Group Processes

-        ; enhancement of individual performance because (but not merely) of the presence of others

-> Often with easy tasks

-        lowering of individual performance because (but not merely) of presence of others

-> often with harder tasks

o   Presence of others -> arousal -> activates dominant response(well learned behavior)

§  Process loss; if dominant response is incorrect

§  Process gain; if dominant response is correct (we can make use of it)

o   Presence of others deflects thinking towards the Group -> less attention towards task

§  -> automated tasks benefit, from less overthinking about them (but evaluation apprehension has a higher effect here)

§  -> Harder tasks, that need attention, don’t

-        unsecure but our working model, when two or more ppl think they are a group

Dregree to which a group is percieved as unit

§  Interaction

§  Importance

§  Shared goals

§  Similatity

§  Permeability

§  Size

§  Intimacy Groups (Family) -> Affiliation

·       High; interaction, importance,…

·       Low permeability and group size

§  Task group (Friends, Roomates, coworkers) -> Mastery/Utilitarian

·       Moderate; interaction importance permeability

·       High entitativity

§  Social Categories -> social identity

·       Low interactions, importance goals, entitativity (but minoritys=higher)

·       High; Groupsize durability,

§  Loose association (Random people connected by a shared experience/ goal) -> smth

·       Low on almost every other dimension

§  Prospective Member/ Investigative phase -> entry into a group

§  New Member/ socialization phase (adapting to group)-> acceptance

§  Full Member/ Maintenance phase ( satisfaction in group) -> IF not successful= divergence

§  Marginal member/ Resocialization phase -> If successful; going back/ If unsuccessful; Exit

§  Ex-Member/ remembrance phase(negotiating needs)

o   Initial Goal of Groups is to Perform -> go through different stages:

§  Forming

·       Def by uncertainty (setting goals, establish identity)

§  Storming

·       Def by Conflict (negotiation of Norms, goals

§  Norming

·       Def by Consensus (achieved hamony, positive Identity)

§  Performing

·       Def by Task orientation (Interaction, communication)

§  Adjourning

·       Def by Dissolvement ( if Task is accomplished or abandoned)

o   Force binding group members to each other (Social Glue)

è Leads to; sense of identity, interdependence, closeness, positive feelings about Group task/membership

• §  Task cohesion: shared group tasks

• §  Interpersonal cohesion; attraction to group/members

è Encourages; Cooperation, consensus seeking, norm adherence, attraction and maintenance of Members

è Might distract from tasks (Don’t sit next to friends in class), ggf. unproductive norms and more vulnerable to groupthink

Def: o   Specific positions and specific ways of interactions that are not due to dispositions

§  Allows coordinated actions

§  Are not always discussed directly but just inferred (formal/informal differentiation)

·       Task roles (focus on promoting completion of tasks)

·       Relationship roles (focus on improving quality of relations of relations)

·       Individualistic roles; (don’t serve group but rather individual)

§  Speaking Hirachy (ppl who talk more=more influential)

• Expectation states theory

§  Expectations/perception of a group member by the ingroup determine status and role

·       Diffuse status characteristics (gender,age race)

·       Specific status characteristics (task related skills & ability)

§  The higher the initial status -> the higher influence =easier to confirm status

o   Task division; divisible vs unitary

o   Task focus; maximizing vs optimizing

o   Task Combination; additive (strength of everyone is added up) vs compensatory(disjunctive; quality of best member (bigger group yay) vs conjunctive; quality of weakest member(bigger group nay))

• Set by members and task demands

• Set by group processes -> Gains as well as losses possible

individual average performance decreases with group size

o   Causes;

§  Coordination losses (coordination becomes harder the bigger the loss)

§  Motivation losses

·       Social Loafing; reducing individual contribution if it’s unidentifiable

·       Dispensability effect; if feeling that individual performance doesn’t influence group performance

·       Sucker effect; anticipatin that others will lower their effort and doing so as well to avoid exploitation

o   Social Competition; motivation to outperform (indv effort must be recognizable)

o   Social Compensation; increased effort of one becaue of decreased ability of another

o   Köhler Effect: trying to avoid responsibility/consequences for weak group performance  

è importance of group goal, and interdependence of members

o   distribution/availability of information, expertise, opinion

§  Hidden profile; Information is distributed unequal among individuals (no complete list)

§  Shared Information Bias; higher likelihood to bring up and discuss topics / information that all members share more intensely(Discussion Bias, Evaluation Bias)

-        Def: Groups of likeminded people have more extreme positions than the average of all individuals attitudes,

o   Reasons;

• Persuasive arguments (Hearing arguments repeated or even new arguments firm beliefs),

• Social comparison (Want to match the perceived norm ),

• Social categorization (distinguish from groups but in desireable way, want to distinguish from other groups)

è make the individuals attitudes more extreme

-§  Groups need to have initial tendency towards

·       Also can be influenced by

o   Systematic processing/informational influence

o   Superficial processing/normative influence

§  Exemplar study “Mr.Bs tummy aces”   

Shared Norms, Cognitions (Transactive memory; Awareness of others, skills strenght ect)

Emotions(Emotional contagion)

• Group composition

• Group syncronization

• Group learnig (just basic learning)