What is the term for the process by which members of a cohesive group arrive at a decision that many individual members privately believe is unwise?

1. Define: ingroup, outgroup, and reference group; describe the significance of these concepts in everyday life.

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   • What is the term for compliance in which people follow direct orders from someone in a position of authority?
   • What is a group of people who are linked by common interest equal social position and usually similar age?
   • What is the term for the tension among roles connected to a single status group of answer choices?
   • Is most appropriate when the group is dealing with emotional issues and when harmony solidarity and high morale are needed?
   • Ingroup - A group to which a person belongs and with which the person feels a sense of identity.
   • Outgroup - A group to which a person does not belong and toward which the person may feel a sense of competitiveness or hostility.
   • Distinguishing between our ingroups and our outgroups helps us establish our individual identity and self-worth. Likewise, groups are solidified by ingroup and outgroup distinctions; the presence of an enemy or hostile group binds members more closely together.
   • Reference Group - A group that strongly influences a person�s behavior and social attitudes, regardless of whether that individual is an actual member.
   • Reference groups help explain why our behavior and attitudes sometimes differ from those of our membership groups.

2. Summarize Max Weber's perspective on rationality; outline his ideal characteristics of bureaucracy.

   • According to Weber, rationality is the process y which traditional methods of social organization, characterized by informality and spontaneity, are gradually replaced by efficiently administered formal rules and procedures.
   • Division of Labor - Bureaucratic organizations are characterized by specialization, and each member has highly specialized tasks to fulfill.
   • Hierarchy of Authority - In a bureaucracy, each lower office is under the control and supervision of a higher one.
   • Rules and Regulations - Rules and regulations establish authority within an organizations. Standardized and provided in written format.
   • Qualification-Based Employment - Bureaucracies require competence and hire staff members and professional employees based on specific qualifications.
   • Impersonality - Bureaucracies require that everyone must play by the same rules and be treated the same. Personal feelings should not interfere with organizational decisions.

3. Define the iron law of obligarchy.

   According to Robert Michels, the tendency of bureaucracies to be ruled by a few people.

4. Describe the informal structure in bureaucracies; list its positive and negative aspects.

   • Informal structure includes the daily activities and interactions that bypass the official rules and procedures.
   • The informal structure may enhance productivity or may be counterproductive to the organization.

5. Distinguish between aggregates, categories, and groups from a sociological perspective.

   • Aggregates are a collection of people that happen to be in the same place at the same time but share little in common (airline passengers, shoppers, or waiting at a traffic light)
   • Categories are a collection of people who have never met one another but share a similar characteristic (students, elderly, or Native American)
   • Social Groups are a collection of two or more people who: interact frequently, share a sense of belonging, and have a feeling of interdependence.

6. Distinguish between the two functions of leadership and the three major styles of group leadership.

   • Instrumental leadership is most appropriate when the group's purpose is to complete a task or reach a particular goal.
   • Expressive leadership is most appropriate when the group is dealing with emotional issues, an harmony, solidarity, and high morale are needed.
   • Authoritarian leaders - make all major group decisions and assigns tasks to members, effective in times of crisis or war, and often criticized for being dictatorial.
   • Democratic leaders - encourage group discussion and decision-making through consensus building, praised for being expressive and supportive, and criticized for being indecisive.
   • Laissez-Faire leaders - Do not provide active leadership, minimally involved in decision making, and encourages group members to make their own decisions.

7. Compare normative, coercive, and utilitarian organizations; describe the nature of membership in each.

   • Normative are organizations we join voluntarily to pursue a common interest or gain prestige. (political organizations or religious institutions)
   • Coercive are associations people are forced to join. (boot camps and prisons)
   • Utilitarian are organizations we join voluntarily when they can provide us with a material reward.

8. Describe dyads and triads; explain the phenomena of changes in interaction patterns.

   • Dyad is a group composed of two members.
   • Triad is a group composed of three members.

9. Explain what is meant by groupthink and elaborate on reasons why it can be dangerous for organizations.

   Group think is the process by which members of a cohesive group arrive at a decision that many individual members privately believe is unwise.

10. Describe the ways that online social networks enhance communication.

11. Distinguish between primary and secondary groups; explain how peoples' relationships differ in each.

    • Primary groups are a small group whose members engage in face to face, emotion-based interaction over extended period.
    • Secondary groups are a large specialized group in which the impersonal, goal-oriented relationships for a limited time.

12. Contrast functionalist and conflict perspectives on the purposes of groups.

    • According to functionalists, people form groups to meet instrumental and expressive needs. Instrumental or task-oriented needs cannot always be met by one person, so the group works cooperatively to fulfill a specific goal.
    • Conflict theorists suggest that groups also involve a series of power relationships whereby the needs of the individual members may not be equally served.

