Chapter 5

Groups have a significant degree of influence over people's attitudes and actions

1. Dr. Solomon Asch study says people are strongly influenced by peer pressure and want to feel they belong. . Asch was interested in seeing whether individuals would resist the temptation to change a correct response to an incorrect response because of peer pressure. 2. Asch held cards up in front of small groups of people and asked which sets of cards matched; one at a time, they were supposed to respond aloud. All but one of the group members was a confederate, having been told in advance by the researcher how to answer the question. 3. After two trials in which everyone answered correctly, the confederates intentionally answered incorrectly, as they had previously been instructed to do. 4. Of the fifty people tested, 33 percent ended up giving the incorrect answers at least half of the time, even though they knew the answers were wrong; only 25 percent always gave the right answer despite the peer pressure.

Dr. Stanley Milgram sought to determine why otherwise "good people" apparently participated in the Nazis' slaughter of Jews and others. Milgrams experiment showed how difficult it is for individuals to challenge people in positions of authority.

1. He conducted experiments in which one person (the "teacher") was instructed to administer an electric shock to the other person (the "learner") for each wrong answer given to certain questions and to increase the voltage of the shock after each wrong answer. 2. In fact, the "learner" was playing a role, intentionally giving wrong answers but only pretending to be receiving an electrical shock. 3. Since a person in apparent authority (scientist, white coat, university laboratory) continually stated that the experiment had to go on, most of the "teachers" gave in to that authority and continued to administer the "shocks" even when they appeared to produce extreme pain. 4. The scientific community was disturbed by his findings and his methods. s findings, but also by his methods. Associations of social researchers accordingly adopted codes of ethics to require that subjects be informed of the nature and purpose of social research and banned almost all deception

As groups grow larger behaviors change, with larger groups acting more formally than smaller groups.

1. In larger groups, people have stiffer body language and appear to give speeches that address an audience rather than talking to friends. 2. As groups get larger, they tend to break into smaller groups. 3. Darley and Latane research says that when larger groups break into small ones, , people are less willing to take individual responsibility (diffusion of responsibility), and they interact more formally with one another. Yet, other research points out the importance of certain values that may overcome the diffusion of responsibility.

Social networks consist of people linked by various social ties. Clusters, or factions that form within large groups, are called cliques. Cliques, family, friends, and acquaintances can all be bases for social networks.

1. Interaction takes place within social networks that connect us to the larger society. 2. Stanley Milgram did an experiment that demonstrated how small our social world really is; he found that social networks are so interrelated that almost everyone in the United States is connected by just six links. The research might have different findings based on how it's conducted. 3. One reason that it is so difficult to overcome social inequality is because our social networks contribute to inequality since the barriers that divide us into separate worlds are primarily based on social class, gender, and race-ethnicity.

Although bureaucracies are the most efficient form of social organization, they can also be dysfunctional. Dysfunctions of bureaucracies can include red tape and alienation. Examples of these dysfunctions include an overly rigid interpretation of rules and the failure of members of the same organization to communicate with one another. According to Max Weber, the impersonality of bureaucracies tends to produce workers who feel detached from the organization and each other.

1. Red tape, or the strict adherence to rules, results in nothing getting accomplished. 2. Bureaucratic alienation, a feeling of powerlessness and normlessness, occurs when workers are assigned to repetitive tasks for the corporation to achieve efficient production, thereby cutting them off from the product 3. To resist alienation, workers form primary groups band together in informal settings during the workday to offer each other support and validation. They also personalize their work space with family photographs and personal decorations. Not all workers, however, succeed in resisting alienation.

Max Weber identified the essential characteristics of bureaucracies help these organizations reach their goals, as well as grow and endure. These include the following:

1. separate levels with assignments flowing downward and accountability flowing upward 2. A division of labor 3. Written rules 4. Written communications and records 5. Impersonality and replaceability

A leader may be defined as someone who influences the behavior of others.

1. Sociologists would disagree that people are born to be leaders. Rather, they find that people with certain characteristics are more likely to become leaders—those who represent the group's values, are seen as capable of leading the group out of crisis, are more talkative, express determination and self-confidence, are taller and better looking 2. There are two types of group leaders. Instrumental (task-oriented) leaders try to keep the group moving toward its goals, reminding the members of what they are trying to accomplish. Expressive (socioemotional) leaders are less likely to be recognized as leaders but help with the group s morale. These leaders may have to minimize the friction that instrumental leaders necessarily create. 3. There are three types of leadership styles. Authoritarian leaders give orders and frequently do not explain why they praise or condemn a person's work. s work. Democratic leaders try to gain a consensus by explaining proposed actions, suggesting alternative approaches, and giving "facts" as the basis for their evaluation of the members work. Laissez-faire leaders are very passive and give the group almost total freedom to do as it wishes. 4. Psychologists Ronald Lippitt and Ralph White discovered that the leadership styles produced different results when used on small groups of young boys. Under authoritarian leaders the boys became either aggressive or apathetic; under democratic leaders they were more personal and friendly; and under laissez-faire leaders they asked more questions, made fewer decisions, and were notable for their lack of achievement.Different situations require different leadership styles.

Sociologist Irving Janis coined the word "groupthink" to refer to situations in which a group of people think alike and any suggestion of alternatives becomes a sign of disloyalty. Even moral judgments are put aside for the perceived welfare of the group.

1. The Asch and Milgram experiments demonstrate how groupthink can develop. 2. Groupthink can have both local (JonBenet case) and global consequences (Pearl Harbor). 3. Groupthink can be prevented only by insuring that leaders regularly are exposed to individuals who have views conflicting with those of the inner circle. 4. We need to to encourage and circulate research results that provide the greatest number of options for decision makers to consider in an atmosphere of free expression and academic freedom

Goal displacement occurs when an organization adopts new goals after the original goals have been achieved and there is no longer any reason for it to continue.

