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THE HUMAN GROUP
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Sociability is part of the human condition
Man is...born into a groupgrows up in a groupsocializes with a grouplearns many things in a group.And will die in a group. For the last timehis own group will follow him to pay their lasthomage to him.
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What is a group:
Composed of two or more persons
interacting with each other, guided by set of
norms.
consistent, coordinated action toward the
achievement of some common objectives iswhats important
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What is a Group?
Specified number of individuals where each
recognizes members from non-members
It refers to two or more people comingtogether.
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Some meanings implied in the termgroup:
Social category ( emphasis on sharing of
traits )
A group life emphasizing commonpresence and minimum awareness of other
Social group which essence lie in common
association, awareness of others , sociallyshared goals
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Social group is not synonymous to :
A category
A crowd / an aggregate ( people whohappen to be in a same place, for a ride,
show , movie etc. and share little else.)
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Primary vs. Secondary Group
A small social group
whose members share
personal and enduring
relationships Personal and tightly
integrated
Among the first groups we
experience in life
Shows personal
orientation
A large and impersonal
social group whose
members pursue a
specific goal or activity A secondary relationship
involving weak emotional
ties and little personal
knowledge of one another
Shows goal orientation
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Characteristics of GroupsGenerally groups share the following characteristics:
Permanence beyond meetings and members
that is , even when members are dispersed.
Means of identifying members,
Mechanisms for recruiting members,
Goals or purposes,
Social statuses and roles, i.e. norms of behavior,
Means of controlling members behavior.
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Common Bases of Groups:
Common ancestrythe strongest tie that bind
human beings ( Fichter).
Territory shared in commonphysical territory,
sociological neighborhood.
Similar bodily characteristicsathletic groups,
gender groups
Common interests.scientific, business,professional associations.
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Basic Classifications of Social Groups: this depends onthe purpose of classification.
Primary vs. Secondary Groups
In-groups vs. out-groups
Informal vs. formal groups Gemenschaft vs. gesselschaft
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Primary vs. Secondary
A social group
characterized by intimate
face-to-face relationship
and close associationand cooperation
we
Relationships are
spontaneous, personaland intimate.
Groups in which
relationships are
impersonal and widely
separate. Less intimacy among the
members, with specific
goals, formally organized
and impersonal they
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Primary vs. Secondary
Physical Conditions
Small number
Long duration
Big number
Short duration
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Primary vs. Secondary
Social Characteristics
Intrinsic valuation of relation
Intrinsic valuation of other
person
Inclusive knowledge of other
person
Feeling of freedom and
spontaneity
Operation of informal controls
Extrinsic valuation of relation
Extrinsic valuation of other
persons
Specialized and limited
knowledge of other persons
Feeling of external constraints
Operation of formal controls
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Primary vs. Secondary
Sample Relationships
Friend- friend
Husband-wife
Parentchild
Teacher-pupil
Clerk-costumer
Announcer-listener
Performer-spectator
Officer-subordinate
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Primary vs. Secondary
Sample Groups
Play group
Family
Village or Neighborhood
Work-team
Nation
Church hierarchy
Professional association
Corporation
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In-group vs. Out-group
A social group
commanding
members esteem and
loyalty
we
A social group toward
which one feels
competition or
opposition
they
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Formal vs. Informal
Goals objectives areexplicitly labeled
Roles and statuses
are specifically defined Norms and behaviour
are formalized intopolicies
Often governed byconstitution and by-laws
Arises spontaneouslyout of the interactiontwo of or more
persons Unplanned, no specific
goals, no rules formembership
Posses characteristicsof a primary group
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Gemeinschaft vs. Gesselschaft
Relationships are close,durable and highlyvalued by members.
Most impt.. Unit ofsociety is family.
Social control inmaintained by customsand traditions.
Ndividuals are agents ofconformity
Relationships are impersonaland segmented
Social networks other than thefamily are pivotal points where
individuals organize majorparts of their lives.
Social ties becomesassociational with division oflabor
Locus of social control is law.
This is usually found insocieties undergoingurbanization andindustrialization.
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The Groups Influence on the Individual
Individuals in the presence of others become arousedor motivated to perform some kinds of physical and
social skills at higher levels of excellence than they
would if they are alone.
Example: athletesteam workcommon goals-cheerers.
Students taking exams with a group than being alone/
This situation in which an individual is stimulated by the
presence of others is called social facilitation.
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The Groups Influence on the Individual
However, presence of others may inhibit the learning ofnew subject matter; individuals can assimilate
information more rapidly by themselves.
This situation is called social inhibition in which the
presence of others blocks or retards onesperformance.
Group pressure exerts powerful influence on members
opinions.
Group disucssions also plays an iportan trole inshapings ones attitude and behavior. A process of
Attitudinal change best made in group context than
individuallly.
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Why do some people conform? What are their reasons forviolating the norms?
Norms develop and conformity occurs because individuals seekothers with similar characteristics.
Based on Aristotles notion of distributive justice, it can be said
that rewards in society are passed out according to what one
does. Presumably, if an action is not likely to achieve a profit, thataction will not occur.
Conformity is seen as rewarding because it confers social
acceptance, whereas deviancy is viewed as costly because it
brings social discomfort and may result to various forms ofpunishments.
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Linkages in Group : Social Linkages may explain why peopleconnect with certain types of groups.
Diagramming social relationships.
Sociometryhelps us understand how people interelate in social
relaitonship in which everybody knows everybody else.. School
teachers may arrange seating plans to indentify friendships and
break unwanted conversations.
Social networksa persons social networks consist of all those
people whm she/he is directly or indirectly linked. ( Example
facebook list of friends)
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Importance of ones knowing social networks?
It helps people who are interested in the adoption of innovation orthe tranmission of information to people.
Network analysis may be used to understand which people hae
power in a community as well as how corporaitons are interlocked
through members of their board of trustees.
Social networks can provide data about social structure. They provide data on peoples interrelationships. Social netwroks
provide emotional and social support to people in a complex
society.
Sociologist and anthropologist may utilize knowledge of social
netwroks in order to categorize the societies in which they arefound.
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Dimensions of Groups
Size Structure
Nature of goals
Identifiabiluty of members
Cohesiveness
Leadership styles.
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Dimensions of Groups
Sizemay range from 2 to the entire population. Small group maybe dyad ( 2) , triad (3) , or a collectivity of 20 to
30 individuals.
Intermediate and large scale relationships include various social
units such as organizaiton, communities and societies.
Size of a group may affect quality of interaction in any group. Dyads are particularly fragile. The removal of either party
destroys the relationship.
Addition of a thrid party in a triad reduces the fragility of the
relationship but may set the formation of a coalition ( 2 teaming
against 2).
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Dimensions of Groups
Structurerefers to the patterning of actual behavior. Degrees of structure may vary from high to low ( military), formal
or informal ( bureaucracy)
Nature of goals- group may vary in terms of specific goals and
objectives.
Identifiability of members Cohesiveness - degree to which members of group cooperate.
Leadership styles ( socioligist found that leaders and followers had
simlar personality types ( autocratic, democratic and laissez faire)
generaly get along well than those whose leaders and followers
differ in personalty types.
Democratic and autocratic groups gets the job done.