Deck 1: Defining the Social Group

Question 1

A young child is infatuated with the New York Yankees baseball team. He wears a Yankees hat and watches the team on television every weekend. For the child, the Yankees represent:

A) A reference group.
B) A social group.
C) A dyad.
D) A social category.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Which of the following best describes a reference group?

A) A large and relatively permanent social group.
B) A large number of individuals who come together in a common place for a common purpose.
C) A group of individuals that we look up to and identify with because we admire and want to be like those who belong to it.
D) A large social group made up of individuals who are normally in geographic proximity with each other.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Two people who form a close relationship, such as a romantic connection or a friendship are called

A) a dyad.
B) a social pairing.
C) a social network.
D) an individual level group.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Which of the following is the best description of a working group?

A) A large and permanent social group that is engaging in social change.
B) Between 3 and 12 individuals who are actively attempting to meet a specific goal.
C) A small number of individuals who are working on a project together, but who do not have frequent interaction with each other.
D) Any social group that experiences group cohesion.

Question 5

A jury is best described as which of the following?

A) A social category.
B) A dyad.
C) A reference group.
D) A working group.

Question 6

Consider the social group of people who share the Catholic religion. This group would be best described as which of the following?

A) A social category.
B) A dyad.
C) A culture.
D) A working group.

Question 7

Which of the following is true?

A) People belong normally to one social category that they consider to be the most important to them.
B) People belong to many different social categories, many of which can be important to them.
C) It is not possible to assess the social categories that people belong to.
D) The social categories that people belong to are usually defined by the individual's working groups.

Question 8

A large social group made up of individuals who are normally in geographic proximity, and who share a common set of beliefs and values, such as language, religion, and family practices, is known as which of the following?

A) A sociological group.
B) A psychological group.
C) A structured group.
D) A culture.

Question 9

Scientist Smith believes that groups should be studied as groups, and that it is not possible to learn about groups only by studying individuals. Scientist Jones believes that groups are made up of individuals, and therefore it is essential to study individuals. Smith and Jones differ in terms of their preferred

A) empirical philosophy.
B) group decision scheme.
C) level of analysis.
D) group mind.

Question 10

Two influential social scientists, Le Bon (1986) and McDougall ADDIN ENRfu (1920), believed that groups could possess a group mind, defined as a collection of interacting individual minds. These scientists adopted which level of analysis?

A) The group level of analysis.
B) The individual level of analysis.
C) The interactionist level of analysis.
D) The cultural level of analysis.

Question 11

Which of the following best describes deindividuation?

A) A state that occurs when individuals think about their social category memberships.
B) A state that occurs when the normal restraints on behavior are loosened.
C) A state that occurs when individuals think about their working group memberships.
D) A state that occurs when the normal restraints on behavior become more important.

Question 12

Philip Zimbardo had some college students in his lab dress in their own normal clothes, whereas others were asked to wear costumes with hoods that hid their identity. The results of the study showed that

A) the students wearing the costumes used more profane language in their conversations.
B) the students wearing the costumes used less profane language in their conversations.
C) the students wearing the costumes performed better on a mathematics task.
D) the students wearing the costumes performed more poorly on a mathematics task.

Question 13

Which of the following statements would be made by a scientist who believed in the principle of interactionism?

A) "Social behavior is determined in part by the individual's social category memberships and in part by the relationship between an individual's working group and social category memberships."
B) "Social behavior is determined in part by the individual and in part by the relationship between the individual and the group."
C) "Social behavior is primarily determined by the culture in which one has been raised."
D) "Social behavior is primarily determined by the working groups in which the individual participates."

Question 14

Which of the following social psychologists is most closely associated with group dynamics?

A) Sigmund Freud.
B) Philip Zimbardo.
C) Kurt Lewin.
D) John Walker.

Question 15

"An approach to studying social groups, developed by the social psychologist Kurt Lewin, that is based upon the principle of interactionism." This is a definition of

A) empiricism.
B) social identification
C) social psychology.
D) group dynamics.

Question 16

Which of the following represents Kurt Lewin's equation describing interactionism?

A) Behavior =f (Person, Environment)
B) Person =f (Behavior, Environment)
C) Behavior =f (Group, Individual)
D) Individual =f (Group, Behavior)

Question 17

Malik, who lives in New York City, is telling Samantha about how great New York is. He talks about the movies and museums, the beauty of the city, and how exciting New Yorkers are. It appears that Malik is expressing which of the following?

