if you and your friends want to teach children in a slum, you might form a group to make this goal achievable.

Stages of Group Formation

Groups develop over time through several stages. Tuckman suggested a five-stage developmental sequence:

1. Forming: When members first meet, there is a lot of uncertainty. People try to get to know each other and figure out the group's goals. There is both excitement and apprehension.
2. Storming: This is a stage of intragroup conflict. Members may disagree on how to achieve the group's goal, who should be in control, and what tasks each person should perform. By the end of this stage, a leadership hierarchy begins to emerge.
3. Norming: The conflicts are resolved, and group members develop norms or standards for behavior. This leads to a positive group identity and a sense of cohesion.
4. Performing: The group's structure is now stable and accepted. The group moves towards achieving its goals. For many groups, this is the final stage.
5. Adjourning: For some groups, like an organizing committee for a school function, there is a final stage where the group is disbanded after the task is complete.

Elements of Group Structure

As groups form, they develop a structure. Four key elements define this structure:

• Roles: These are socially defined expectations for how an individual in a specific position should behave. For example, as a student, your role comes with expectations like being responsible for your studies.
• Norms: These are the expected standards of behavior and beliefs established and enforced by the group. They are the group's "unspoken rules."
• Status: This refers to the relative social position given to a group member by others. Status can be ascribed (given due to seniority) or achieved (earned through expertise or hard work). People often strive to be members of high-status groups.
• Cohesiveness: This is the togetherness, mutual attraction, or "we feeling" among group members. In a highly cohesive group, members have a strong desire to remain in the group.

Groupthink

While group cohesion is generally positive, extreme cohesiveness can lead to a negative phenomenon called groupthink, a term coined by Irving Janis.

Groupthink occurs when a group's desire for unanimity overrides its motivation to realistically evaluate different courses of action. This leads to irrational and uncritical decision-making.

Characteristics of Groupthink:

• An appearance of unanimous agreement, where dissenting opinions are suppressed.
• Each member believes that everyone else agrees, so they don't voice their concerns to avoid being unpopular or undermining group cohesion.
• The group develops an exaggerated sense of its own power and ignores real-world warnings.

Groupthink is most likely to occur in groups that are:

• Socially homogenous and highly cohesive.
• Isolated from outsiders.
• Lacking a tradition of considering alternatives.
• Facing a high-stakes decision.

How to Prevent Groupthink:

• Encourage and reward critical thinking and disagreement.
• Encourage the group to present alternative courses of action.
• Invite outside experts to evaluate the group's decisions.
• Encourage members to seek feedback from trusted people outside the group.

Type of Groups

Groups can be classified in several ways. The major types are:

Primary and Secondary Groups

• Primary Groups are pre-existing formations that are usually given to an individual, not chosen. Examples include family, caste, and religion. These groups are characterized by face-to-face interaction, close physical proximity, and warm emotional bonds. They play a major role in developing an individual's values and ideals.
• Secondary Groups are those an individual joins by choice, such as a political party or a club. Relationships in these groups are more impersonal, indirect, and less frequent. It is easier to leave a secondary group than a primary one.

Formal and Informal Groups

• Formal Groups have explicitly stated functions and roles. Their formation is based on specific rules or laws, and members have definite roles. A university or an office organization is a formal group.
• Informal Groups are not based on formal rules. They are characterized by close relationships among members. A group of friends is a classic example of an informal group.

Ingroup and Outgroup

• The ingroup is one's own group—the "we."
• The outgroup is another group—the "they."

This categorization affects our social lives. People tend to view members of their ingroup favorably, seeing them as similar and having desirable traits. In contrast, members of the outgroup are often perceived negatively.

The Minimal Group Paradigm Experiments

Experiments by Tajfel showed how easily ingroup-outgroup distinctions are formed. In his 'minimal group paradigm' experiments, he divided British schoolboys into two groups based on a flimsy criterion: their preference for paintings by either Kandinsky or Klee. The boys were then asked to distribute money to other boys, identified only by their code number and group membership.

Even though the groups had no history or future, the results showed that the boys consistently favored members of their own group. This demonstrates that even minimal group affiliation can lead to ingroup bias.

Influence of Group on Individual Behaviour

Groups have a powerful influence on how individuals perform tasks. Two key phenomena illustrate this: social loafing and group polarisation.

Social Loafing

While the presence of others can sometimes enhance performance (social facilitation), it can also lead to the opposite effect. Social loafing is the reduction of individual effort when working on a collective task where individual contributions are pooled.

Experiments by Latane demonstrated this effect. He asked students to clap or cheer as loudly as possible, either alone or in groups. As the group size increased, the total noise level went up, but the amount of noise produced by each individual dropped.

Why does social loafing occur?

• Group members feel less responsible for the overall task.
• Motivation decreases because individual contributions are not evaluated.
• There is improper coordination among members.
• Belonging to the group is not important to the members.

How to reduce social loafing:

• Make each person's efforts identifiable.
• Increase pressure to work hard by making members committed to the task.
• Increase the importance or value of the task.
• Make people feel their individual contribution is important.
• Strengthen group cohesiveness.

Group Polarisation

Groups often have to make important decisions. A common tendency observed in group decision-making is group polarisation. This is the strengthening of a group's initial position as a result of group discussion. Groups are more likely to take extreme decisions (either very risky or very cautious) than individuals would alone.

Why does group polarisation occur?

• Hearing new arguments: In a group of like-minded people, you are likely to hear new arguments that support your existing viewpoint, which strengthens it.
• Public validation (Bandwagon effect): When you see that others share your view, you feel that your opinion is validated by the public, making you more confident in it.
• Ingroup identification: When you perceive others as part of your ingroup, you start to identify with them and show conformity, which strengthens your shared views.