Group Dynamics, Psychology of

Small Group Behavior Chapters 1 to 3

Shaw, Marvin

Ayza C. Quintinita

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Introduction to
Small Groups

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Definition of Group
Any number of persons engaged in interaction with
one another in a single face-to-face meeting or series
of such meetings, in which each member receives
some impression or perception of each others member
distinct enough so that he can, either at the time or in
later questioning, give some reaction to each of the
others as an individual person, even though it be only
to recall that the other was present (Bales, 1950)

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Definition of Group
A collection of individuals whose existence as a
collection is rewarding to the individuals (Bass, 1960)
These are units composed of two or more people who
come into contact meaningful (Miller, 1967)
An organized system of two or more individuals who
are interrelated so that then system performs some
function, has a standard set of role relationships
among its members, and has a set of norms that
regulate the function of the group and each of its
members (McDavid & Harari, 1968)

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Definition of Group
A set of individuals who share a common fate, that is, who
are interdependent in the sense that an event which affects
one member is likely to affect all (Fiedler, 1967)
An open interaction system in which actions determine the
structure of the system and successive interactions exert
coequal effects upon the identity of the system (Slogdill,
1959)
A collectivity that has psychological implications for the
individual, based upon the person’s awareness of the other
group members, his or her membership in the group, and
the emotional significance of the group (Shaver, 1977)

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Basic Elements of the concept Group
Motivation of members may account for the formation
of a group
The group members may veridically perceive that the
group exists or that they are members of a group
Organization may be an inevitable consequence of
group process

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Group
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.
 Small group is having twenty or less members

Groups that endure for a reasonable period, have a

common goal and have developed at least a rudimentary
group structure

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Issues in Group Dynamics
Methods of Analysis
 Field theory- behavior is a result of a field of
interdependent forces.
Kurt Lewin analyzed both individual and group behavior as
parts of a system of interrelated events.
The method of analysis is similar that of physics and assumes
that the properties of any given behavioral event are determined
by its relations to other events in the same system.
 Interaction theory
Views the group as a system of interacting individuals. There are
three basic elements: activity, interaction and sentiment.
All aspects of group behavior can be understood by spelling out
the relations among the three basic elements.

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Issues in… Methods of Analysis
 Systems theory- almost the same concept as interaction
theory however the elements of this theory describes the
group as a system of interlocking elements such as
positions and roles, with much emphasis upon group
inputs and outputs
 Sociometric Orientation- emphasizes interpersonal
choices among group members.
The morale and performance of the group are seen as
depending upon the interpersonal relations among group
members that are reflected in sociometric choices.

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Issues in… Methods of Analysis
 Psychoanalytic orientation- concerned with the
motivational and defensive processes of the individual
as related to group life.
 General Psychology orientation- extends individual
theories into group behavior. Various theoretical
formulation with regard to such individual processes as
learning, motivation and perception are applied directly
to group processes.
 Empirical-statistical orientation- holds the basic
concepts of group theory can be discovered through the
applications of statistical procedures.

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Issues in… Methods of Analysis
 Formal models of orientation- construct formal models
of group behavior, using rigorous mathematical
procedures. Model builders are concerned with the
internal consistency of their models than with the degree
of correspondence between model and natural situations.
 Reinforcement theory- attempts to explain interpersonal
behavior in terms of the outcomes for group members
 Transactional approach explains group behavior as an
interchange of inputs and outputs. Each member is seen as
making contributions that are valued by other group
member.

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Issues in…
Values of Groups
 Deindividuation
 Anonymity
 Diffusion of responsibility
 Modeling the uninhibited behavior of others
 Riskier decisions
 Highly cohesive groups may become victims of
“groupthink”
 Collective panic
 Social movements may engulf people and become
victims of the distorted visions of political leaders

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Issues in…
 Pressures toward uniformity lead to conformity and may
have undesirable consequences
 Group leadership often results from appointment,
communication networks, type and amount of
communication, and the leader’s similarity to other
group members

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Approaches to the Study of Groups

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Theoretical Approaches
Group Syntality Theory
 Formulated by R. Cattell
 Syntality- personality of the group as any effect that the group
has totality
 His theory consists of two interrelated parts,
dimensions of groups- consists of panels labeled as
 population traits- characteristics of an individual members who compose
the group
 syntality traits- effects which the group has, acting as a group, which may be
in relation to another group or to the environment in which the group exists
 characteristics of internal structure- relationships among group members,
and the structural characteristics describe the organizational patterns
within the groups
dynamics of syntality

