Social Groups Social Group Definitions A social group can be defined as a family, a peer group, a sport team group, a church group, and a work group. These are all similar in the way that these groups consist of a number of people who have regular contact with each and are interested in the same things. A family typically lives together and interacts with each other on a daily basis. The members of the family share the same traditions and usually have the same expectations as to how each member is to fulfill their particular role in the group. A peer group is a collection of friends who enjoy spending time together doing things in which they all have an interest. They may like to play cards, they might like to go dancing, or they may like to just hang out and talk. A few examples of a sport team group would be a wrestling team, a football team, or a volleyball team. There are several types of church groups; such as a greeting team, a support group, a Bible study group, and a volunteer group. Being part of a church group can significantly enhance a person’s life in a positive way. Serving God can fill a person’s soul with such good feelings. A work group is a team of people who are employed by the same company. There can be several different groups within a company. Each group has a set of responsibilities to fulfill for the company. The difference among these groups is in the way they each interact with each other within their particular group. The benefit to defining these groups is that a person can be involved in each one of these groups but play a different role in each one. A mom can be a friend in a peer group, a pitcher on a baseball team, a leader of the women’s support group at church, and a supervisor of employees ... ... middle of paper ... ...es and definitions of social groups in our society today. It is beneficial to segregate the categories in order to understand how all these groups and categories of people interact with each other. It is also interesting to understand how one person can be a part of several different social groups. Most people in our society today are members of several different social groups. References The TouchPoint Bible, (1996) New Living Translation, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, IL Niu, J., and Rosenthal, S. (2009) Trust discrimination toward socially dominant and subordinate social groups, Harvard University, http://www.judsonu.edu:2102/ehost/pdf?vid=3&hid=105&sid=360fadd7-d118-4687-8f8c-d296674656b3%40sessionmgr112 Zastrow, C.H. & Kirst-Ashman, K. (2010). Understanding human behavior and the social environment. Belmont, CA: Brooks & Cole.
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Our behavior is an obvious effect of how groups affect us. Social facilitation for example occurs when an indivisual changes their performance because others are around (Cacioppo & Freberg, 2014). When Dap and Half-Pint where in the library, Half- Pint acted in a calm relatable matter, yet around the Gamma recruits he conformed to the dumb things they did. Social loafing also affects people within a group. Social loafing is the reduced motivation and effort shown by individuals working in a group as opposed to working alone (Cacioppo & Freberg, 2014). An example of social loafing would be when Dap’s group decided to march in the parade, the people supporting him wouldn’t need to apply as much effort to protest together than they would alone. School Daze also conveys the message of being lost in the crowd, which is Deindividuation. Deindividuation is the lost of personal identity within the crowd (Cacioppo & Freberg, 2014). Sororities and fraternities have the idea that all members are one. Last, but not least a group can affect one’s attitude, or the way you feel about something. The common attitudes of the sororities and fraternities lead to prejudice. Prejudice is a prejudgment, usually negative, of another person on the basis of his or her membership in a group. In School Daze, Rachael and Jane had a rivalry because they had two different points of view on hair, causing the entire group to dislike each other because they were apart of a separate group. As the saying goes, you are the company you
... that areas of expertise can be exploited, different people are good at different things. Groups can discuss material, and that discussion can improve the quality of the decision. Groups are less likely to suffer from judgmental biases that individuals have when they make decisions. People are more likely to follow through on decisions made by groups that they are connected to. Also, more monumental decisions can be made in groups, because one member will not be singled out for blame, making the entire group responsible.
Schellenberg, James A. Exploring Social Behavior: Investigations in Social Psychology. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1993. Print.
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Social structure is created by the distribution of wealth, power and prestige. The social structure consists of taken for granted beliefs about the world and both constrain and regulate human actions. The social structure consists of substructures such as class, gender and ethnicity. These groups are formed within society; each group shares common attitudes, values, social norms, lifestyle and material goods. People within society stay within the guidelines of the soc...
...son, E. D. (2008). Dimensions of Human Behaviour: Person and Environment. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
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Zastrow, C., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2013). Understanding human behavior and the social environment. Australia: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning.
Several experiments and researches have been conducted that have focused on how people behave in groups. The findings have revealed that groups affect peoples’ attitudes, behavior and perceptions. Groups are essential for personal life, as well as in work life.