Crash Course: Social Groups

What is the general rule when it comes to groups?

The larger the group, the more stable, but less intimate, it is. A group of two people is obviously the smallest and most intimate kind of group, but it's also the least stable. Because, if one person leaves, there's no group anymore.

What is groupthink?

The narrowing of thought in a group, by which its members come to believe that there is only one possible correct answer. Moreover, in this mentality, to even suggest alternatives is a sign of disloyalty to the group.

What are group dynamics?

The way that individuals affect groups, and groups affect individuals.

What do heterogenous groups tend to do?

These groups have more diversity within them usually turn outward, with its members more likely to interact with outsiders.

What are primary groups?

They are small and tightly knit, bound by a very strong sense of belonging. Family and friendship groups. They're mutually supportive places where members can turn for emotional, social, and financial help. And as far as group members are concerned, the group is an end-in-itself.

What are categories?

They consist of one particular kind of person across time and space. They're sets of people who share similar characteristics.

How do laissez-faire leaders lead?

They do the least leading. They're extremely permissive, and mostly leave the group to function on its own. This means lots of freedom, but it's the least effective style at promoting group solidarity and least effective in times of crisis.

What do larger homogenous groups tend to do?

They tend to turn inward, concentrating relationships within the group instead of relying on intergroup contacts.

How can we think of groups in terms of social networks?

This perspective sees people as nodes that are all socially interconnected. You can imagine a "circle of friends" who are all connected to each other in different ways, some with strong connections in a clique or subgroup, while some are connected by much weaker ties. And you can follow the ties between all of the nodes outward, to friends-of-friends and acquaintances who exist on the periphery of the network.

What are voluntary groups?

if you belong to that group, it's because you choose to join. Secondary and primary groups are both these kind of groups.

What is a social group?

A collection of people who have something in common and who believe that what they have in common is significant. In other words, a group is partly defined by the fact that its members feel like they're part of a group.

What is an instrumental leader?

A leader who is focused on a group's goals, giving orders and making plans in order to achieve those goals.

What is an expressive leader?

A leader who is looking to increase harmony and minimize conflict within the group.

What is an aggregate?

A set of individuals who happen to be in the same place at the same time, but they aren't a group, because they don't share a sense of belonging.

How do authoritarian leaders lead?

By giving orders and setting down rules which they expect the group to follow. Such a leader earns respect, and can be effective in a crisis, but at the expense of affection from group members.

How do democratic leaders lead?

By trying to reach a consensus. Such leaders are less effective during a crisis, but, because of the variety of different viewpoints they consider, they often find more creative solutions to problems. And they're more likely to receive affection from their group's members.

What are out-groups?

Groups that you feel antagonism toward, and which you don't identify with.

What are reference groups?

Groups we use as standards to judge ourselves and others.

What are secondary groups?

Large and impersonal groups, whose members are bound primarily by a shared goal or activity, rather than by strong emotional ties. Ex. A company.

What are in-groups?

Reference groups that you feel loyalty to, and that you identify with.

What is a leader?

Someone who influences other people in the group.

What is group conformity?

When members of a group hew to the group's norms and standards.