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Theoretical Approaches
Group Syntality Theory
 Major concept for analyzing the dynamics of syntality is
SYNERGY
 Activities of the group are two kinds: activities directed
toward the maintenance of the group and those directed
toward achievement of the group’s goals
 A portion of synergy must be diverted to establishing
cohesion and harmony in the group is called
maintenance synergy
 Activities which have been supplied with synergy are
called effective synergy

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Theoretical Approaches
Group Syntality Theory
 Theorems proposed by Cattell
Groups are formed to satisfy individual need and cease to
exist when no longer serve this purpose
The total synergy of a group is the vectorial resultant of the
attitudes all members toward the group
Effective synergy may be directed toward goals outside the
group; hence groups may establish patterns of reacting which
are subsidiary to some ultimate goal of the group
Individual group members may also use groups to achieve
personal goals; that is, group activities may be subsidiary to
some ultimate personal goal

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Theoretical Approaches
Group Syntality Theory
 Theorems proposed by Cattell
Patterns of behavior in groups are learned in accordance with
the law of effect
Group memberships may be overlap, but the total synergy in
such overlapping groups remains constant so long as
individual energy directed toward non-group goals remains
constant and group activities relative to goal distance do not
vary.
There exists a close parallelism between the personality traits
of the group members and the syntality traits of the group

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Theoretical Approaches
Exchange Theory
 Thibaut and Kelley (1959)
 Explains interpersonal behavior and group processes
 Primarily functionalistic, since their focus was upon what is
useful or effective from viewpoint of the group
 The theory assumes that the existence of the group is based
solely upon the participation and satisfaction of individuals
in the group
 According to the authors, the analysis of interaction involves
Definition of key concepts
Consideration of the consequences of interaction
An analysis of members’ evaluation of interpersonal relationships

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Theoretical Approaches
Exchange theory
 Central feature of INTERACTION is INTERPERSONAL
RELATIONSHIP, hence they are interdependent
 “by interaction, it is meant that they emit behavior in each
other’s presence, they create products for each other or they
communicate with each other”
 BEHAVIOR SEQUENCE consists of a number of specific motor
and verbal acts that are sequentially organized and directed
toward some immediate goal
 BEHAVIOR REPERTOIRE refers to all the possible behavior
sequences that a given person might enact during interaction
with another person, including combinations of possible
behavior sequence
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Exchange Theory
 The consequences or outcomes of interaction are described
in terms of
Rewards- aspects which the individual finds pleasurable,
enjoyable or gratifying
Costs- anything that inhibits the performance of a behavior
sequence
 Exogenous factors- external to the interpersonal
relationship
 Endogenous factors- inherent in the relationship itself;
actions depends not only upon the actions of the
individual but also upon the behaviors of the other person

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Exchange Theory
 Used a behavior matrix as prototype of group interaction
to predict the course of interaction if rewards and costs
are identified
 Proposed that an individual generally repeats a rewarded
response but does not repeat a costly response

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Theoretical Approaches
FIRO: A Theory of Interpersonal Relations
 Theory of interpersonal behavior that derives from the
psychoanalytic orientation; Fundamental Interpersonal
Relations Orientation
 Formulated by Schultz (1955); attempts to explain IB in
terms of orientation to others
 Particular char. that an individual exemplifies:
Inclusion
Control
Affection

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FIRO
 Inclusion- the need of togetherness, the need to be
associated
 Control- the decision-making process between people.
 Affection- close personal and emotional feelings
between two individuals, and its extremes are
represented by love and hate.
 Three types of compatibility-incompatibility in the need
areas:
Interchange compatibility
Originator compatibility
Reciprocal compatibility

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FIRO
 Interchange compatibility
 Based upon the mutual expression of inclusion, affection and
control
 This exists when the two persons interacting are similar with
respect to the amount of exchange desired; incompatibility
results from dissimilarity in this respect.
 Originator
 Derives from the originator-receiver dimension of interaction
 Two persons are compatible to the degree of that the expression
of the three needs corresponds to that with the other person
wishes to receive in that area
 Reciprocal
 Degree to which two persons “reciprocally satisfy each others
behavior preferences

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Group Congruency Theory
 Benoit- Smullyan observed that a person in a given
society can be ranked on a variety of dimensions such as
age, education, income, occupational prestige, and
power and suggested that such rankings tend toward
equilibration
 Hrycenko and Minton hypothesized that satisfaction
with one’s power position in a group will be determined
by the interaction of preference for locus of control and
the actual degree of power possessed

