The Effects of Anticipated Informational and Normative Influence on Perceptions of Hypothetical Opinion Change

Two experiments addressed the role of anticipated informational or normative influence on perceptions of hypothetical opinion change in the context of either an intellective or judgmental task. The findings from Experiment 1 indicate that informational and normative influence processes are perceived as being differentially effective in changing people's opinions about a judgmental task but not about an intellective task. Experiment 2 explores some possible causes of these findings.     

How do people influence in jury deliberation? a social psychological view

Research in small-group decision making suggests two means by which discussion shifts the responses of individual members—Nonmative influence and informational influence. The former is based on pressure to conform to the normative positions of group members, and the latter involves changes due to the informational content of persuasively or passively shared facts. Which influence mode is used depends on the group decision rule, whether the response is public or private, the perceived nature of the task, and the nature of the issue. Specifically, normative influence is likely to prevail in public judgments, under group cohesion sets, and with value-laden issues, while informational influence will emerge when responses are private, the group is oriented toward the immediate task, and the issue is intellective. Suggestions are made regarding strategy and tactics for anticipating, harnessing, and shaping the form of influence that will take place during deliberation.     

Group risk-taking and group polarization

There are two aims to this paper; to report in brief preliminary form a number of studies on group risk-taking that have been carried out in Bristol in the past two years, and to relate these studies to an explanation of group risk-taking phenomena primarily in terms of group polarization. The paper has five sections. The first section supplies some background material regarding basic phenomena and previous attempts at explanations. The second section relates to initial individual decisions and the third section to decisions following group discussion and consensus. In the fourth section a tentative explanation of group risk-taking effects is proposed in terms of group polarization processes, together with something like an overall value for risk. Group polarization itself is discussed in terms of normative and informational aspects of social influence. The final section deals with two implications of the proposed explanation, one relating to the role of individual familiarization and the other to the generality of group polarization processes.     

Acceptance of Uncommon Information into Group Discussion When That Information Is or Is Not Demonstrable

Research on group problem solving and on social cognition suggests that, during group discussion of a decision-making task, member acceptance of an unknown fact will be affected by the demonstrability of a fact's existence and the familiarity of the decision topic. Four-person groups read and discussed facts about a familiar or unfamiliar issue. Some groups could obtain written fact summaries during discussion, while the others could not. We predicted and found a three-way interaction between demonstrability, familiarity, and number of advocates. Verifiable single-advocate facts were accepted into discussion, but unverifiable facts required two advocates. These effects were more pronounced when the topic was familiar. Regression analysis of the influence of individual items on group choice revealed that, for the unfamiliar topic, the number of advocates of an item was directly related to that item's degree of influence only when the item could not be verified. Verifiable single-advocate facts were as influential as any other verifiable fact.     

Deviancy and Normative Training Processes in Experimental Groups of Delinquent and Nondelinquent Male Adolescents

The goal of this study was to identify the predictors and the moderators of group characteristics that influence deviancy and normative training processes in delinquent male adolescents. The authors experimentally tested the effects of group composition on deviant talk interaction processes among groups in which all members presented delinquent behaviors (“pure” delinquent group condition), those that included adolescents with no delinquent behaviors (“pure” normative group condition), and adolescents with both profiles (“mixed” group condition). Participants were 70 male adolescents aged 15–18 (M = 16.5; 56% Caucasian), with a random assignment to groups. Data were collected among three group sessions (T1, T2, T3), one session a week, using videotape. Two contents of interactions were also measured: antisocial and normative stories, counterbalanced across sessions. Results showed a significant group effect for antisocial talk and its reinforcement, with less antisocial talk within the mixed group condition in comparison to the pure delinquent group condition. The topic of interaction was also observed as a predictor of antisocial talk, with less normative interactions and more antisocial talk associated with antisocial topics. Finally, time moderated some relations between experimental groups and talk. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of this work for future research on deviancy training processes. Aggr. Behav. 39:30‐44, 2013. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

EFFECT OF GROUP PERFORMANCE ON SUBSEQUENT INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE:

Abstract— Does group discussion and deliberation on one issue or task influence the members' decisions or opinions on other issues? In contrast to past research looking solely at changes in responses to the same item discussed by the group, this study examined whether group interaction results in members changing the way they make judgments on related items in the future. The results show that group discussion and consensus on one set of judgments led to a significant convergence of judgmental strategies that extended to a related (but different) set of judgments the members made later as individuals.     

