Sociology 727

Group Behavior: Group Processes and Intergroup Relations

Fall 2003

 

 

Instructor:         Markus Kemmelmeier, Ph.D.

Office:              304 Mack Social Sciences

Phone:              784-1287

Email:               markusk@unr.edu

Times:              Tuesdays 2:15 – 5:00

Location:          345 Mack Social Sciences

Office hours:     Mondays 11 AM –1 PM and by appointment

 

 

Course description

This course provides an overview of the extant literature on group processes and intergroup relations.  It surveys a broad range of topics, including group productivity, conformity, influence, social power, leadership, decision making, cooperation, various approaches to intergroup biases and prejudice.  The course is interdisciplinary in nature, drawing mainly on research in psychology, sociology and organizational behavior.

 

Goals

This course has two main objectives.  The first is to provide an in-depth examination of important theories and findings pertaining to each research area.  The second goal is to develop an appreciation for some of the methodological approaches used in empirical investigations in these areas.  To accomplish these goals, the typical reading assignment for each week consists of four papers.  At least one of the papers is a chapter or review paper that surveys relevant literature or present a theory on the topic in question.  The other papers are primarily original research studies published in peer-reviewed journals.

 

Format

            This course will follow a seminar format.  Typically, during the first 20 minutes of class, the instructor will provides some historical context of the readings for the day. The remainder of class will be open for discussion, and, occasionally, in-class activities.  Your active participant is essential to the quality of the course. 

 

Literature

            The following book is required reading for the course:

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Malden, MA: Blackwell.  (available at the ASUN bookstore)

 

There will be a master copy of all additional readings available to students. Because many readings are included in the following collection of papers, it is recommended that you purchase it:

 

Hogg, M. A., & Abrams, D. (Eds.). (2001). Intergroup relations: Key readings in social psychology. Philadelphia, PA: Psychology Press.

 

Requirements

            Reaction papers.  Every participant is required to write weekly reaction papers.  The reaction papers should provide a thoughtful elaboration of your ideas, questions, doubts, or concerns concerning the readings.  You are free to write about anything you wish, as long as you integrate at least three of the readings.  Further, it is critical that you argue clearly, support your statements, and present justifications, e.g., for suggested extensions of the present research. The reaction papers should be around one page (single-spaced), with a two-page limit, and should be turned in no later than 5 PM on Monday, preferably as an email attachment. Although the receipt of reaction papers will be registered, the content will not be graded as such as long as it shows reasonable effort.

            Research proposals.  Over the course of the semester, every participant is required to write two research proposals.  The first research proposal should focus on the study of intragroup processes, whereas the second proposal should focus on intergroup processes.  You are free to pick any topic of interest to you, as long as you can argue convincingly that it fits the general topic of intragroup or intergroup processes.  You are required to provide the instructor with a brief statement of what you are planning on writing about at least one week before the final proposal deadline (earlier submissions are strongly encouraged). Alternatively, you have the option of submitting a first draft of your proposal, on which you will receive feedback. In any case, you are encouraged to meet with the instructor to discuss your topic of interest and strategies of implementing your research question.

            The format of a proposal should resemble the introduction and methods section of an article in the empirical social sciences.  There are no length requirements; yet the assumption is that proposals are usually no shorter than 8 and no longer than 20 pages (double-spaced).  Use APA style (5th ed.) or ASA style (4th ed.)!

            The research proposals will be graded based on quality of review of relevant literature, quality of your own analysis and integration of that literature, originality/creativity and quality of writing. (The first two criteria take priority over the second two criteria).

            Final presentation.  All students are expected to present one of their second research proposals at the final meeting of the class.  Each presentation should be 10 minutes allowing for a 5-10 minute discussion. It is recommended that you present your second research proposal, but presenting your first proposal is acceptable also.

 

Grading

In-class participation

15%

Weekly reaction papers

15%

Research proposal #1

35%

Research proposal #2

35%

Total

100%

 

Course schedule and readings

 

August 26

Organizational meeting & Introduction to the topic (no reaction paper)

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 1 “The reality of groups” (pp. 1-21).

Harrington, B., & Fine, G. A. (2000). Opening the "black box": Small groups and twenty-first-century sociology. Social Psychology Quarterly, 63, 312-323.

 

September 2

Becoming a group member

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 2 “Elementary processes in groups” (pp. 23-34).

Crandall, C. S. (1988). Social contagion of binge eating. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 55, 588-598.*

Levine, J. M., & Moreland, R. L. (1994). Group socialization; Theory and research. European Review of Social Psychology, 5, 305-336.

Reicher, S. D. (1984). The St. Pauls' riot: An explanation of the limits of crowd action in terms of a social identity model. European Journal of Social Psychology, 14, 1-21. (H & A reading #18)

Henderson-King, D., & Stewart, A. (1997). Feminist consciousness: Perspectives on women's experience. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23, 415-426.

