Group Dynamics Fundamentals: 35 Key Concepts Q&A
Social Psychology and Group Dynamics Knowledge Assessment
Core Concepts from Chapters 1–6
1. Initiation and Hazing Criteria
An initiation becomes a form of hazing when:
Answer: It involves activities that are physically or psychologically harmful.
2. Illustrating Social Comparison
Denise thought the test was easy, but she was not sure. So, after she turns in her paper, she talks to her friends to see what they thought about the test. Denise’s actions best illustrate:
Answer: Social comparison.
3. Leary’s Sociometer Model of Self-Esteem
According to Leary’s sociometer model, self-esteem:
Answer: Acts as a gauge of social acceptance and belonging.
4. Collectivistic Viewpoint (Allocentric)
A collectivistic person (allocentric) would likely disagree with the following statement:
Answer: “My personal achievements are more important than group success.”
5. Categories of Group Roles
Most roles fit into one of two broad categories: ___ roles and ___ roles.
Answer: Task; relationship.
6. Non-Characteristic of Norms
Which of the following is not a characteristic of norms?
Answer: They are explicit rules written down by the group.
7. Identifying a Descriptive Norm
Which of the following is a descriptive norm?
Answer: “Most members arrive late to meetings.”
8. McGrath’s Model of Group Tasks
Which of the following is not one of the four basic group goals identified by McGrath’s model of group tasks?
Answer: Negotiating conflicts.
9. Group Stage: Forming
People in a group are nervous, very quiet, and overly polite because they have only just met one another. The group is:
Answer: Forming.
10. Personality Trait: Agreeableness
Will describes himself as warm, sympathetic, and not at all critical or quarrelsome. Will is high in:
Answer: Agreeableness.
11. Defining Social Anxiety
___ refers to general feelings of apprehension and embarrassment experienced when anticipating or interacting with other people.
Answer: Social anxiety.
12. Role Ambiguity Definition
Role ambiguity is defined as unclear expectations about the behaviors to be performed by an individual occupying a particular position within the group.
Answer: True.
13. Resilience to Group Exclusion
Which of the following people is most likely not to suffer due to exclusion from a group?
Answer: An individual with a high level of independence and self-sufficiency.
14. Types of Loneliness
____ loneliness is to lack of friends as ____ loneliness is to lack of intimacy.
Answer: Social; emotional.
15. Desire for Affiliation vs. Privacy
When we are ___ we desire affiliation, but when we are ___ we desire privacy.
Answer: Anxious; overstimulated.
16. Interactionist Approach to Roles
An interactionist approach to roles argues they are:
Answer: Dynamic and shaped by both individual behaviors and group contexts.
17. Tuckman’s Group Development Stages
The stages in Tuckman’s (1965) group development model are, in order:
Answer: Forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning.
18. Highest Level of Entitativity
Which of the following is highest in entitativity?
Answer: A family.
19. Examples of Relationship Roles
The encourager, harmonizer, and compromiser are examples of ___ roles.
Answer: Relationship.
20. Moreland and Levine’s Socialization Model
Which of the following is not a stage of group socialization in Moreland and Levine’s model?
Answer: Performing.
21. Minimal Intergroup Situation Findings
Studies of Tajfel and Turner’s minimal intergroup situation indicate that:
Answer: Individuals tend to favor their own group over others, even with minimal group distinctions.
22. Brewer’s Optimal Distinctiveness Theory
Which statement is consistent with Brewer’s optimal distinctiveness theory?
Answer: Individuals strive to balance their need for inclusion with their need for distinctiveness within groups.
23. Key Assumption of Social Identity Theory
Which one of the following is a key assumption of social identity theory?
Answer: Individuals derive part of their self-concept from the groups to which they belong.
24. Four Types of Groups
Theory and research identify four types of groups: primary groups, social groups, collectives, and categories.
Answer: True.
25. Defining Element of a Group
Which of the following items is not a key element in the definition of a group?
Answer: Members must have a formal leader.
26. Big Five Personality Dimension Excluded
Which of the following is not one of the dimensions of personality in the Big Five theory?
Answer: Intelligence.
27. High Need for Power
I try to work my way into leadership positions and I enjoy exercising my authority over other people. I am:
Answer: High in need for power.
28. Schachter and Affiliation Under Anxiety
You are anxious because you are about to have blood drawn for the first time in your life. According to Schachter, while waiting you would most likely choose to sit:
Answer: With others who are also waiting to have blood drawn.
29. New Yorkers as a Category
Individuals who live in New York are called New Yorkers. New Yorkers are a(n):
Answer: Category.
30. Upward Social Comparison
Mike notes that Melinda is in a better financial situation than he is right now. This leaves him feeling depressed but also motivates him to start working harder. Mike is engaging in ___ social comparison.
Answer: Upward.
31. Criticism of Laboratory Studies
Laboratory studies of group phenomena can be criticized most for:
Answer: Lacking ecological validity.
32. Context for the Hawthorne Effect
The Hawthorne effect would likely be greatest in a(n) ___ study.
Answer: Observational.
33. Leary: Maximum Inclusion vs. Ambivalence
According to Leary, the opposite of maximum inclusion is total ambivalence.
Answer: False.
34. Natural Selection and Self-Reliance
Natural selection suggests that evolution favored humans who could fend for themselves and not rely on others to meet their needs.
Answer: False.
35. Characteristics of Collectivistic Cultures
Collectivistic cultures are competitive by nature and shun people who do not do their personal best.
Answer: False.