The Effects of Group Discussion on Eyewitness Accuracy

Previous research on group performance in judgmental tasks reveals that groups are rarely inferior, and often superior, to the average individual. The present study examined whether this pattern of results extends to the accuracy of eyewitness reports of a crime. It was found that group discussion led to accounts that were significantly more accurate than the average individual. A requirement to reach a unanimous decision did not alter any of the effects of group discussion. Group superiority was especially clear in terms of the completeness of the reports and in estimations of the duration of the incident. The discussion considered the implications of the present results for the current practice of prohibiting group discussion as an aid to the preparation of testimony.     

Individual judgment and group interaction: A variable perspective approach

An extension of the T. M. Ostrom and H. S. Upshaw perspective model (1968, in A. Greenwald, T. Brock, and T. Ostrom (Eds.), Psychological foundations of attitudes, New York: Academic Press) of attitudinal judgments, incorporating a subjective scale range concept, was examined in relation to the effects of group interaction on individual members' attitudinal judgments. Subjects made attitudinal judgments after reading a criminal case history and then, either individually or as members of four person groups, decided on the appropriate sentence for the criminal for two different cases. The results showed that the subjective scale range concept was useful to account for the subjects' attitudinal judgments. Further analysis showed that the group interaction provided both informational and normative influences on the individual members' judgments in different ways. These findings are discussed in terms of judgmental processes postulated by Ostrom and Upshaw.     

Blushing-fearful individuals overestimate the costs and probability of their blushing

It has been proposed that blushing-fearful individuals overestimate both the probability and the interpersonal costs of blushing. To study these judgmental biases, we presented a treatment-seeking sample of blushing-fearful individuals a series of vignettes describing social events and tested whether this clinical sample would overestimate the costs and probability of blushing compared to non-fearful controls. To test if blushing-fearfuls overestimate and/or low-fearful individuals underestimate the cost of displaying a blush, a second experiment examined the effects of blushing in these situations on observers' judgments. Experiment 1 showed that blushing-fearfuls indeed have judgmental biases for the probability and costs of blushing. Experiment 2 showed that the observers' judgments were very similar to the judgments anticipated by the low-fear group in Experiment 1. Thus the judgmental biases that were evident in the high-fearfuls can be best interpreted as an overestimation of the social costs of displaying a blush. These findings help improving our understanding of the mechanisms that may drive blushing phobia and also point to the clinical implication that it might be worthwhile to challenge blushing-fearfuls' judgmental biases.     

Assessing the winning teams program of interactive satellite-based training

This research assessed an interactive satellite-based training program integrating interactive audiovisual experiences with face-to-face interactions. Key elements were content created by experts, high-quality video segments, satellite-based interaction, off-line interactions among teams of parents and caregivers, workshops, and team building exercises. For pragmatic reasons, it was necessary to develop brief assessment instruments concurrently with training. A large set of survey items were created from draft materials and reduced empirically through piloting to those with the best psychometric properties. To avoid the appearance of traditional testing, knowledge was assessed with Likert items. Surveys measured participant satisfaction, knowledge, attitudes, and the application and articulation of concepts. Participant satisfaction was high. Participants increased positive attitudes and learned appropriate vocabulary. Training was more effective than no training or watching videotapes. The program appears to represent a viable model of training that could successfully be applied to Internet technologies.     

Manipulating subcategory salience: exploring the link between skin tone and social perception of Blacks

Guided by the model of social category salience proposed by M. Blanz ( 1999 ), the present paper explores factors affecting the salience of skin tone‐based subcategories among Blacks in the United States. Adapting the group discussion paradigm developed by S.E. Taylor and colleagues ( 1978 ), Experiment 1 demonstrated that a manipulation of issue relevance enhanced the category salience of skin tone. Participants made more within‐ than between‐category errors when the topic of conversation was related to perceiver's skin tone‐based beliefs. Experiment 2 demonstrated that the influence of the issue relevance manipulation was independent of the presence of structural and/or normative fit. Merely discussing the topic of race relations was sufficient to increase encoding and use of skin tone. These studies provide evidence linking skin tone and social beliefs in memory. In addition, they demonstrate support for a category‐based perspective in the study of skin tone bias. Additional factors affecting the salience of skin tone are discussed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The effects of expected future interaction and prior group support on the conformity process

