Week 7 - Group Processes

Question 1

Group

Answer 1

A set of individuals who interact over time and have shared fate, goals, or identity.

Question 2

Collective

Answer 2

Lowest end of the spectrum of ‘group’ (sometimes not called a group at all)

Question 3

social brain hypothesis

Answer 3

the unusually large size of primates’ brains evolved because of their unusually complex social worlds

Question 4

two fundamental types of role

Answer 4

instrumental (helps with tasks)
expressive (moral emotional support)

Question 5

Group cohesiveness

Answer 5

The extent to which forces push group members closer together, such as through feelings of intimacy, unity and commitment to group goals.

Question 6

Social facilitation

Answer 6

A process whereby the presence of others enhances performance on easy tasks but impairs performance on difficult tasks.

Question 7

mere presence theory

Answer 7

that others simply being present is enough to produce social facilitation

Question 8

evaluation apprehension theory

Answer 8

which proposes that performance will be enhanced or impaired only in the presence of others who are in a position to evaluate that performance

Question 9

distraction–conflict theory

Answer 9

that being distracted while we are working on a task creates attentional conflict

Question 10

Social loafing

Answer 10

A group-produced reduction in individual output on tasks where contributions are pooled.

Question 11

Collective effort model

Answer 11

The theory that individuals will exert effort on a collective task to the degree that they think their individual efforts will be important, relevant and meaningful for achieving outcomes that they value

Question 12

Deindividuation

Answer 12

The loss of a person’s sense of individuality and the reduction of normal constraints against deviant behaviour.

Question 13

Social identity model of deindividuation effects (SIDE)

Answer 13

A model of group behaviour that explains deindividuation effects as the result of a shift from personal identity to social identity.

Question 14

Process loss

Answer 14

The reduction in group performance due to obstacles created by group processes, such as problems of coordination and motivation.

Question 15

On an additive task…

Answer 15

the group product is the sum of all the members’ contributions (e.g. giving to charity, cheering at a concert)

Question 16

On a conjunctive task…

Answer 16

the group product is determined by the individual with the poorest performance.

Question 17

On a disjunctive task…

Answer 17

the group product is (or can be)
determined by the performance of the individual with the best performance

Question 18

Process gain

Answer 18

The increase in group performance so that the group outperforms the individuals who comprise the group.

Question 19

Brainstorming

Answer 19

A technique that attempts to increase the production of creative ideas by encouraging group members to speak freely without criticising their own or others’ contributions.

Question 20

Production blocking (brainstorm)

Answer 20

when people have to wait for their turn to speak (i.e. during brainstorm)

Question 21

Free riding (brainstorm)

Answer 21

As others contribute ideas, individuals may feel less motivated to work hard themselves. They see their own contributions as less necessary or less likely to have much impact. They therefore engage in social loafing.

Question 22

Evaluation apprehension (brainstorm)

Answer 22

In the presence of others, people may be hesitant to suggest wild, off-the-wall ideas for fear of looking foolish and being criticised. Even if they are willing to suggest such ideas, they may spend time preparing to justify them that they otherwise could have spent coming up with more ideas.

Question 23

Performance matching (brainstorm)

Answer 23

group members work only as hard as they see others work.

Question 24

persuasive arguments theory (cause of group polarisation)

Answer 24

the greater the number and persuasiveness of the arguments to which group members are exposed, the more extreme their attitudes become.

Question 25

social comparison theory (cause of group polarisation)

Answer 25

individuals develop their view of social reality by comparing themselves with others.

Question 26

Groupthink

Answer 26

is an excessive tendency to seek concurrence (i.e., agreement or uniformity) among group members. Emerges when the need for agreement takes priority over the motivation to obtain accurate information and make appropriate decisions.

Question 27

Social dilemma

Answer 27

A situation in which a self-interested choice by everyone will create the worst outcome for everyone.

Question 28

Prisoner’s dilemma

Answer 28

A type of dilemma in which one party must make either cooperative or competitive moves in relation to another party. The dilemma is typically designed so that the competitive move appears to be in one’s self-interest, but if both sides make this move, they both suffer more than if they had both cooperated.

Question 29

Resource dilemmas

Answer 29

Social dilemmas involving how two or more people will share a limited resource

Question 30

Integrative agreement

Answer 30

A negotiated resolution to a conflict in which all parties obtain outcomes that are superior to what they would have obtained from an equal division of the contested resources.

Question 31

Fixed pie syndrome

Answer 31

The belief that whatever one of them won, the other one lost.