Social Psychology of Group Behavior

1. 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

2. 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?

3. 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, well-learned habits but inhibits non-dominate, poorly learned habits. Arousal caused by presence of others Social Facilitation Performance enhanced Well-learned (dominant) response Poorly learned or novel (non-dominant) response Social Interference Performance hindered

4. Why is arousal due to the presence of other people? • Biological (presence alone leads to physiological • arousal) • Evaluation concerns (by others) • Concentration/Focus

5. EASY MAZE DIFFICULT MAZE Audience Boxes Goal Goal Audience Boxes Start Floodlight Start Two mazes used in experiments on social facilitation with cockroaches (Zajonc et al., 1969) Floodlight

6. 75 70 65 60 55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Time to Complete Task (seconds) Novel Task Well-learned Task Alone Mere Presence Experimenter watching Condition

7. 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

8. 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? • Less effort • b) Coordination issues

9. Precursor to the Latane et al study (Ingram et al, 1974)

10. 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)

11. Potential productivity Actual groups Pseudo-groups 10 8 6 4 2 Reduced effort (Social loafing) Sound pressure per person Coordination loss 1 2 6 Group size

14. 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)

15. Social Loafing Across Cultures Alone Performance Group 30 27 24 21 18 15 24.5 23.8 23.3 20.8 18.5 16.5 United States Israel China Country

16. Four Kinds of Group Tasks What are common kinds of group tasks? How do they differ from on another?

17. The Stages of Groupthink What are the causes and consequences of groupthink? Isolated, cohesive, homogeneous decision-making group Lack of impartial leadership High stress Closed-mindedness 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 Antecedent Conditions Systems of Groupthink Consequences Poor decisions

20. 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

21. 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

22. 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)

23. 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

24. 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

25. Interpersonal Justice Effects Interpersonal Justice Level Acceptance of smoking ban Low High More interpersonal justice lead to greater acceptance, especially among heavy smokers 5.9 6 5 4 3 2 5.6 4.8 4.3 4.1 2.7 Heavy Light None Level of Smoking

26. Amount of money taken Reactions to Perceived Justice Violations 5.00 4.50 4.00 3.50 3.0 4.80 Greater interpersonal justice, less extra money taken 3.70 3.50 3.20 Low info., no apology High info., no apology Low info., Apology High info., Apology

27. 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

28. 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)

29. 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")

30. Why did people join? • Charasmatic leader • Desperate, sense of purpose, utopia • Initial commitment technique (FITD) • Role of severe initiation (viewed as positive)

31. 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

32. 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-for-all 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]

33. 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

34. 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)

35. 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

36. 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

37. 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

38. 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)