1. The March of Dimes is an example of this.It was originally formed to fight polio, but when that threat was eliminated, the professional staff found a new cause, birth defects. 2. With the possibility of birth defects some day being eliminated as our knowledge of human genes expand, the organization has adopted a new slogan- stronger, healthier babies- which is vague enough to ensure it's perpetual existence.

Self-fulfilling stereotypes in the "hidden" corporate culture

1. The elite have an image of who is most likely to succeed. Those whose backgrounds are similar to the elite and who look like the elite are singled out and provided with better access to information, networking, and "fast track" positions. Workers who are given opportunities to advance tend to outperform others and are more committed. 2. Those workers who do not look or act like the corporate elite do not gain these advantages, perform poorly in comparison, and end up confirming the stereotypes applied to them. 3. Rosabeth Moth Kanter's s organizational research demonstrates that the corporate culture contains hidden values that create self-fulfilling prophecy that effect peoples careers 4. The hidden values of the corporate culture that create these self fulfilling prophecies are largely invisible

5.5 Be familiar with the effects of group size on stability, intimacy, attitudes, and behavior; types and styles of leaders; the Asch experiment on peer pressure; the Milgram experiment on authority; and the implications of groupthink. To better understand how different groups work, sociologists study group dynamics, or the ways in which individuals affect groups and the ways in which groups influence individuals.

1. The study of group dynamics focuses on group size, leadership, conformity, and decision making. 2. Sociologists recognize a small group as one that is small enough for everyone in it to interact directly with all the other members.

5.4 Explain how bureaucracy and technology are coming together to produce a maximum security society

1. While the computer has the capacity to improve the quality of people it also has the potential for abuse 2. Computers allow managers to increase surveillance without face-to-face supervision. 3. Computers can create the "maximum-security workplace," potentially keeping track of every movement a worker makes while on the job. Some worry that it is only a short step from this type of workplace to the "maximum-security society."

Diversity in the workplace

1. With more than half of the US workforce minorities, immigrants, and women, dealing with diversity in the workplace is becoming unavoidable. 2. Most large companies have diversity training to help employees work successfully with others of different backgrounds. 3. Data gathered by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission indicate diversity training has little, and in some cases a negative, effect. It depends on the type of program. Specifically, those aimed at setting goals for increasing diversity and holding managers accountable tend to be successful.

In groups and out groups

Groups toward which individuals feel loyalty are called in-groups, while those toward which they feel antagonisms are called out-groups. 1. The division is significant sociologically because in-groups provide a sense of identification or belonging, which often produces rivalries between groups 2. In-group membership leads to discrimination; given our loyalty, we favor members of our in-group. Sociologist Robert K. Merton identified a double standard produced by this: the behaviors by members of an in-group are seen as virtues, while the same behaviors by members of an out-group are viewed as vices. 3. Dividing the world into "we" and "them" can sometimes lead to acts directed against the out-groups.

About secondary groups

Secondary groups are larger, relatively temporary, more anonymous, formal, and impersonal than primary groups, and are based on some interest or activity. 1. Members are likely to interact on the basis of specific roles, such as president, manager, worker, or student. 2. In industrial societies, secondary groups have multiplied and become essential to our welfare. 3. Secondary groups tend to break down into primary groups within the larger group, such as friendship cliques at school or work. The primary group serves as a buffer between the individual and the needs of the secondary group. 4. Voluntary associations are one type of secondary group, which is made up of volunteers organized around mutual interests. Voluntary associations have inner circles, whose members are distant from the rest and make group decisions by using the iron law of oligarchy.

5.1 Discuss the main characteristics of primary groups, secondary groups, in-groups and out-groups, reference groups, and social networks.

Sociologists distinguish between aggregates, categories, and groups. An aggregate is made up of individuals who temporarily share the same physical space but do not have a sense of belonging together. A category is a collection of people who have similar characteristics. Unlike groups, the individuals who make up aggregates or categories do not interact with one another or take each other into account.

Sociologist Charles H. Cooley used the term "primary group" to refer to groups characterized by cooperative, intimate, long-term, face-to-face relationships

The group becomes part of the individuals identity and the lens through which life is viewed, a mirror within. it is essential to an individual's sense of psychological well-being, as humans have an intense need for associations that promote feelings of self-esteem.

Reference groups

They are those that we use as standards to evaluate ourselves, whether or not we actually belong to those groups. 1. They exert great influence over our behavior; people may change their clothing, hair style, speech, and other characteristics to match what the reference group would expect of them. 2. Having two reference groups that clearly conflict with each other can produce intense internal conflict.

George Simmel

was one of the first sociologists to extensively study group size and the relationship between group members. As Simmel noted, the size of the group is significant for its dynamics. 1. A dyad is a social group containing two members. It is the smallest and most fragile of all human groupings. Marriages and love affairs are examples: if one member loses interest, the dyad collapses. 2. A triad is a group of three persons—a married couple with a first child, for example. Triads basically are stronger than dyads but are still extremely unstable. It is not uncommon for coalitions to form in which some members of the group align against the others. They may produce coalitions, where two members act against the third.Often, one member becomes an arbitrator or mediator because he or she always tries to settle disagreements between the other two members of the group. 3. As more members are added to a group, intensity decreases and stability increases, for more linkages exist between more people within the group. A group develops a more formal structure to accomplish it's goals, for instance by having a President, treasurer, and so on. The structure enables groups to survive over time.