Digital Commons Network^™

What Do People Desire In Others? A Sociofunctional Perspective On The Importance Of Different Valued Characteristics, Catherine A. Cottrell, Steven L. Neuberg, Norman P. Li

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Humans, as discriminately social creatures, make frequent judgments about others' suitability for interdependent social relations. Which characteristics of others guide these judgments and, thus, shape patterns of human affiliation? Extant research is only minimally useful for answering this question. On the basis of a sociofunctional analysis of human sociality, the authors hypothesized that people highly value trustworthiness and (to a lesser extent) cooperativeness in others with whom they may be interdependent, regardless of the specific tasks, goals, or functions of the group or relationship, but value other favorable characteristics (e.g., intelligence) differentially across such tasks, goals, or functions. Participants in …

Effective Group Meetings And Decision Making, Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Single individuals do much to advance the cause of peace, but much of the work - the decisions, advocacy, planning, and organizing - is handled by groups. In groups we pool our knowledge and abilities, give each other feedback, and tackle problems too overwhelming to face alone. Group members give us emotional and social support and can stimulate us to become more creative, insightful, and committed to our goals. When we work with others who share our values and goals, we often come to understand ourselves, and our objectives, more clearly.

Not every group, however, realizes these positive consequences. Often …

Social Comparison And Influence In Groups, Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

This chapter is a reminder of social comparison theory's foundations in group processes rather than an extension of social comparison to groups. Social comparison research and theory, by tradition, stress individualistic, psychological purposes of comparison, such as satisfying basic drives, defining and enhancing the self, and alleviating distress or anxiety; but Festinger (1954) used the theory to explain shifts in members' opinions, elevated motivation and competition among members, opinion debates, and the rejection of dissenters in groups (Allen & Wilder, 1977; Goethals & Darley, 1987; Singer, 1981; Turner, 1991; Wheeler, 1991). This chapter revisits the theory's roots in groups before …

Canada's "Respect Project" Poses Some Questions About Groups, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The article discusses Canada's online Respect Project is mainly concerned with ethical, logical, epistemological, social, and cultural topics. It aims at the integral respect of cultures and persons.

The Functions Of Groups: A Psychometric Analysis Of The Group Resources Inventory, Donelson R. Forsyth, Timothy R. Elliott, Josephine A. Welsh

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

What do groups do for their members? A functional model that assumes groups satisfy a number of basic survival, psychological, informational, interpersonal, and collective needs is offered. The authors examined the comprehensiveness of the model by asking members of various types of naturally occurring groups to describe the benefits they gained through membership. Analysis of those descriptions identified 16 key interpersonal functions of groups (such as social comparison, social exchange, social control, social esteem, social identity, and social learning), and individuals' evaluations of the quality of their group were systematically related to their ratings of the group's functionality. The authors …

Reference Group, Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Any group, including general social groupings based on demographic similarities (e.g., race or culture), that individuals use as a basis for social comparison.

Foundations And Applications Of Group Psychotherapy: A Sphere Of Influence (Book Review), Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Using groups to help people achieve personal goals and therapeutic change is an old idea. Indeed, Ettin (1992), in his book Foundations and Applications of Group Psychotherapy: A Sphere of Influence, suggests that Socrates was perhaps the first group psychotherapist. After all, he regularly convened small groups of scholars who sought intellectual, ethical, and interpersonal insights. Even the sage Socrates, however, could not have anticipated the widespread use of groups that exists today. When individuals experience problems in adjustment, in behavior, or in health, they often rely on groups to solve these problems.

The Pecking Order, Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

How can you increase your status? A clearly defined role and a central position in the group's communication network are essential. Good verbal skills and positive body language can help you make the right impression.

Assertion Training Groups: Therapist-Directed And Self-Directed Goal Orientation Methods, Lawrence George Jarvis

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The present study was designed to investigate the effectiveness of two methods of goal specification in Assertion Training groups as assessed by two self-report measures, the Goal Attainment Scaling process and the Assertion Inventory. An Assertion Training group method having specific behavioral steps for approaching individualized goals was represented as the Therapist-Directed Assertion Training group. The second Assertion Training group was a Self-Directed group that allowed subjects to independently set and approach their own goals without the assistance of therapists in setting goals. Subjects were selected from among individuals who volunteered for the Assertion Training group in response to solicitation …

Expressed Group Member Satisfaction And Measured Group Difference Between Trained And Untrained Group Members, Dennis Randall Kilstrom

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In college programs utilizing the quarter system there arise problems in the development of encounter groups due to a limited amount of time available. A short training program in evaluating group processes might be one way to facilitate group development. In order to test one such program two hypotheses were generated. Hypotheses I was tested for a significant difference between a Treatment Group, receiving training, and a Control Group, receiving no training, in expressed member satisfaction. Hypothesis II was tested for a significant difference in the therapeutic value of rated interaction between the Treatment and Control Group. Expressed member satisfaction …