Drawing on Appropriate Evidence Describe How Groups Can Influence People in Positive and Negative Ways.

The Stanford Prison Experiment was a clear example of how humans can adapt to specific social roles and behave differently under the pressure of control. The experiment illustrated the concepts of deviance and social control through participants behavior. Although the prisoners were not really prisoners, they believed that they were. The behavior of the prisoners began to morph along with the experiment. By day two, the prisoners were showing deviance by barricading themselves inside their cells. The environment and treatment of the prisoners were likely causes of the disobedience. Similarly, the guards showed signs of social control throughout the experiment. Guards were able to show control over the prisoners through various actions, such

In conclusion there has been evidence to show that groups have both a negative and also a positive effect on its members. It has been demonstrated that some people will cope with the negative effects in an unproductive way by changing their behaviour in way that was detrimental to the well being of themselves and its other members. However the positives can have a very powerful effect on a person in that it can promote a sense of identity, loyalty and

Group cohesiveness is often strived for and encouraged, however, after this chapter it is clear just how damaging cohesiveness can be to a group. While it can be much more pleasant to work with people similar to yourself, highly cohesive groups often miss the benefits of disagreement and diverse opinions. Often cohesiveness is so strongly supported and encouraged that there may be punishments from varying away from group norms. If members fear punishment or judgement from speaking against the group, biased sampling is more likely to occur. This can result in making poor decisions and not actively using the skills each member holds. Group polarization is also much more likely to affect a highly cohesive group in comparison to a relatively diverse group. Group polarization can be avoided or limited by members who hold opposing views to the majority, which cannot be supported by a highly cohesive group.

Sometimes, the result of a negative action will be spending the rest of life in prison. Limits will exist, and freedom will disappear. The average 6x9 feet cell will be one’s living quarters for months, years, or possibly even life. No choices will be made, but everything will instead be forced upon oneself. Appetites will quickly change because of the repetitious peanut butter and jelly sand which, which is served as lunch for three months straight. Solitary confinement drives prisoners beyond insane, and a normal life after torture seems anything but possible. A prison gang is the new normal, and aspects like racism, illness, and overcrowding are extremely prevalent1. These are just a few of the difficulties a prisoner endures during his

Grouping is cause by a biological stain, meaning that humans have been stained with this instinct. It is a survival tactic that goes to show that there is still a sense of survival against others today. Groups are also used as reassurance and confidence for the people included. While the people excluded are mentally or physically harmed by the group. The purpose of a group is not only survival but reproduction, once again a primitive instinct where the weak and feeble are left out of groups to, inevitably, die without a

Twenty-four average, healthy, participants were randomly chosen to either be a guard or prisoner. The “prisoners” would stay at the test site all day and night while the “guards” worked in shifts and could go home. According to Kendra Cherry, the participants in the study were becoming emotionally distressed; “prisoners” were depressed and anxious while “guards” were antagonistic and hostile. From this it was concluded that the guard and prisoner mentality changes who people are as people and creates a power struggle between the groups. The study used average, normal people and they all changed from who they once were. This helps explain why prison rape happens. Prison is a tense environment and it can break down the morals and good standing of anyone in there. Those who had power felt the urge to show off their dominance over those they felt were below

One of the interesting aspects of prison life is the idea of prison as a total institution. When people say that prison is a total institution, they mean that every aspect of life is controlled in prison. The qualifications for a total institution include all aspects of life (work, play, and sleep) carried out under one roof; all activity is in groups; all activity is scheduled; activities are planned to meet goals; inmates and staffs are distinctly split; the institution seeks to strip the inmate of self; there is a privilege system; there is an argot system; and there are situational adaptations (O'Connor, 2010).

Doris Lessing, Female novelist and author of “Group Minds”, wrights to her audience about how being in a group affects the individuals mind. She discusses about how being in a group isn’t dangerous, but not realizing how the group affects us is, and uses multiple examples to show this point. Lessing’s article pulls at the audience’s heart to help them realize how groups can negatively affect an individual and how we can use what we have learned to fix this problem, however lacks the expertise in the subject, and specific evidence to prove her

In-groups have many positive consequences for the members of the group. For example, in-groups provide a sense of belonging. Being a part of a group of individuals with similar views and experiences cultivate a sense of solidarity. Furthermore, these groups can foster an environment of understanding; when one makes a mistake, it is more likely that a person who is a

It is a well known fact that belonging to a group can make an individual feel not only accepted, but more powerful that if they were on their own.

Doris Lessing “Group Minds” explains that “when we’re in a group, we tend to think as that group does: we may even have joined the group to find “like-minded” people.” (Lessing 5) Lessing stresses that people who have experienced a few groups, often observe their own behavior, they may agree that the hardest thing in life is to stand out against a group of one’s peers. (Lessing 9) Lessing’s article shows how an individual can lose their sense of self and objectivity that are affected by group pressures.

By working in a group setting, one is able to understand the various dimensions of group dynamics and group think (West, 2012, p.66).

One of the major ways group psychologies attribute to individual behavior towards each other in a group is how the island guest’s attitude, the outlook of their current situation, and how they treated each other changes expeditiously throughout the story. In a study done by Philip Zimbardo called The Stanford Prison Experiment 18 people were split up into guards and prisoners, 9 of them being guards and 9 of them being prisoners. As the prisoners first arrived at the prison and were told what their crimes were, they experienced mild shock in somewhat the same way the island guests did as their crimes were stated on the record. From this point on, not only does it allow the other prisoners to place judgment on each other, it immediately

Previous research that explains the minimal group phenomenon is the "The Robbers Cave" experiment. This was done with eleven-year-old boys unknowingly assigned into two teams. There were challenges set up in order to intensify the conflict between both groups. This experiment lasted one week and consisted of three stages. The first stage consisted of each team gaining a sense of identity and partnership. It was during the end of this stage that the participants were aware of the opposing team; which created the separation between us versus them. The next stage’s purpose was to intensify the competition between the two teams. This included physical competitive games. The last stage goal was to resolve the conflict made by the negative attitudes towards both teams. The results of this study expressed how positive interdependence, and not solely stopping the negative attitudes, was needed to restore the diverse level of negative social perception between groups (Sherif, 1988). Another experiment that investigated the minimal group phenomenon was with males in the Swiss Army. This explored whether organizations had an important benefit to a selfless cooperation and punishment of the norm violation from within a controlled real world sample. The results of this study expressed that the expected

The group environment is the shared contact concerning two or plus individuals. Groups contain the dominance to manipulate the outlooks of human being in societal affairs (Myers, 2010). The significance of power that a group will consume covers past the growth of interpersonal connections. The progress of a group active has a great deal to do with the actions of the specific followers. The actions of participants manipulate and influence other followers on a subliminal level. The social interactions and actions of the group affect every one of the followers and these actions influence eventually the superiority and accomplishment of the group involvement.