How groups can influence people Essay Example for Free

How groups can check people EssayIn this essay, I am going to describe how groups can invite people in a positive and in a negative ways. I will be using evidence drawn from Chapter 5 of the watch text Starting with psychology Spoors et al (2011). It is in a human nature to be a part of a sociable group. Belonging to a group, such as family, clubs, sport teams or group of fri breaks, give us support, it make us smell out good about ourselves, give us a sense of social identity. It brings meaning to our life, it make us feel like we belong. However, being a part of a group can also live a negative effect. Group pressure can cause us to behave in a way that we will not normally do. To support my argument I will use as an drill evidence from Kondos story and as well Zimbardo and Asch proves (Spoors et al 2011). In our lifetime, we belong to many an(prenominal) different social groups. Our social identity is based on the group we belong to, we enhance the status of our gro up in order to increase our self-image.We drainage basin the world into people like us, who belong to our group, called the in-group, and those one who are different them, the out-group (Spoors et al 2011). Two psychologists Henri Tajfel and John Turner developed that theory. The theory argues that there are three mental processes involved in evaluating others as them and us the first one is a social categorisation. We categorize other people and ourselves in order to understand and identify them. The second process is a social identification. When we know which group we belong to, we start behaving by the norms of our group. The last process is social comparison. After we categorize ourselves with a group, we start to compare our group with other groups. To maintain our self-esteem we will compare our group favourably with other groups. An look into carried out by Philip Zimbardo and his colleagues (1971) Spoors et al (2011) provides evidence how people behaviour can change when they become a part of a group.They choose randomly a group of male participants and divide them into guards and prisoners and then located them in a simulated prison. After six days, the experiment had to be stopped, as the guards became brutal and shameful towards prisoners, and the prisoners begun suffering from emotional disturbance. This experiment shows how the previous perceptions that the participants have of the role of a prisonguards and prisoners, that probably came from watching films and television programs, influenced them to behave in a negative way. Another example of how groups can influence our behaviour is experiment carried out by Solomon Asch (Spoors et al 2011). He asked fifty participants to look at the picture of a straight line, and then showed them another picture with a three more lines of different lengths. Then he asked the participants to identify out loud the line that is the selfsame(prenominal) length as the original one.Surprisingly 75 per cent of the group give a wrong answer, which was a result of a group pressure. nation have the need for conformity that is why they go along with the norms of the groups. They want to be accepted as an in-group person. Conforming to group norms is sending a pass along to the other members of the group that I am not a thread, I am same like you, and I am following our rules. Asches experiment showed that the need for conformity pressured participants to give a wrong answer to a question they just simply followed the rest of the group. An example of how group can influence us on a positive way is Kondos story in Spoors et al (2011). Dorinne Kondo is a Nipponese American, raised in the USA. She went to Japan to do an anthropological research. She stays there for 26 months, a few months she stays with a Japanese family to learn how proper Japanese women supposed to behave and fork out herself. At the same time, she was acting as a scientific observer.That is a method of research called par ticipant-observation, where the researcher is both an observer and a participant (Spoors et al 2011). The first few months in Japan were very stressful for Knodo she did not understand the etiquette and traditions that are part of their everyday life. Every time she made a mistake, people trait her like she was retarded or insane. They were confused, as she looked like a Japanese women but she did not act in a Japanese manner. During her visit in Japan, her guarantor introduced her to Mrs Sakamoto who invited her to stay with her family for summer. It was a great opportunity for Kondo to learn about the traditions. During her visit she was trying to conform to their way of life, she wanted to feel their acceptance, so she start learning about her Japanese roots and proper etiquette, she took a part in a tea ceremony class.At the end of her visit in Japan, she was pleased with herself and all she have learned during her visit. She did not struggle any more to fit in both cultures, th e approval of Sakamotos family had a good influence on her, it makes her feellike she belong to their world. Kondos story demonstrates that in our lifetime we have multiple social identities, which dwell to evolve as we grow older or when we move into new situations Spoors et al (2011).In those few examples, I was exploring how groups can influence people in a positive and negative ways. Positively, by providing us a sense of belonging to the social world and bringing meaning to our life, as shown on an example of Kondos story, and negatively by pressuring us to conform and act out of character, what confirm an Zimbardos and Asches experiments.