Studying

Groups

Aylen S. Geglao
James Alex T. Habaradas
Ph.D Students
 Dr.Lilian Diana Parreno
Professor

Table of Contents

Studying Groups 1
Measurement in Group Dynamics
Research Methods in Group Dynamics
Theoretical Perspectives in Group Dynamics 2
Studying Groups

“When the test of the truth of a relationship lies finally in the data themselves and
nature, however stretched out on the rack, still has a chance to say “No” - then the
subject is a science”
-Homans

According to Homans there are three critical requirements of a scientific approach to

the study of groups (1) Researchers must use reliable and valid methods to measure
group phenomena. (2)Researchers must design research procedues to test their
hypotheses about groups (3) Researchers must develop theories that organize their
findings conceptually and comprehensively.
Measurements in Group Dynamics
Science often begins with measurement . Researchers’ success in studying group was
also tied to their progress in measuring group members’ interpersonal actions and
psychological reactions. Here we trace two important measuremnt methods- observing
goups and questioning group members- that gavvve group dynamics a foothold in the

ObservationIt
watching
events
events groups.involves
transpiring
and
and recording
scientific tradition.
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watchingtranspiring in
involves
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1. Observation
It involves watching and recording events tranpiring in groups.
Overt Observation records the group’s activities with the group knowledge I.e Whyte
used this in his study about the Nortons
Covert Observation records the group’s activities without’s the group’s knowledge.
Researchers interested in how groups organize themselves by race and sex in schools sit
quitely in the corner of the lunchroom and watch as students choose their seats. To
study gatherings of people in a public park a researcher may set up a surveillance
camera and record where people congregate throughout the day. Coverts observation
reduces biasing influences of the Hawthorne effect.
This kind of observation raises few ethics issues, but researchers are required to
have their work approved by an Institutional Review Board(IRB).
Participant Observation watch and record group’s activities and interactions while
taking part in the group social process.
i.e. Whyte wen bowling with the Nortons gambled with Nortons, and even lent
money to some members.
2. Qualitative studies require he collection of descriptive data about groups, but
quantitative studies requires the enumeration and qualification of the phenomena
of interest.
3. Reliability and validity are essential qualities of all measures, for they must be
consistent and they measure what they are designed to measure.
4. Self-report measures ask group members to describe their own perceptions and
experiences.
a) Moreno’s sociometry method asks members to report whom they like the
most. The nominations are used to generate a sociogram, or visual image of
the interpersonal relations in the group.
Research Methods in the Group Dynamics
Good measurements alone does not gaurantee good science. Researcher who watch
groups and ask group members question can develop a detailed description of a group,
but they must go beyond description if they are to explain. Once researchers have
collected their data, they must use that information to test hypotheses about group
phenomena.They use many techniques to check the adequacy of their suppositions
about the groups, but these are the three common approach:

1. A case study is an in-depth analysis of one or more groups based on interviews with
members, observation and so on. The conslusions drawn from case studies can be
highly subjective, but they stimulate theory and provide detailed information about
natural, bona fide groups.
2. In an experiment, researchers examine cause-effect relationships by manipulating
aspects of the group situation(independent variables). Group studied in experimental
settings may not display the dynamics of naturally occurring groups, but
experimentation provides clearest test of cause-and-effect hypotheses.
3. In a correlational study, the investigator , rather than manipulating aspects of the
situation, gauges the strenght of the naturally occuring relationships between such
variables. Correlational studies provide only limited information about causality, but
they yield precise estimates of the strenght of the relationship between two variables
and raise fewer questions of ethics for researchers.

Theoretical Perspectives in Group Dynamics

Successful researchers do not develop ingenious methods for measuring and studying
group process. They also develop compelling theoretical explanations for group
phenomena. Theories also yield suggestions for future research. These are some
theoretical perspectives on groups:

1. Theories that focus on members’ motivations and emotions explain group behavior
in terms of members, wants, needs, drives, and feelings,. Members’ need to maintain
self-esteem influences response to group outcomes, and George’s work suggets that
groups can develop a collective group affective tone.
2. Theories based on Skinner’s behaviorism, such as Thibaut and Kelley’s social
exchange theory, assume that individual act to maximize their rewards and minimize
their costs.
3. A system theory approach assumes tgat groups are systems. An
input-process-output model(I-P-O model_ of group performance exemplifies the
system approach.
4. Turner’s self categorization theory (SCT) is a cognitive process approach, for it
assumes that group members’ tendency to categorize other people and themselves
influence a wide range of group behavior.
5. Biological perspectives, such as evolutionary theory, argue that some group
behaviors, including leadership, may be rooted in people’s biological heritage.

Group dynamics is rich with theory. Some of these theories trace group processes back
to psychological processes and other focus more on the group as a social system. These
different theoretical perspectives are not mutually exclusive paradigms,struggling for
the distinction as the explanation of group behavior.