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Chapter 9

WHAT IS GROUP?
❑GROUP - specifically refers to a social unit that
consists of two or more persons with all of the
following attributes:
1. Membership
2. Interaction among members
3. Goals shared by members
4. Shared norms

❑Social psychologists typically divide groups into two

categories:
❖ Primary groups - tend to be smaller groups with strong
emotional ties and bonds that endure over time.
❖ Secondary groups - are more formal and impersonal.

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SOCIAL FACILITATION
❑Phenomenon in which the mere presence of other
individuals causes persons to perform better.

❑In terms of a basic definition of social facilitation,

social facilitation refers to improvement in
performance induced by the real, implied, or
imagined presence of others.

❑Types
1. Co-action effect – A co-action effect refers to your
performance being better on a task, merely because there
are other people doing the same task as you.
2. Audience effects – An person’s performance becomes
better because he/she is doing something in front of an
audience.

SOCIAL FACILITATION
❑Factors
1. Physiological factors
▪ a higher arousal level and drive to perform that
results from your physiological arousal in a
situation involving social facilitation.

2. Cognitive factors
▪ the role of attention and distraction in social
facilitation.

3. Affective factors
▪ how anxiety and self-presentation influence
social facilitation.

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GROUP NORMS
❑Norms – rule or standard that specifies how group
members are expected to behave under given
circumstances (Hechter & Opp, 2001).

❑Functions of norms
✓ Foster coordination among members in pursuit of group
goals
✓ Norms provide a cognitive frame of reference through
which group members interpret and judge their
environment.
✓ Norms define and enhance the common identity of group
members.

CONFORMITY
❑Conformity
▪ When an individual adheres to group norms and
standards, it is called conformity.
▪ Norms do not mean much unless the group can
somehow oblige its members to live up to its norms.

❑Majority influence
➢ The group’s majority pressures an individual member
to conform or to adopt a specific position on some
issue.

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WHY CONFORM?
❑Normative Influence
▪ occurs when a member conforms to expectations held by
others (that is, to norms) in order to receive the social
rewards or avoid the punishments that are contingent on
meeting these expectations (Janes & Olson, 2000).

❑Informational Influence
▪ Occurs when a group member accepts information from
others as valid evidence about reality
▪ Occurs in situations where members are trying to solve a
complex problem unfamiliar to them (Kaplan & Miller,
1987); members considered more expert or
knowledgeable are especially likely to exercise
informational influence during such tasks. It also occurs
frequently in crisis situations when members must act
immediately but lack knowledge about the appropriate
action.

INCREASING CONFORMITY
❑Size of majority
▪ If the majority is unanimous—that is, if all the members of
the majority are united in their position—then the size of
the majority will have an impact on the behavior of the
participant.
▪ As the size of the unanimous majority increases, the amount
of conformity by participants increases (Asch, 1955;
Rosenberg, 1961).

❑Unanimity
▪ lack of unanimity among majority members has a
liberating effect on the behavior by participants. A
participant will be less likely to conform if a member
breaks away from the majority (Gorfein, 1964; Morris &
Miller, 1975).

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INCREASING CONFORMITY
❑Attraction to the Group
▪ Members who are highly attracted to a group will conform
more to group norms than members who are less attracted
to it (Kiesler & Kiesler, 1969; Mehrabian & Ksionzky, 1970).

❑Commitment to Future Interaction

▪ Members are more likely to conform to group norms when
they anticipate that their relationship with the group will be
permanent or enduring, as opposed to short term.

❑Competence
▪ If members who are skilled at the group’s task differ from
the majority’s view, they will resist pressure to the degree
that they believe themselves to be more competent than
the other group members (Ettinger, Marino, Endler, Geller,
& Natziuk, 1971).

MINORITY INFLUENCE
❑Efforts by a dissenting minority to persuade majority
members to accept a new viewpoint and adopt a new
position minority will be more influential if;
▪ it maintains its position consistently over time
▪ adopts a flexible negotiating style
▪ has many members
▪ consists of members with an in-group identity similar to
that of the majority

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Effectiveness of Minority Influence

❑Theory of Minority Influence – when minority
coalitions exercise influence, the process involved is
usually conversion, not compliance.

▪ Minority will need to create conflict and disrupt the

established order, thereby producing doubt and
uncertainty in the minds of other group members.
▪ Minority will need to offer a constructive alternative—a
coherent point of view different from that of the majority—
and indicate that it has strong confidence in the correctness
of this viewpoint.
▪ Must signal its intention not to compromise or abandon this
view, with the implication that if other members wish to
reestablish consensus and stability within the group, they
must shift their own position toward that of the minority.

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Effectiveness of Minority Influence

❑Behavioral Style
▪ Minorities are most influential when their position is
consistent but their behavioral style is not rigid—that is,
when their style of presentation is flexible and
multifaceted.

❑Size of the Minority

▪ Minority coalitions having many members can exert more
influence than those having just a few members.
▪ Consistency of the Minority
➢ Conversion Theory - minority coalition has a greater
chance of influencing the judgments or opinions of
others if it takes a distinctive position and holds it
consistently in the face of pressure

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Do individuals exert less effort in a group?

❑Group – many hands make light work

❑Effects:
❑ Social loafing – the tendency for people to exert less effort
when they pool their efforts toward a common goal than
when they are individually accountable

❑ Free-ride – people who benefit from the group but give

little in return

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When do people lose their sense of self in

groups?
❑Deindividuated – loss of self-awareness and
evaluation apprehension
➢ Occurs in group situations that foster anonymity and draw
attention away from individuals.

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