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Groups form through personal, situational,

and interpersonal processes. Formation

depends on the members themselves;

some are more likely than others to join

groups. Groups come into existence when

circumstances push people together rather

than keeping them apart. Groups also

spring up when people discover that theylike one another, and this attraction

provides the foundation for the

development of interpersonal bonds.

Who joins groups?

When do people seek

out others?

What processes

generate bonds ofinterpersonal attraction

between members of

groups?

4

Formation

Images Courtesy of the Yorck Project

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Joining Groups

Personality

Men and Women

Social Motivation

Anxiety and Attachment

Attitudes, Experiences,

Expectations

Affiliation

Social Comparison

Stress and Affiliation

Social Comparison and the

Self

Attraction

Principles of Attraction

The Economics of

Membership

Preview

Relationships?

Depends on

attraction between

people, for groups

form when

individuals find they

like one another.Who? Depends on

individuals' personal

qualities (traits, social

motives, sex, etc.)

When? Depends on

the situation (e.g.,ambiguous, tasks)

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Joining Groups

Who Joins Groups and

Who Remains Apart?

Personality

The Five Factor

Model of Personality

Ways in which eachperson is likesomeother people;dimensions of variation

among peopleThe Five Factor Model(FFM) describes the big5 personality traits ordimensions of difference.

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Sex differences in group engagement are

relatively minor

Women tend to be higher than men in relationality.

Women seek membership in smaller, informal,

intimate groups, whereas men seek membership in

larger, more formal, task-focused groups.

These differences are likely due, in part, to sex roles

and sexism.

Men and Women

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Social motives predict peoples

interest in joining groups

need for affiliation (and

rejection sensitivity)

need for intimacy

need for power

These motives are often measured

using indirect, projective tests and

experience sample methods

Social Motivation

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Social Motivation

Schutzs work on his Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation (FIRO) theory that

explains how people use groups to satisfy their need to receive and express inclusion,

control, and affection.

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Anxiety and Attachment

Individuals

who are

socially

inhibited, shy,

and anxious

are less likely

to joingroups.

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Attitudes, Experiences,Expectations

Peoples attitudes, experiences, and expectations are

all factors that influence their decision to join a group.

Karaus Beliefs about Groups Scale

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Attitudes, Experiences,Expectations

Students who had positive experiences in groups in high school were

more likely to seek out groups to join in college (the direct relationship

between "positive experiences in groups" and "seeking groups").

Source: Brinthaupt, Moreland, & Levine, 1991; Pavelchak,Moreland, & Levine, 1986

Note: Sense of Injustice + Negative Emotions (Anger) = Social Movement Participation

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Joining Groups Affiliation Attraction

Affiliation is the gathering together of

conspecifics in one location.

Affiliation becomes more likely in some

situations and less likely in others.

When individuals face uncertain or

bewildering conditions, when they

experience stressful circumstances, and

when they are fearful (but notembarrassed), by joining a group they can

gain the information and social support they

need to help them cope with difficult

circumstances.

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Sex differences in group engagement are

relatively minor.

Women tend to be higher than men in relationality.

Women seek membership in smaller, informal,

intimate groups, whereas men seek membership in

larger, more formal, task-focused groups. These differences are likely due, in part, to sex roles

and sexism.

Joining Groups

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Ambiguous,

confusing

circumstances

Psychological

reaction

Negative

emotions

Uncertainty

Need for

information

Affiliation

and social

comparison

with others

Cognitive

Clarity

Affiliation and social comparison

Social comparison: gaining information from other peoples

reactions

(Festinger, 1954)

Social Comparison

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Schachters studies of

affiliation

How do people react in

an ambiguous,

frightening situation? Misery loves company:

People affiliate with others

Misery loves miserablecompany: Schachter found

people prefer to wait with

others facing a similar

experience.

Social Comparison

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Other Motives May Reduce Affiliation

Morris and his colleagues studied what people actually do

when they affiliate in 3 types of situations

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Groups facilitate both fight-or-flight

and tend-and-befriendresponses to

stress.

Stress and Affiliation

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Types of Social Support

Belonging

Emotional support

Informational support

Instrumental support

Spiritual support

Stress and Affiliation

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Directional

Comparison

Social Comparison and theSelf

Downward Social

Comparison

Choosingcomparisontargets who are

perform-ing

poorly comparedto oneself

Boosts self-

esteem

Upward Social

Comparison

Choosingcomparisontargets who are

perform-ing

poorly comparedto oneself

Increases

optimism,

elevates goals

Self-evaluation

Maintenance (SEM)

People prefer toassociate withindivi-duals who

do not outper-

form them inareas that are

very relevant totheir self-esteem

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If the studentsthought that the taskwas important, they

judged their

performance to besuperior to that oftheir close friend. Ifthe task was notimportant to thempersonally, they feltthat they had

performed relativelyworse (Tesser,Campbell, & Smith,1984).

Social Comparison and theSelf

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Joining Groups

Personality

Men and Women

Social Motivation

Anxiety and Attachment

Attitudes, Experiences,

Expectations

Affiliation

Social Comparison

Stress and Affiliation

Social Comparison and theSelf

Attraction

Principles of Attraction

The Economics of

Membership

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Proximity

People tend to

like those who

are situated

nearby, in part

because it

increases

familiarity andinteraction

Elaboration

Groups often

emerge when

additional

elements

(people)

become linked

to the originalmembers.

Similarity

People like

others who are

similar to them

in some way.

In

consequence,

most groupstend toward

increasing

levels of

homophily.

Principles of Attraction

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Frequent online interactionsincrease attraction.

A network view of relationalelaboration

Principles of Attraction

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Complementarity

People like

others whose

qualities

complementtheir own

qualities

Reciprocity

Liking tends to

be mutual

Minimax

Individuals are

attracted to

groups that offer

them maximumrewards and

minimal costs.

Principles of Attraction

Schutz identified two key forms of compatibility: interchange

compatibility(based on similarity) and originator compatibility(based on complementarity).

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Satisfaction is determined by comparison level (CL)

The Economics ofMembership

Value of other groups determines comparison level for

alternatives (CLalt

)

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Review

Joining Groups

Personality

Men and Women

Social Motivation

Anxiety and Attachment

Attitudes, Experiences,

Expectations

Affiliation

Social Comparison

Stress and Affiliation

Social Comparison and the

Self

Attraction

Principles of Attraction

The Economics ofMembership

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The work of art depicted in these images and the reproduction thereof are in the

public domain worldwide. The reproduction is part of a collection of reproductions

compiled by The Yorck Project. The compilation copyright is held byZenodot

Verlagsgesellschaft mbH and licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.

Henri Fantin-Latour (18361904) Around the Table

Claude Monet (18401926), Nymphas

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