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two or more individuals who INTERACT and influence one another

Social facilitation

strengthen our dominant response when in front of others, whether dominant response is right or wrong. perform better at easier tasks, worse at harder.


in the presence of many others; being IN a crowd intensifies positive or negative reactions. ex-student section at bball game or riot; enhances arousal

Evaluation Apprehension

concern for how others are evaluating us or when we think were being evaluated


when we wonder how co-actors are doing or how an audience is reacting; paying attention to others paying attention to us overloads cognition and causes arousal

Mere Presence

Can be aroused even when we aren't being evaluated or distracted (proven with animals)

Social Loafing

tendency for people to exert less effort when they pool efforts toward common goal than when individually accountable. Ex. cheer; alone vs together

Free Riders

people who benefit from the group but give little in return

People loaf LESS when task is

Challenging, Appealing(rewards), Involving(team spirit) ex. assembly line produced more when told they were monitored individually


loss of self awareness and evaluation apprehension; doing together what we would not alone. EX: food fight in cafeteria

Group Size effects

larger the group, more members willing to commit atrocities, "everyones doing it" attitude.

Physical anonymity

being anonymous makes you less self conscious, more group conscious and more responsive to cues in the situation, negative or positive. ex. internet anonymity induces more uninhibited behavior.

Group Polarization

Group produced enhancement of members preexisting tendencies. discussion with like minded others amplifies preexisting attitudes.

Risky-shift phenomenon

occurs not only when a group decides by consensus, after a brief discussion, individuals too will alter their decision.

Accentuation Effect

initial differences among college groups increase; SAE vs EX rivalry, each will feel more strongly with time


conservative places attract conservative people & vice versa. ex. Boulder vs Co. Springs

Group polarizaton in everyday life

Internet & terrorist groups.

Informational Influence in polarization

factual elements and info exchanged through other people, through arguments and discussion we reevaluate our opinions and thoughts

Normative Influence in polarization

social comparison, evaluating own opinions and abilities by comparing yourself with others more moral and social values

pluralistic ignorance

false impression of what other people or most people are thinking or feeling, if you don't understand, most likely others don't either


mode of thinking where agreement is such a main goal that it tends to override realistic appraisal of other courses of action

Group think is caused by

a cohesive group, isolation of the group from dissenting view points, and a directive leader

symptom of groupthink

the group tends to overestimate their might(power) and right (correctness); group members become more close minded because of rationalization; pressure towards conformity

minority slowness effect

occurs because minorities hold back to hear what the majority has to say before speaking out

Task Leadership:

directive style, gives orders. Organizes work, sets standards, focus on goals.

Social Leadership:

democratic style, delegate authority.
Builds teamwork, mediates conflict, offers support

Transformational leadership

motivates others to identify with group and mission. Enabled by a leaders vision and inspiration, exert significant influence

Wright (2003) suggested that the Internet is an effective means to rally like-minded people and mobilize lethal consequences, such as recruiting individuals for terror organizations. Which concept in social psychology best explains this trend?

group polarization

he relationship between self-consciousness and deindividuation is


Students who join extracurricular groups on campus tend to find their attitudes regarding the groups' purpose increase if they stay in the group. This is an example of

group polarization.

According to your text, people in _______ cultures exhibit less social loafing than people in _______ cultures.

collectivistic; individualistic

The concern for how others are evaluating us is called

evaluation apprehension.

Sam has a tendency to contribute little effort to group assignments, as he thinks others will be sure to pick up the slack in an effort to get a good grade. This is an example of

social loafing.

The fact that active participation in discussion produces more polarization is best explained by

informational influence processes.

All of the below are needed for "groupthink" to occur EXCEPT

members being well-informed regarding the issues.

The tendency for people to perform simple or well-learned tasks better when others are present is the original meaning of

the social facilitation effect.

Initial research on risk taking found that group discussion leads to

more risk than the average individual would take

When people experience a loss of self-awareness as well as evaluation apprehension, they are in a state of


Which of the following does NOT strengthen the group minority influence?


"Mindguards" protect group leaders from

disagreeable facts.

Which of the following is a comment you are LEAST likely to hear being made within a group characterized by groupthink?

"Let's weigh all the alternatives carefully before we proceed."

Ingham (1974) found that when blindfolded participants thought they were pulling a tug of war with other participants, they _______ than when they thought they were pulling alone.

pulled less

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