1. Communication in Small Groups
Chapter 8

2. Group Consultation Scenario

3. Consultation Scenario
Read scenario out loud in group
Discuss questions together
Write recommendation
Each group presents recommendations
Together, we discuss differences in advice

4. Four ways of abiding by group norms
Means of Group Influence
Convince through Substantive Discussion
Sway through Social Pressure
Result of Influence
Full Commitment to Group Norm
Consensus:
Internalizing group’s values to make them one’s own.
Most enduring because the new norms shape one’s core attitudes and general behavior.
Conformance:
Identification with norms to secure relationships with group members.
Activated whenever relationships are salient, so long as other members behave consistently.
Follows Norm But Uncommitted
Convergence:
Conditional acceptance based on information, incentives, or argument.
Least enduring because dependent on ephemeral opinions or provisional cost/benefit analyses.
Compliance:
Norms followed to demonstrate submission to authority or pressure.
Only operates when the group or supervisor applies steady pressure and monitors behavior.
* An adapted blend of Jahoda (1956), p. 236, and Hare (1976), pp

5. Socialization to Group Norms

6. Newcomer adheres, then rejects

7. Newcomer infuses commitment

8. Accommodating the newcomer

9. Newcomer sparks ambivalence

10. Social Identity Theory and the Contact Hypothesis

11. Intergroup Contact Theory
People with different collective/group identities need to be placed in situations where relevant authorities/institutions permit ingroups and outgroups to work together cooperatively, as equals, to achieve a common goal.
Most effective when
participants choose to take part
activities are intensive (e.g., sports, projects)
meeting all of the underlined conditions above maximizes the effect

12. Embedded System Framework Summary

13. ESF Model of Norms/Symbols/Identity
Inter-group conflicts
with other local groups
Organizational
socialization practices
Institutional support
for inter-group contact
Task requires intra- and/ or inter-group cooperation vs. competition
Equality of member
status relationships
Nature and strength
of group norms
Salience of different
social identities (and
primary group identity)
Confidence in one’s
independent judgment
Participants’ diverse
identities and allegiances
(including to other groups)
Socialization to
conform with/ adapt
prototypical norms
Distribution and management of deviance (rejection,
norm adjustment)
Symbolic conflict and convergence
Dialogue and
storytelling
Group cohesion
Subjective
assessment of
group’s qualities
Increase/reduction in inter-group stereotypes
and prejudices
Exclusion/ departure from the group
Pool of social identities, group archetypes, and
salient symbols or dramatic narratives
Individualist/ collectivist
cultural orientations