Main Idea: Exploring the influence of group membership on individual identity and actions.
Key Question: "If all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump too?"
What Defines a Social Group?
Definition: A collection of people with something in common, believing that commonality is significant.
Sense of Belonging: Key characteristic differentiating social groups from aggregates (people in the same place at the same time) and categories (people with similar characteristics).
Types of Social Groups
Primary Groups
Characteristics: Small, tightly knit; strong sense of belonging.
Examples: Family, friendship groups.
Purpose: Exist for the sake of being a group; provide emotional, social, and financial support.
Secondary Groups
Characteristics: Large, impersonal; focused on shared goal or activity.
Examples: Companies.
Nature: Usually voluntary, but can become primary groups over time.
Involuntary Groups
Nature: Membership is assigned, not chosen.
Examples: Prisoners, conscripted soldiers.
Group Dynamics
Leadership
Roles:
Instrumental Leader: Goal-oriented.
Expressive Leader: Focused on group harmony and wellbeing.
Styles:
Authoritarian: Gives orders, earns respect, less affection.
Democratic: Reaches consensus, considers different viewpoints.
Laissez-faire: Permissive, least effective in crisis.
Group Conformity
Definition: Members adhere to group norms and standards.
Milgram Experiment: Demonstrated how authority and group values influence conformity.
Groupthink
Description: Narrowing of thought where only one correct answer is accepted; alternatives suggest disloyalty.
Reference Groups
In-groups vs. Out-groups: Loyalty and identification vs. antagonism and non-identification.
Impact of Group Size
Small Groups: More intimate but less stable.
Large Groups: More stable, less intimate; prone to coalitions.
Diversity in Groups: Homogeneous groups turn inward; heterogeneous groups turn outward.
Social Networks
Perspective: People as interconnected nodes.
Importance of Weak Ties: Useful for networking, job opportunities.
Conclusion
Impact of Groups: Influence decisions, serve as reference points, organize society.
Next Topic: Formal organizations and bureaucracy.
Crash Course Sociology
Production: Filmed at Dr. Cheryl C. Kinney Studio, Missoula, MT.