PSYC20009 Chap.7 Group Dynamics and Social Identity
Group Dynamics and Social Identity
The semester sequence distinguishes social identity and intergroup dynamics from intragroup dynamics. Social identity connects self-knowledge to membership in a social group or category. When that membership is salient, group-relevant meanings may become part of the working self-concept.
Intergroup explanations concern relations between groups, while intragroup explanations concern influence, coordination or performance among members of one group. A group difference is an observed pattern and does not by itself prove that group membership caused the difference. Composition, selection, shared environments and influence can all contribute. The chapter therefore emphasises levels of analysis and evidence design.
A claim about norms needs evidence that a shared expectation changed or shaped behaviour. A claim about identity needs evidence that membership or category salience mattered. A claim about one member cannot automatically be generalised to the entire group. These distinctions organise revision for the group lectures without importing tutorial-only debate readings into final-exam scope.
What this chapter covers
- 01
Group membership as a collective self-aspect
- 02
Identity salience within the working self-concept
- 03
Individual explanations inside group settings
- 04
Intragroup influence, coordination and performance
- 05
Intergroup relations between social categories
- 06
Norms as shared expectations within contexts
- 07
Group composition and selection effects
- 08
Group influence as a causal claim
- 09
Comparisons needed to support level-specific explanations
- 10
Lecture and required-reading boundaries for the final exam
Worked example · free
Classify three explanations of debate participation
- 1The first explanation is person-centred because it invokes a stable individual tendency.
- 1The second explanation is situation-centred because one group rule is proposed to shift behaviour broadly.
- 1The third explanation is interactionist because the time limit's effect depends on member position and uncertainty.
Key terms
- Social identity
- A self-relevant meaning derived from membership in a social group or category and shared with other members.
- Identity salience
- The degree to which a particular membership becomes accessible and relevant in the present context.
- Intragroup process
- An influence, coordination or performance process operating among members within the same group.
- Intergroup process
- A perception, evaluation or behaviour organised around the relation between distinct social groups.
- Group norm
- A shared expectation about appropriate perception, judgement or behaviour within a group or setting.
- Composition effect
- A group difference produced by the kinds of people who entered the group rather than influence after entry.
- Group influence
- A causal claim that membership, norms or processes within a group changed member responses.
Group Dynamics and Social Identity FAQ
What is the difference between intragroup and intergroup?
Intragroup refers to processes among members within one group. Intergroup refers to perception or behaviour organised around relations between different groups, categories or social memberships.
Does a group difference prove group influence?
No. People may have selected into groups, groups may differ in other ways or a shared environment may matter. Influence requires evidence about change attributable to membership or group process.
How does identity connect to the self?
Group membership can form a collective self-aspect. When the membership becomes salient, group-relevant knowledge can guide current perception, judgement and action in that immediate context.
What evidence supports a norm claim?
The study should identify the shared expectation, compare behaviour when the norm differs or changes and address alternative group differences that could produce the pattern.
Are debate readings part of final-exam scope?
The examinable-content notice excludes additional readings such as debate readings. All lecture content and the designated textbook portions remain the priority for final examination revision.
Exam move
Build a level-of-analysis table with individual, intragroup and intergroup columns. Place each lecture concept or study into the column that matches its comparison. For every reported group difference, generate at least two alternatives: composition before membership and influence after membership. Practise translating a broad phrase such as group pressure into a measurable norm, comparison and behavioural outcome.
Use the published examinable-content notice to separate final-exam reading from presentation evidence. When answering a question, name the level first, then the proposed mechanism, then the evidence that would distinguish it from selection or context. Create a membership timeline for each group vignette: record what was measured before joining, what changed after exposure and what comparison group is available.
Use it to separate selection from socialisation. For norm questions, write the expectation in a sentence that a group member could follow, then identify whose behaviour supplies evidence that the expectation is shared. Draw one version where personal and collective identities point toward the same action and another where they conflict. In both versions, state which identity must be salient for the predicted group response.
Tag every study note as individual, within-group or between-group before memorising its result.
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