Transcript Social Psychology of Group Behavior Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.

Social Psychology of Group Behavior
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can
change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. Margaret Mead
Does the presence of others help or hinder performance?
Early research by Triplett with bicyclists and fishing reels
 Evidence for Social Facilitation (others, acting as
competitors, helped performance)
Later studies found mixed effects; the presence of others
sometimes helped performance while other studies found that
they decreased performance
Why this inconsistency in results?
Zajonic’s Theory of Social Facilitation
How does the presence of others affect our performance on tasks?
Zajonic’s (1965) theory of social facilitation argues that the presence of
other people increases arousal, which then facilitates dominant, welllearned habits but inhibits non-dominate, poorly learned habits.
Well-learned
(dominant)
response
Poorly learned
or novel
(non-dominant)
response
Social Facilitation
Performance enhanced
Arousal caused
by presence of
others
Social Interference
Performance hindered
Why is arousal due to the presence of other people?
• Biological (presence alone leads to physiological
arousal)
• Evaluation concerns (by others)
• Concentration/Focus
EASY MAZE
Goal
DIFFICULT MAZE
Goal
Audience
Boxes
Audience
Boxes
Start
Floodlight
Start
Floodlight
Two mazes used in experiments on social
facilitation with cockroaches (Zajonc et al., 1969)
75
70
Time to Complete Task (seconds)
65
60
55
50
Novel Task
45
40
Well-learned Task
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Alone
Mere Presence
Condition
Experimenter
watching
Results of a Study of Mere Presence Effects (Schmitt et al., 1986)
Does the mere presence of another person lead to social
facilitation effects?
Schmitt et al. (1986) asked college students to type their names either
forward (easy task) or backward (difficult task). Subjects were either
alone, in the presence of a watching experimenter, or in the presence of
another subject who was wearing a blindfold and earphones.
As the previous graph shows, subjects showed social facilitation
effects (that is, less time taken on the easy task, more time
taken on the difficult task) even when the person present could
not see them, which suggests that the mere presence of another
person is somewhat arousing
Social Loafing
Do people try less hard when working in groups?
Does social loafing occur?
Ringleman Effect --- (e.g., with rope pulling task)
The average performance (input) of individuals decreases as group size increases
Why?
a)
Less effort
b) Coordination issues
Precursor to the Latane et al study (Ingram et al, 1974)
Yelling (& clapping) study by Latane, Williams, & Harkins
Alone
In actual groups
In pseudo-groups
Less individual effort when
in groups, even in “groups”
when no one was present
(but people thought they
were)
Potential productivity
Actual groups
Pseudo-groups
10
Sound
pressure
per person
8
Reduced effort
(Social loafing)
6
Coordination loss
4
2
1
2
6
Group size
Why less effort (loafing)?
• Expectation that others will try less hard (equity)
• Less social pressure on each individual group member
• Less contingency between individual inputs and
outputs (individuals in groups cannot be identified;
anonymous)
Social Loafing Across Cultures
Alone
Performance
Group
30
27
24.5
23.8
23.3
24
20.8
21
18.5
18
16.5
15
United States
Israel
Country
China
Four Kinds of Group Tasks
What are common kinds of group tasks? How do they differ from on another?
Kind of Task
Description
Examples
Additive
Group members pool or
add their efforts
•Tug of war
•Crop harvesters
Conjunctive
Group members
separately perform same
subtask (s)
•Relay Race
•Bowling Team
•Mountain-climbing
team
Disjunctive
Group members
•Quiz game team
collaborate to arrive at an •Jury
“either/or,” “yes/no”
decision
Divisible
Group members perform
subcomponents of task; a
true labor division
•Football team
•Baseball team
•NASA
The Stages of Groupthink
What are the causes and consequences of groupthink?
Antecedent
Conditions
Systems of
Groupthink
Consequences
Closed-mindedness
Isolated, cohesive,
homogeneous
decision-making
group
Lack of impartial
leadership
High stress
Rationalization
Squelching dissent
“Mindguards”
Feelings of
righteousness
and invulnerability
Self-censorship
Incomplete
examination of
alternatives
Failure to
examine risks
and consequences
Incomplete search
for information
Poor
decisions
Other Group Decision-Making Phenomena
Collective Entrapment --- The more effort used to make a decision, the
greater likelihood of sticking to that decision (even if it’s been shown to be
incorrect)
Information Sampling --- Information that is shared by most members
is most likely to be mentioned (discussed); information held by one (or a
few) members not likely to be presented
Common Knowledge Effect --- Information held by most group
members exerts a stronger impact on final decisions
Participative Decision-Making --- Some Issues
• Time requirement (group decisions take more time)
• Which decisions are made in this manner (all, some,
only the most important ones; who decides)?
• Perceptions of leaders are affected (diminished)
• Who participates (everyone, only those who are
interested, only those who are capable; who
decides)?
• Lowered individual responsibility for decisions
made
• High level of leadership skills required
Ways to Improve Group Decision-Making
Leadership style (impartial, use of outside input)
Brainstorming?