 

September 9

The social reality of group life

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 2 “Elementary processes in groups” (pp. 35-65).

Gersick, C. J. G. (1988). Time and transition in work teams: Toward a new model of group development. Academy of Management Journal, 31, 9-41.

Liang, D. W., Moreland, R., & Argote, L. (1995). Group versus individual training and group performance: The mediating factor of transactive memory. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 21, 384-393.

Hogg, M. A., & Hardie, E. A. (1996). Intergroup relations and group solidarity: Effects of group identification and social beliefs on depersonalized attraction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70, 295-309. (H & A reading #6)*

Prentice, D. A., & Miller, D. T. (1993). Pluralistic ignorance and alcohol use on campus: Some consequences of misperceiving the social norm. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 64, 243-256.*

 

September 16

Status, power and roles

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 3 “Structural aspects of groups” (pp. 67-91).

Rodriguez-Bailon, R., Moya, M., & Yzerbyt, V. (2000). Why do superiors attend to negative stereotypic information about their subordinates? Effects of power legitimacy on social perception. European Journal of Social Psychology, 30, 651-671.*

Sande, G. N., Ellard, J. H., Ross, M. (1986). Effect of arbitrarily assigned status labels on self-perceptions and social perceptions: The mere position effect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50, 684-689.

Ridgeway, C. L. (2001). The emergence of status beliefs: From structural inequality to legitimizing ideology. In J. T. Jost & B. Major (2001), The psychology of legitimacy: Emerging perspectives on ideology, justice, and intergroup relations (pp. 257-277). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Robinson, D. T., & Smith-Lovin, L. (2001). Getting a laugh: Gender, status, and humor in task discussions. Social Forces, 80, 123-158.*

 

September 23

Leadership

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 3 “Structural aspects of groups” (pp. 91-122).

Eagly, A. H., Johannes-Schmidt, M. C., & van Engen, M. L. (2003). Transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership styles: A meta-analysis comparing women and men. Psychological Bulletin, 129, 569-591.*

Smircich, L., & Morgan, G. (1982). Leadership: The management of meaning. Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 18, 257-273.

Tyler, T. R. (1997). The psychology of legitimacy: A relational perspective on voluntary deference to authorities. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 1, 323-345.

Van Vugt, M., & De Cremer, D. (1999). Leadership in social dilemmas: The effects of group identification on collective actions to provide public goods. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76, 587-599.*

 

September 30

Social influence: Conformity and Deviance

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 4 “Social influence” (pp. 123-166).

Abrams, D., Wetherell, M., Cochrane, S., Hogg, M. A. & Turner, J. C. (1990). Knowing what to think by knowing who you are: Self-categorization and the nature of norm formation, conformity, and group polarization. British Journal of Social Psychology, 29, 97-119. (H & A reading #16)

McAuliffe, B. J., Jetten, J., Hornsey, M. J., & Hogg, M. A. (2003). Individualist and collectivist norms: When it's ok to go your own way. European Journal of Social Psychology. 33, pp. 57-70.*

Moscovici, S., & Personnaz, B. (1980). Studies in social influence: V. minority influence and conversion behavior in a perceptual task. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 16, 270-282. (H & A reading #17)

Williams, K. D., & Sommer, K. L. (1997). Social ostracism: Does rejection lead to loafing or compensation? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23, 693-706.

 

October 7

Group productivity

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 5 “Individuals versus groups”, pp. 167-193.

Shepperd, J. A. (1993). Productivity loss in performance groups: A motivation analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 113, 67-81.*

Hertel, G., Kerr, N. L., & Messé, L. A. (2000). Motivation gains in performance groups: Paradigmatic and theoretical developments on the Köhler Effect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79, 580-601.*

Yamagishi, T. (1988). Exit from the group as an individualistic solution to the free rider problem in the United States and Japan. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 24, 530-542.

Paulus, P. B., Dzindolet, M. T., Poletes, G., & Camacho, L. M. (1993). Perception of performance in group brainstorming: The illusion of group productivity. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 19, 78-89.

 

October 14

Group decision making

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 5 “Individuals versus groups” (pp. 193-224).

Gigone, D., & Hastie, R. (1993). The common knowledge effect: Information judgment and group judgment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 959-974.*

Miller, C. E. (1989). The social psychological effects of group decision rules. In P. B. Paulus (Ed.), The psychology of group influence (2nd ed., pp. 327-355). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Turner, M. E., Pratkanis, A. R., Probasco, P., & Leve, C. (1992). Threat, cohesion, and group effectiveness: Testing a social identity maintenance perspective on groupthink. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 63, 781-796.*

 

October 17

********* Deadline for topic/first draft of research proposal #1 ********

 

October 21

Intergroup cooperation and competition

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 6, pp. 225-262.