A) Group cohesion.
B) Social identity.
C) Group attraction.
D) Group status.

Question 18

A basic prediction of social categorization theory is that

A) we normally act toward other people as individuals.
B) we normally act toward other people as members of a group.
C) we sometimes act toward other people as individuals and sometimes as member of a social group.
D) it is not possible to accurately perceive others without thinking about their social category memberships.

Question 19

The people who are currently shopping in a Wal-Mart store are considered a social _____ whereas a jury of 12 people attempting to reach a decision are considered a social _____.

A) aggregate; group
B) group; aggregate
C) category; group
D) aggregate; category

Question 20

Which of the following characteristics have been used to define social groups?

A) Interaction, group size, interdependence, and group structure.
B) Interaction, similarity, interdependence, and group size.
C) Interaction, similarity, interdependence, and social categorization.
D) Interaction, group size, interdependence, and social categorization.

Question 21

People who live in the same neighborhood, who are seated together around a conference table, or who are working together on a task are likely to be seen as

A) similar.
B) dissimilar.
C) interdependent, and thus motivated to work together.
D) sociable, and thus not motivated to work together.

Question 22

Which of the following are the three characteristics of group structure?

A) Similarity, roles and social identity.
B) Norms, social identity, and cohesion.
C) Interdependence, interaction, and similarity.
D) Norms, roles, and status.

Question 23

When group members feel that they are a group, or when the group is perceived by others as a group, we say that the group has

A) entitativity.
B) structure.
C) cohesion.
D) identity.

Question 24

James is working on a group project with four of his classmates. The group is beginning to get a lot of work done, and they are really enjoying working with each other. James realizes that he really likes the other group members and feels good about his relationships with them. James's group is experiencing

A) norm matching.
B) acquaintance potential.
C) cohesion.
D structure.

Question 25

Group members who see themselves as similar and interdependent should demonstrate

A) high group structure.
B) low group structure.
C) high group cohesion.
D) low group cohesion.

Question 26

Zander, Stotland, and Wolfe (1960) created groups of college students who worked together on a project. The groups were created to be either high or low in cohesion. Zander et al. found that the members of the cohesive group

A) felt positively about themselves regardless of whether the group succeeded or failed.
B) felt more positively after the group succeeded at a task, but more poorly after they failed.
C) worked harder at the task but felt more poorly about themselves.
D) worked less at the task but felt more positively about themselves.

Question 27

Which of the following is true about the relationship between group cohesion and performance?

A) Cohesive groups show better group performance.
B) Cohesive groups show worse group performance.
C) Cohesive groups may show either better or worse group performance depending upon the group norms.
D) Cohesive groups show better group performance, but only when there is also high group identity.

Question 28

Social identity is defined as

A) the part of the self-concept that results from our membership in social groups.
B) the experience of a group member when he or she is not in the group.
C) a set of social norms that describe appropriate group behavior.
D) the sum of our social categorizations multiplied by our individual characteristics.

Question 29

Which of the following accurately describes the relationship between group cohesion and group identity?

A) Group cohesion refers to feelings that occur within the group, whereas social identity refers to feelings that occur outside of the group.
B) Social identity refers to feelings that occur within the group, whereas group cohesion refers to feelings that occur outside of the group.
C) Group cohesion refers to strength of liking for the other group members, whereas social identity refers to how much a part of the group the individual feels that he or she is.
D) Social identity refers primarily to strength of liking for the other group members in the group, whereas group cohesion refers to how much a part of the group the individual feels that he or she is.

Question 30

Write a statement that would convince someone who is not taking this course that it is important to study social groups. Be persuasive!

Question 31

Define each of the following types of groups: Dyad, working group, social category, culture, crowd. What do each of these types of groups have in common, and how do they differ?

Question 32

Explain the difference between the individual level and the group level of analysis in studying social groups. Give an example of research that is conducted at each level.

Question 33

Consider the principle of interactionism. What is it, and what meaning does it have for the study of social groups? Consider two approaches to groups that are based on this principle.

Question 34

Define a social group, and give an example of a collection of individuals that should, and should not, be considered one. How can we tell the difference?

Question 35

List and define the group characteristics that are known to be important in determining and influencing groups.

Question 36

What are group cohesion and social identity, and how are they different?