Previous results indicate that people conform more to group judgments when they have received unanimous group support for their opinions than when they have received no support. The present study tested the hypothesis that these differences would be attenuated when future interaction with the group members was anticipated. The 70 male subjects were tested in a Crutchfield-type conformity situation, where prior group support (100 vs 0%) and anticipation of future interaction (alone vs group) were manipulated. Predictions were based on an examination of conformity incentives that considered normative and informational sources of social influence, as well as Hollander's model of idiosyncracy credit. Consistent with predictions, conformity in the 0% prior support condition was greater when subjects anticipated future group interaction than when they did not, whereas the reverse was true in the 100% prior support condition. In addition, conformity was correlated negatively with both confidence in task ability and feelings of group acceptance when future interaction with the group was anticipated. These data suggest that when future group activity is expected, the tendency to reciprocate past treatment from the group is reduced.     

Effectiveness in top management group meetings: The role of goal clarity,focused communication,and learning behavior

Bang, H., Fuglesang, S. L., Ovesen, M. R. & Eilertsen, D. E. (2010). Effectiveness in top management group meetings: The role of goal clarity, focused communication, and learning behavior. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 51, 253–261. To explore the relationship between goal clarity, focused communication, learning behavior, and team effectiveness (i.e., task performance, relationship quality, and member satisfaction), self‐report and observer data from eight top management groups that processed 56 agenda items during meetings were analyzed. We found that goal clarity and focused communication was positively related to team effectiveness. The effect of goal clarity on team effectiveness was partially mediated by focused communication. Speaking up when a goal was unclear increased focused communication, task performance and relationship quality. Speaking up when the discussion was off track was not related to task performance and member satisfaction, and was negatively related to relationship quality. These findings have implications for how to conduct an effective management meeting.     

Difficult Terminations in Group Therapy: A Self Psychologically Informed Perspective

In group therapy, terminations that are neither planned nor anticipated are sometimes referred to as difficult. This complex issue of difficult terminations is used as a vehicle to challenge the prevailing, though often unspoken, assumption that the goal of the group therapist is to keep the members in the group. The author presents the notion that the leader needs to maintain a balance between the group as a treatment context, and the goal of that context. The goal of group-as-treatment context is to provide for the therapeutic needs of each individual patient in the group. Self psychology provides a basis for redefining the therapy group as a treatment context. A specific rationale, goal, and process of that redefinition is presented along with illustrative case material. With this understanding, unanticipated terminations can be as readily accepted and understood as ones that are planned. All terminations are viewed as further opportunities to understand how a patient defines his or her sense of self, sense of other, and sense of self with other.     

The Effect of Members' Use of a Formal Group as a Reference Group upon Group Effectiveness

Summary

To test the view that “urban” and “rural” workers in the same job derive satisfaction from different aspects in the work situation, 42 black supervisors were divided into urban and rural groups in terms of the number of years spent in a city or town. Among the urban group, the correlation between satisfaction with content job factors and overall job satisfaction, as measured by the Brayfield-Rothe index, was significantly greater than that between context factors and overall job satisfaction. Among the rural group, the position was reversed.     

Group discussion as interactive dialogue or as serial monologue: the influence of group size

Current models draw a broad distinction between communication as dialogue and communication as monologue. The two kinds of models have different implications for who influences whom in a group discussion. If the discussion is like interactive dialogue, group members should be influenced most by those with whom they interact in the discussion; if it is like serial monologue, they should be influenced most by the dominant speaker. The experiments reported here show that in small, 5-person groups, the communication is like dialogue and members are influenced most by those with whom they interact in the discussion. However, in large, 10-person groups, the communication is like monologue and members are influenced most by the dominant speaker. The difference in mode of communication is explained in terms of how speakers in the two sizes of groups design their utterances for different audiences.     

Perceptions of attitudinal similarity in ethnic groups in the U.S.: ingroup and outgroup homogeneity effects

The outgroup homogeneity phenomenon was examined by having majority group members (White Americans) judge the variability in attitudes about intergroup relations in their own group and one outgroup (African Americans). A preliminary study found the threat of the attitude statements to the group doing the judging seemed to affect whether or not participants showed outgroup or ingroup homogeneity. For the present study, statements about ethnic group relations were prerated to obtain two sets of items that aroused either high or low threat to White Americans. White students judged the homogeneity of these items for their own group and for African Americans. Outgroup homogeneity was found for the low threat items and ingroup homogeneity was found for the high threat items. This study demonstrates that the homogeneity effect depends on the threat of the attitude content to the group doing the judging. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.