Man
is by nature a social animal, and an individual who is unsocial naturally
and not accidentally is either beneath our notice or more than human.
Society is something in nature that precedes the individual. Anyone
who either cannot lead the common life or is so self-sufficient as
not to need to, and therefore does not partake of society, is either
a beast or a god. . . . . . . .. . . . Aristotle,
384-322 B.C.
The
Instinct of Gregariousness
Aristotle's famous quote suggests that we are, by our
vary nature, herd animals: driven by an unrecognized, pervasive, biological
predisposition to join together with other members of our species.
William
McDougall, in his An Introduction to Social Psychology,
1908, argued that a "herd instinct" drives us to join others.
We are
often told that the dullness of the country drives the people to the
towns. But that statement inverts the truth. It is the crowd in the
towns, the vast human herd, that exerts a baneful attraction on those
outside it. (p. 303).
Sociobiology,
or evolutionary psychology, is our modern instinct view of groups.
It stresses the extraordinary advantages of sociality over isolation.
Benifits in terms of reproduction (finding mates), avoiding predation,
gathering food, social facilitation, division of labor, and the like.
Like ants, termites, babboons, and dogs, we gather in groups because
the advantages we accrue.
Psychological
Needs and Sociality
Writing
in Group psychology and the analysis of ego, in 1922 (actually
Massenpsychologie), Freud states
that being a member of a group satisfies basic psychological needs
and desires. As
an aside, he notes that these ties are no
longer sexual in nature: "We are concerned here with love instincts
which have been diverted from their original aims, though they do
not operate with less energy on that account".
Other Need
Theories
Henry Murray's
(1938) needs approach
Abraham
Maslow's (1962) infamous hierarchy of needs includes ones that are
relevant to social living
Social Provisions
and Functionality
Functional approaches
suggest that group life is preferred over solitude because groups
supply the resources, or provisions, we need for social existence.
Relevant
"Functional" Views
Social
provisions work of Shaver and Buhrmeister
(1973) that draws a distinction between psychological intimacy and
integrated involvement.
Bale's (1980)
SYMLOG theory that highlights dominance/submission, positive/negative,
and socioemotional/task orientation
Weiss's
distinctions between social and emotional loneliness
Parsons and
Shils (1951) theory of action that stresses adaptation, goal-attainment,
integration, and pattern-maintenance.
Fiedler's
(1978) distinction between task and socioemotional leadership.
Schutz's FIRO
model that stressesthe need for control, inclusion, and affection
Yalom's factors
model that examines therapeutic resources that groups provide
their members.
Tentative
Theoretical Model
The
Big Five Functions of Groups
- Belonging
(introverson/extraversion):Groups
provide the opportunity for contact and relationships with other
individuals in an organized social network; gregariousness, other-oriented,
social, belongingness; promotes general communication and social
interaction among people; the group might be an organized one. Match
to other theories:
- integrated
involvement
- FIRO inclusion
- nAffiliation
- Forming
stage of group development
- social
loneliness
- Do you feel
that you belong in the group?
- Do you feel
ignored when you are in the group?
- Does the group
accept you?
- Do other members
make you feel your aren't welcome?
- Does the group
too often exclude you?
- Do you interact
in meaningful ways with the people in the group?
- Do other members
try to ostracize you from the group?
- Do you feel
like an outsider when you are in the group?
- Does the group
help you feel that you belong to it?
- Intimacy
(friendly/unfriendly): Provides
the opportunity for warm, supportive, loving relationships with
others; friendships, cohesive work groups, families.
- psychological
intimacy
- affection
- nIntimacy
- relationship-oriented
- Bales'
Positive socioemotional actions
- Norming
stage
- emotional
loneliness
- Do you feel
safe and secure in this group?
- Do the members
of the group dislike you?
- Are the members
emotionally distant from you?
- Do group members
behave in a kind-hearted fashion toward you?
- Do group members
distrust you?
- Do members
care about you?
- Do the members
of the group like you?
- Are the group
members emotionally close to you?
- Are group
members sometimes unkind toward you?
- Would you
say that the members of the group are your good friends?