13. Explain the relationship between bureaucratic hierarchies and oligarchies.

    • Law of Obligarchy
    • Michels found that they go hand in hand. On the one hand, power may be concentrated in the hands of a hand, power may be concentrated in the hands of a few people because rank-and-file members must inevitably delegate a certain amount of decision-making authority to their leaders.
    • On the other hand, obligarchy may result when individuals have certain outstanding qualities that make it possible for them to manage, if not control, others.

14. Explain the contributions of Solomon Asch and Stanley Milgram to our understanding of group conformity and obedience of authority.

    • Asch - the dramatic way in which it calls our attention to the power that groups have to produce a certain type of conformity. Compliance is the extent to which people say (or do) things so that they may gain the approval of other people.
    • Milgram - Obedience is a form of compliance in which people follow direct orders from someone in a position of authority. The study provides evidence that obedience to authority may be more common than most of us would like to believe.

15. Discuss the major shortcomings of bureaucracies and their effects on workers, clients or customers, and levels of productivity.

    • Inefficiency and rigidity - Goal displacement and bureaucratic personality.
    • Resistance to change - Once bureaucratic organizations are created, they tend to resist change. Makes them impossible to eliminate but contributes to enlargement. - Incompetence
    • Perpetuation of race, class, and gender inequalities - People who lack opportunities for integration and advancement tend to be pessimistic and to have lower self-esteem.

16. Describe and evaluate U.S. and Japanese models of organization.

    • Long-term employment and company loyalty - Applies to Japan not U.S.
    • Quality circles - Small work groups made up of about fifteen workers who meet regularly with one or two managers to discuss the group�s performance and working conditions.
    • Cultural traditions in Japan place greater emphasis on the importance of the group rather than the individual, and workers in the United States are not likely to embrace this idea because it directly conflicts with the values of individualism and personal achievement so strongly held by many in this country.

17. Aggregate

    A collection of people who happen to be in the same place at the same time but share little else in common.

18. Category

    A number of people who may never have met one another but share a similar characteristic, such as education level, age, race, or gender.

19. Ingroup

    A group to which a person belongs and with which the person feels a sense of identity.

20. Outgroup

    A group to which a person does not belong and toward which the person may feel a sense of competitiveness or hostility.

21. Reference Group

    A group that strongly influences a person�s behavior and social attitudes, regardless of whether that individual is an actual member.

22. Network

    A web of social relationships that links one person with other people and, through them, with other people they know.

23. Small Group

    A collectivity small enough for all members to be acquainted with one another and to interact simultaneously.

24. Dyad

    A group composed of two members.

25. Triad

    A group composed of three members.

26. Instrumental Leadership

    Goal- or task- oriented leadership.

27. Expressive Leadership

    An approach to leadership that provides emotional support for members.

28. Authoritarian Leaders

    People who make all major group decisions and assign tasks to members.

29. Democratic Leaders

    Leaders who encourage group discussion and decision making through consensus building.

30. Laissez-Faire Leaders

    Leaders who are only minimally involved in decision making and who encourage group members to make their own decisions.

31. Conformity

    The process of maintain or changing behavior to comply with the norms established by society, subculture, or other group.

32. Groupthink

    The process by which members of a cohesive group arrive at a decision that many individual members privately believe is unwise.

33. Bureaucracy

    An organizational model characterized by a hierarchy of authority, a clear division of labor, explicit rules and procedures, and impersonality in personal matters.

34. Rationality

    The process by which traditional methods of social organization, characterized by informality and spontaneity, are gradually replaced by efficiently administrated formal rules and procedures.

35. Ideal Type

    An abstract model that describes the recurring characteristics of some phenomenon (such as bureaucracy).

36. Informal Side of Bureaucracy

    Those aspects of participants' day-to-day activities and interactions that ignore, bypass, or do not correspond with the official rules and procedures of the bureaucracy.

37. Goal Displacement

    A process that occurs in organizations when the rules become an end in themselves rather than a means to an end, and organizational survival becomes more important than achievement of goals.

38. Bureaucratic Personality

    A psychological construct that describes those workers who are more concerned with following correct procedures than they are with getting the job done correctly.

39. Iron Law of Oligarchy

    According to Robert Michels, the tendency of bureaucracies to be ruled by a few people.

What is the term for compliance in which people follow direct orders from someone in a position of authority?

What is a group of people who are linked by common interest equal social position and usually similar age?

What is the term for the tension among roles connected to a single status group of answer choices?

Is most appropriate when the group is dealing with emotional issues and when harmony solidarity and high morale are needed?