Nominal Group Technique
• Define the problem
• Individuals anonymously generate solutions
• Solutions presented to the group (no evaluation allowed)
• Group rates solutions
• Best solution is chosen (vote, consensus)
Some Basic Leadership Factors
• Flexibility in leader behavior (style must match the requirements of a given
situation such as time frame, group acceptance, decision quality)
• Know their subordinates and provide incentives that match their needs and
desires
• Treat subordinates fairly
• Set realistic and challenging goals
• Leaders need to be perceived as important in order for employees to get
rewards
• Guarantee that employee job performance leads to getting desired rewards
Perceived Fairness in Groups
Perceptions of Justice (Equity)
• Distributive Justice --- Judgments about the fairness of
outcomes/rewards given (e.g., money, promotions) relative to others
• Procedural Justice --- Perceived fairness of the procedures or
processes used
• Interpersonal Justice --- Perceptions about how people are treated
(e.g., caring, consideration) by decision makers
Interpersonal Justice Effects
Interpersonal Justice Level
Low
Acceptance of
smoking ban
High
More interpersonal justice lead
to greater acceptance, especially
among heavy smokers
5.9
6
5.6
4.8
5
4.1
4.3
4
3
2.7
2
Heavy
Light
Level of Smoking
None
Amount of money
taken
5.00
Reactions to Perceived Justice Violations
4.80
4.50
Greater interpersonal justice, less
extra money taken
4.00
3.70
3.50
3.50
3.20
3.0
Low info.,
no apology
High info.,
no apology
Low info.,
Apology
High info.,
Apology
Deindividuation: Getting Lost in the Crowd
The loosening of normal constraints on behavior when
people are in a crowd, leading to an increase in impulsive
and deviant acts
Trick or Treat Study
Identified
Anonymous
Individual
Group
More candy taken
in this condition
Why does deindividuation occur?
• Anonymous (feel less accountable for individual behavior)
• Focus is outside oneself (increases the likelihood that one will conform
to group norms)
The Jonestown Massacre
November 18, 1978 – Most of the 912 people in a
compound named “Jonestown” in British Guyana
died from voluntarily drinking Kool-Aid mixed with
cyanide, sedatives, and tranquilizers. It was
depicted by Jim Jones as an act of "revolutionary
suicide."
Jim Jones leader of the
("Peoples Temple")
Why did people join?
•
Charasmatic leader
•
Desperate, sense of purpose, utopia
•
Initial commitment technique (FITD)
•
Role of severe initiation (viewed as positive)
WHY DID THEY STAY?
• Threats/punishment
• Limited access to information
• Little communication between members
(fallacy of uniqueness)
• Self-justification (e.g., Cognitive dissonance)
• Jonestown situation perceived as inevitable
(no escape) viewed as positive (ex. Brehm study; future
notice of food or person)
Long-lasting effects!
Self-blame
Tragedy of the Commons
The Commons Dilemma: Everyone takes from a common pool of goods
that will replenish itself if used in moderation but will not if overused
Therein is the tragedy. Each man is locked into a system
that compels him to increase his herd without limit - in a
world that is limited. Ruin is the destination toward
which all men rush, each pursuing his own interest in a
society that believes in the freedom of the commons.
(Hardin, 1968)
“Capitalism recognizes only private property and free-forall property. Nobody is responsible for free-for-all
property until someone claims it as his own. He then has a
right to do as he pleases with it, a right that is uniquely
capitalist. Unlike common or personal property, capitalist
property is not valued for itself or for its utility. It is valued
for the revenue it produces for its owner. If the capitalist
owner can maximize his revenue by liquidating it, he has
the right to do that." [Apostles of Greed, pp. 58-59]
Tragedy of the Commons
Objects
.. ....
.. .
.
.
.
.. . ..
. ..
• The person who grabs the
most objects (after 10
seconds) wins the game
• After 10 seconds has
passed, any remaining objects
will be doubled
Overfishing
About one-third of all fishing stocks worldwide have
collapsed. If current trends of overfishing and pollution
continue, the populations of just about all seafood face
collapse by 2048 (Science, 2006)
World Water Supply
Water covers roughly 70 percent of Earth's surface, but only 2.5 percent
of it is freshwater, which humans need for irrigation, drinking water, and
other everyday uses.
Source: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/worldbalance/eart-nf.html
Deforestation
According to the World Resources Institute, more than 80 percent of the Earth’s natural
forests already have been destroyed. Up to 90 percent of West Africa’s coastal rain
forests have disappeared since 1900.
Map Source: http://www.kap.zcu.cz/opory/mv1_2/deforestace%20a%20desertifikace.pdf
Energy Usage
Carbon Dioxide
Emission
Surface Air Temperature
Increase
Global energy consumption and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are likely to
increase by more than 50% over the next 20 years, with much of the growth
centered in the developing world, according to the latest international energy
forecast by the U.S. Department of Energyﾕs Energy Information Administration
Some Implications of the Tradegy of the Commons
• Logging and conversion have shrunk the world's forests by as much as
half
• Nearly 70 percent of the world's major marine fish stocks are overfished
or are being fished at their biological limit
• Soil degradation has affected two-thirds of the world's agricultural lands
in the last 50 years
• Some 30 percent of the world's original forests have been converted to
agriculture
• Since 1980, the global economy has tripled in size and population has
grown by 30 percent to 6 billion people
• Twenty percent of the world's freshwater fish are extinct, threatened or
endangered
Source: United Nations Development Programme (2000)