Bobo, L., & Hutchins, V. L. (1996). Perceptions of racial group competition: Extending Blumer’s theory of group position to a multiracial social context. American Sociological Review, 61, 951-972. (H & A reading #4)*

Kramer, R. M., & Brewer, M. B. (1984). Effects of group identity on resource use in a simulated commons dilemma. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 46, 1044-1057.

Wright, S., Taylor, D., & Moghaddam, F. (1990). Responding to membership in a disadvantaged group. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 994-1003. (H & A reading #20)*

 

October 24

**************** Research proposal #1 is due ****************

 

October 28

Categorization & stereotyping

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 7 “Thinking about groups” (pp. 263-308).

Devine, P. G. (1989). Stereotyping and prejudice: Their automatic and controlled components. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56, 5-18.*

Pettigrew, T. F. (1979). The ultimate attribution error: Extending Allport’s cognitive analysis of prejudice. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 5, 461-476.

Tajfel, H. (1970). Experiments in intergroup discrimination. Scientific American, 223, 96-102.

Tajfel, H. (1981). Social stereotypes and social groups. In J. C. Turner & H. Giles (Eds.), Intergroup behavior (pp. 144-167). Oxford, UK: Blackwell.

 

November 4

The self in (inter)group relations

 

Abrams, D., & Hogg, M. A. (1988). Comments on the motivational status of self-esteem in social identity and intergroup discrimination. European Journal of Social Psychology, 18, 317-334. (H & A reading #13)

Brewer, M. B. (1993). The social self: On being the same and different at the same time. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 19, 245-253. (H & A reading #14)

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 8 “Social identity and intergroup relations” (pp. 309-341).

Ethier, K., & Deaux, K. (1994). Negotiating social identity when contexts change: Maintaining identification and responding to threat. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 243-251. (H & A reading #15)*

Steele, C. M. (1997). A threat in the air: How stereotypes shape intellectual identity and performance. American Psychologist, 52, 613-629.*

 

November 11

VETERANS DAY

 

November 18

The nature and underpinnings of intergroup biases

 

Brewer, M. B. (1999). The psychology of prejudice: Ingroup love or outgroup hate? Journal of Social Issues, 55, 429-444.*

Greenberg, J., Pyszczynski, T., Solomon, S., Rosenblatt, A., Veeder, M., Kirkland, S., & Lyon, D. (1990). Evidence for terror management theory II: The effects of mortality salience on reactions to those who threaten or bolster the cultural worldview. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 308-318.*

Otten, S., Mummendey, A., & Blanz, M. (1996). Intergroup discrimination in positive and negative outcome allocations: Impact of stimulus valence, relative group status, and relative group size. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 568-581. (H & A reading #11)*

Hertel, G., & Kerr, N. L. (2001). Priming in-group favoritism: The impact of normative scripts in the minimal group paradigm. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 37, 316-324.*

 

November 25

Contemporary intergroup relations

 

Dovidio, J. F., & Gaertner, S. L. (1996). Affirmative action, unintentional racial biases and intergroup relations. Journal of Social Issues, 52, 51-75. (H & A reading #8)*

Glick, P., & Fiske, S. T. (2001). An ambivalent alliance: Hostile and benevolent sexism as complementary justifications for gender inequality. American Psychologist, 56, 109-118.*

Jost, J. T., Pelham, B. W., & Carvallo, M. R. (2002). Non-conscious forms of system justification: Implicit and behavioral preferences for higher status groups. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 38, 586-602.*

Katz, I., & Hass, R. G. (1988). Racial ambivalence and American value conflict: Correlational and priming studies of dual cognitive structures. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 55, 893-905.*

Pratto, F., Sidanius, J., Stallworth, L. M., & Malle, B. F. (1994). Social dominance orientation: A personality variable predicting social and political attitudes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 741-763. (H & A reading #2) *

 

December 2

Reducing intergroup tensions

 

Brown, R. (2000). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups (2nd ed.). Chapter 8, pp. 341-360.

Gaertner, S. L., Mann, J., Murrell, A., & Dovidio, J. F. (1989). Reducing intergroup bias: The benefits of recategorization. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 239-249.

Islam, M., & Hewstone, M. (1993). Dimensions of contact as predictors of intergroup anxiety, perceived outgroup variability, and outgroup attitude: An integrative model. Personality and Social Psychology, 19, 700-710.

Wilder, D. (1984). Intergroup contact: The typical member and the exception to the rule. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 20, 177-194.

Wolsko, C., Park, B., Judd, C. M., & Wittenbrink, B. (2000). Framing interethnic ideology: Effects of multicultural and color-blind perspectives on judgments of groups and individuals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78, 635-654.

 

December 9

Student presentations

 

December 15

**************** Research proposal #2 is due ****************

 

Note: References marked with an asterisk can be obtained via the UNR Getchell Library, either via their eJournals collection or the PsycArticles database.