The study of group What is a group? 2 or more persons that define themselves as members of a group and when it exists is recognized by at least one another. Brown A collection of individuals who have relations to one another that make them interdependent to some significant degree. Cartwright and Zander A collection of individuals to be considered a group there must be some interaction. Hare A number of persons who communicate with one another, often over a span of time, and who are few enough so that each person is able to communicate with all the others, not at second hand, through other people, but face to face. Homans An aggregation of two or more people who are to some degree in dynamic interrelation with one another. McGrath Two or more persons who are interacting with one another in such a manner that each person influences and is influenced by each other person. Shaw A social unit which consists of a number of individuals who stand in definite status and role relationships to one another and which possesses a set of values or norms of its own regulating the behavior of individual members, at least in matters of consequence to the group. Sherif and Sherif A psychological group is defined as one that is psychologically significant for the members, to which they relate themselves subjectively for social comparison and the acquisition of norms and values...that they privately accept membership in and which influences their attitudes and behavior. Turner In trying to define and under stand groups we look at the 'Characteristics of Groups' Interaction;
information transfer, influence on each other, potential effect
on each other. Size how many members and what effects note; tend to gravitate to two Goals what and why are they in a group Cohesiveness the strengths of the relations and solidarity Temporal change basic changes in how the group structures change and remain stable. Analogy of development We find that groups tend to have two models; Cyclical model- certain issues tend to dominate group interaction and during the various phases of development and may be recurrent Successive-stage theorists specify that there is a usual order of phases in group development; 1. members become oriented toward one another 2. find themselves in conflict and a solution is sought 3. norms and roles develop to regulate behavior 4. can perform as a unit As we look at the nature of 'Group dynamics' and by this it is how do people and group work Kurt Lewin developed what is called field theory in regards to group, his psychological model uses what is called interactionism as a key assumption and holds that both personal characteristic and environmental characteristics affect group behavior. His formula is B=f[P,E] b= behavior, p=personal factors, E=environmental factors The study of group dynamics has been slow and not without controversy. Bitter fighting in regards to approaches, whether it was worth studying and how to go about studying. Consequently, we will learn some of the ways to view and investigate group. What is a group? Group dynamics has some faces. Some see the study of "group" as the field of sociology for it focuses on groups of people and how these groups are influenced by "societal" forces. An other face is that of psychological sciences; as the focus is on the individual's actions, thoughts, and emotions. Ivan Steiner [1974] points out that sociologists and psychologists both discovered the importance of studying groups. Durkheim a noted sociologist asserted that social life is based on interpersonal relations with in Primary groups such as family, playgroups, and sets of emotionally close peers... Group study also is a part of Social Psychology; thus the discipline of group study draws from all the Social Sciences. There are two different orientations to the study of groups; individualistic and group-oriented [ the individual is viewed as an element of a larger system When we think about two orientations of study again it reflects the orientation of sociology and psychology and the various theoretical approaches. The question of how much influence and what type of influence[s] there are. Durkheim {sociology} suggested that large groups sometimes acted with a single mind. He felt that such groups, rather than being merely collections of individuals in a fixed pattern of relationships with one another were linked by some unifying force that went beyond any single individual and the individual was dominated by the will of the group and thus he termed the "Groupmind" or collective consciousness; Floyd Alport a psychologist rejected the concept as unscientific and wasn't worth even studying. Kurt Lewin asserted that there were certain phenomena when studying groups that couldn't be explained or fully understood and adopted the idea of Gestalt psychology -The whole is greater than the sum of the parts. So again as we try to understand what groups are we also, relay on dues to make our judgment about is this collective of individuals a group; Campbell emphasizes three things to consider; 1. Common fate; the extent to which individuals in the aggregate seem to experience the same, or interrelated, outcome[s] 2. Similarity; The extent to which the individuals display the same behaviors or resemble one another 3. Proximity: the distance among individuals in the aggregate. So as we look at collectives or aggregates we want to be able to ascertain is this a group or not. The next question if you will is the study of group dynamics basic research or applied research. Lewin called the study of group action research. Group formation and development- influence and interaction in groups - Group performance - Issues and applications. When we look at social units we will notice common features that tend to be seen in all groups; Interaction among members. group structure, including roles, status and attraction relations variations in size shared common goals cohesiveness the tendency for these characteristics to change gradually over time. Secondary groups are those in which the members are not as intimate and contact is more casual, large lecture groups or committees. Psyche-verse Socio- Groups; Jennings has made the following distinction between psyche and socio groups Psyche [gang, clique] are characterized by informal, structure, few regulations, voluntary membership, homogeneity of members: ages, and no visualized goal. Their purposes are to satisfy the member’s emotional needs. Socio-groups; [school drop outs, committee] are characterized by visualized goals, heterogeneity in age, and status of members and they are problem-solving or task oriented.
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