- Generativity
(conscientious/undirected):
Provides the opportunity for productivity, achievement, success,
control of resources; task-orientation
- task-oriented
- control
- Bales'
task actions
- Performing
stage
- Can you get
more done with the group rather than without the group?
- Do you value
the work the group does?
- Are you more
productive as a result of being in the group?
- Do you focus
more on leisure than productivity when in the group?
- Is it important
for the group to get things done?
- Does your
group rarely strive for success?
- Do you socialize
in the group more than try to be productive?
- Do you get
little accomplished when you are in the group?
- Does the group
assist you in getting your tasks accomplished?
- Stability
(neuroticism or stability): Provides
the individual with the means to increase stability or decrease
anxiety; minimizes self-doubt, tension, vulnerability, insecurity,
and self-pity while increasing self-esteem, relaxation, hardiness,
safety, and self- satisfaction; tension reduction, a basis for self-esteem
and identity.
- Bales'
negative socioemotional behaviors
- Storming
phase of group development
- Social
support
- Is the group
a source of stress for you and the members?
- Does the group
increase your conflicts and tensions?
- Does the group
give you encouragement when you need it?
- Does the group
sometimes threaten your sense of self-worth?
- Does the group
increase your sense of calm?
- Do group members
too often let you down when you need their help?
- Does the group
help you cope with life's stresses?
- Is membership
in this group a source of worry for you?
- Does the group
provide you with emotional support?
- Adaptability
(openness or intelligence):
Provides the opportunity for creativity, refinement of ideas, self-improvement,
increased understanding of self and others, improved interpersonal
relations
- social
learning
- social
skills development
- member
socialization
- Is this group
a source of useful information for you?
- Does the group
generally oppose your new ideas?
- Does the group
inspire you to try and learn new things?
- Does the group
make your future seem brighter?
- Does the group
include role models for you?
- Does the group
encourage you to think creatively?
- Does the group
fail to provide standards for you?
- Do you think
you are more imaginative as a result of being in the group?
- Do members
of your group express a narrow range of interests?
- Would you
say that most people in your group are creative?
Results
Control/Power
- Are you an
influential member of this group?
- Do you sometimes
take charge in the group?
- Do you feel
powerful when you are in this group?
- Do people
in this group look to you for leadership and guidance?
- Can you exercise
control over what happens in the group?
- Are you relatively
uninfluential in this group?
- Are you a
member rather than a leader of the group?
- Do you watch
and respond more than act and direct in the group?
- Does this
group sometimes cause you to change?
Implications
- Functions of
groups. The
initial goal of the research effort was the identification of the
basic functions groups fulfill for their members. Measurement of
such functions is made difficult by individuals' lack of awareness
of their needs.
- Structure of
groups. The
"functions of groups" list (inclusion, intimacy, generativity, stability,
and adaptability, power) asks individuals to rate their group's
ability to meet basic needs. A "functional structure of groups"
list would ask individuals (who may be uninvolved observers) to
rate the group on six qualities (inclusiveness, intimacy, generativity,
stability, adaptability, power) that will determine its ability
to meet the basic nee
- Personality
X Group fit. People
join groups to satisfy five basic needs, including the need for
inclusion, the need for intimacy, the need for achievement, the
need for social support and stability, the need for intellectual
and creative development, and the need for power. The magnitude
of these needs varies across people.
- Processes.
Six basic
processes that operate in groups across time can be identified:
inclusion (who is in, who is out, what are the boundaries), intimacy
(how cohesive are we, sociometric structure), generativity (task),
individual member adjustment and stability (interpersonal dynamics),
adaptation (change in individual members), and power (conflict and
influence).
- Phases.
Although only heuristic, groups develop through six essential stages:
inclusion, growth of intimacy, increasing work orientation, support,
individual-member change, and conflict (power). The stages are forming,
warming, performing, supporting, transforming, and storming.
- Types.
Groups
vary across the dimensions. Some will provide for inclusion only
(individuals seated at a bar), others will meet all the functions
(extremely cohesive research and development group). Consideration
of where the group falls on each characteristic provides the means
of typing each group examined.
The question, Why
so social an animal? was translated into a new question "What do groups
do for their members?". The Answer:
They include them
They accept them
They help them achieve
They nurture them
They provide them with
information
They supply them with
power.
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