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Group Congruency Theory
 Non-conflicting, harmonious relationships among
group elements; hence congruent groups should have
characterized by harmonious group process and greater
productivity.
 Group performance is assumed to be the consequence of
a complex set of variables or group elements and the
interactions among those elements.
 Group elements- all those aspects of the group and the
group situation that influence or may be expected to
influence group process

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 Theoretical prepositions:
1. Groups vary in the degree to which elements of the group fit
together harmoniously, in the degree of group congruency
2. The less congruent the group elements, the greater the
disruption of the internal functioning of the group
3. The more the internal functioning of the group is disrupted,
the poorer the performance of the group
4. The more the internal functioning of the group is disrupted,
the lower the morale (general satisfaction) of the group
members

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Comparisons
Theory
of theories
Precision Other characteristics

Exchange >relatively precise predictions on group >most comprehensive

behavior but suffers from measurement
problem
Group >lacks precision in the definition of >aspire generality but are not
Syntality some terms easily extended to all forms of
group behavior

FIRO >relatively precise predictions on group >requires measurement of needs

behavior but suffers from measurement and the combining of these
problem measures to predict compatibility

Group >lacks precision since no specifications >aspire generality but are not
Congruency of rules or determining objectively easily extended to all forms of
group behavior

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Empirical Approaches
Field studies
 Descriptive-exploratory studies
 Natural experiments
 Field experiments
Laboratory experiments
 Experienced groups
 Selected naïve groups
 Random naïve groups
Role playing
 Role visualization
 Role enactment

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Field Study
Descriptive-exploratory
 Describe groups under investigation, often with the
intention of identifying relationships among variables
 The exact purpose served by this approach varies from a
mere description of the characteristics of the groups to
the formulation of precise hypotheses about functional
relationships
 Attractive to investigators concerned with the relevance
of empirical studies to natural situations

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Natural experiments
 Investigators take advantage of naturally occurring
changes to study their effects upon group processes
 The naturality can sometimes be planned advance
however does not have control over the manipulation,
uncontrolled and unknown variables may be
contaminating to the results
Field experiments
 Carries the degree of experimental control but does so in
a field setting

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Field experiments
 The investigator controls the manipulation of certain
variables but does in a field setting
 Has more control over the variables rather than those at
natural experiments

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Laboratory Experiments

Experienced groups
 When natural groups are brought into the laboratory;
members of the group have already established
relationships among themselves, and the many
processes of group formation have already been
completed
Selected Naïve groups
 The advantage of permitting relatively precise
specification of group characteristics, but care must be
taken to ensure that such selection does not result in the
unwitting variation of other significant variables

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Random naïve groups
 Subjects are randomly assigned to the groups and
exposed to different treatments
Note: Both random and selected naïve groups are
criticized to be “artificial” since they do not entirely exist
in the whole world

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Role playing Experiments
Role Visualization
 Requires the subject to passively visualize another
person’s role and to predict the other person’s behavior
 Often used to test some theory about psychological
processes occurring in typical social psychological
experiments
Role Enactment
 For purposes of interest in understanding the behavior
of other persons in response to the behavior of the role
player(s) and/or in the consequences of specific role
enactments for group processes and outcome

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Individuals and Groups

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Social Facilitation
 Concerned with the influence of the mere presence of
others on individual behavior
 Through history, inconsistent results were showed; the
presence of others (facilitating, inhibiting or irrelevant
seems to be unpredictable without knowledge of other
factors

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Social Facilitation
Triplett’s Hypothesis
 Believed that “dynamogenic factors” played a bigger role
 The presence of others releases a latent energy that is not usually
available to the individual
Zajonc’s Drive Theory
 Mere presence of others has arousal consequences; an audience is
drive-producing
Cottrell’s Theory of Learned Social Drive
 The presence of other people does not necessarily increase drive
unless it arouses anticipations of positive or negative outcomes
Distraction-Conflict Theory
 Socially mediated drive-arousal will occur whenever there is some
reason to shift attention from the task to social stimuli

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Individual vs Group Performance

 Individual vs. Group Judgment

Does the quality of group judgment exceed that of the
average individual performance of the group members?
Does the quality of group performance exceed that of the
most proficient member of the group
 Individual vs. Group Problem Solving
 Individual vs. Group Learning

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