Discuss the differences Between groupthink and group polarization providing examples of each

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The facilitator said, "Any other ideas before we move on and make a decision?" As Laila raised her hand, she could see people sigh and roll their eyes. She was always suggesting something that went against the grain; moreover, the longer it takes to make a decision, the hungrier people will get. Laila puts her hand down, thinking that moving the group forward is more important than getting her idea on the table. Given that it was a significant departure from what everyone else was saying, they might miss both lunch and dinner!

The example above is best described as an illustration of what concept?

Possible Answers:

Stockholm Syndrome

Bystander Effect 

Group Polarization

Hallow Effect

Groupthink

Correct answer:

Groupthink

Explanation:

The correct answer is "groupthink," the concept that individuals stifle their ideas in the group to achieve concensus. Group polarization is not the correct answer, because it means that groups might select options that are more extreme than individual members of that group might select, and this is not illustrated in the example above. The other concepts are concepts of psychology, but are not related to group processes. 

As they embarked upon deliberations, nine jurors were leaning towards finding a defendant guilty while three jurors thought the defendant was not guilty. It was observed that during deliberations, the nine who believed the defendant was guilty tended to confer, while the three who believed he was innocent also discussed more with each other. This resulted in the jury members each becoming more entrenched in their initial positions than they had been before. This scenario exemplifies which of the following concepts in social psychology?

Possible Answers:

Social categorization

Cognitive appraisal

Group polarization

Self-serving bias

Informational influence

Correct answer:

Group polarization

Explanation:

Group polarization describes the phenomenon when individuals make more extreme decisions when acting together as a group than they would by themselves. In this scenario, as individuals—the jurors—believed in their respective points of view from the beginning; however, after they formed oppositional groups, they became even more entrenched in their points of view.

The other choices are incorrect due to various reasons. Cognitive appraisal is a process where a physiological arousal is assessed in the brain and processed for the appropriate physiological and psychological coping strategies. It has nothing to do with the juror situation. Informational influence is a group effect arising from a group’s desire to be correct and to understand how to act best in a given situation. While this may play a role here—because the jury may be trying to be correct and act in the interest of justice—it has split into two opposing camps and one group will not “act correctly." Social categorization is the process by which people sort themselves into categories. This may be happening in this situation when the jury broke into two camps—those who believe the defendant is guilty and those who believe the defendant is not guilty—but it is not the primary effect. The self-serving bias describes the attribution of positive experiences to our own character and actions but negative experiences to factors external to our own character and actions. While this may affect the jurors’ interpretations of their own opinions and actions, it does not explain why they are more entrenched in their beliefs after discussing the matter with others who believe the same thing they do.

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Discuss the differences Between groupthink and group polarization providing examples of each

In contemporary society, we see examples of group polarization growing day by day, in terms of politics, sports teams, and civic pride.

Group polarization is defined as a phenomenon when “members of a deliberating group move toward a more extreme point in whatever direction is indicted by the members’ predeliberation tendency.” Group polarization leads to changing attitudes among individuals within the group. In addition, group polarization can lead to groupthink, which is when bad decisions are made by a group because some of its members don’t want to express opinions or suggest new ideas that some in the group may disagree with.

People want to be unique and have opinions that differ from others, which could lead to more extreme views on a certain subject taking hold. This can have dangerous consequences for society as a whole.

Why Does It Happen?

There is a pair of theories that help explain how group polarization works. The social comparison theory concerns individuals comparing views with others, while the informational influence theory focuses on an individual trying to persuade another.

Social Comparison Theory

Also known as the normative influence, this theory of group polarization states that people often change their opinions when in a group in order to fit in or to be accepted, and to be looked upon more favorably. As outsiders, new members of the group may promote a more extreme view of a topic than the rest of the group previously had. That can push the entire group toward the more extreme viewpoint or the stance that best correlates with the views of the group leader.

Informational Influence

This concept states “that people tend to enter a discussion with favorable information for both sides of the argument, and then change their opinion favoring that side which provides more information in its arguments.” This mainly occurs when an individual is unsure about what he or she believes, and that person will tend to follow which ever viewpoint has the most information supporting it.

Group Polarization Examples

The importance of group polarization in social psychology is significant in contemporary times, because it helps explain group behavior in a variety of real-life situations. Some examples of these include discussions and decisions made about public policy, terrorism, college life, and all types of violence.

One example of informational influence within group polarization is jury verdicts. Multiple studies have shown that jury members in civil trials as a group often decided on punitive damage awards larger or smaller than they would have chosen individually. The studies found that people who favored lower punitive damage awards wound up voting for an even lower award after group discussions; likewise, for higher amounts.

Other contemporary examples of group polarization are demonstrated during sporting events. As individuals, people are less likely to be antagonistic to sporting officials. But with a crowd of partisan supporters rooting on their team, it’s much easier to signal discontent for the officials when a bad call is perceived by the fans.

More recently, group polarization has been observed in cases of racial and sexual prejudice, as seen in racial hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, and it’s also observed in online forums and discussions.

Gain a Better Understanding of Group Polarization

Understanding group polarization and its effects on society has never been more important, especially considering how individuals are finding groups within their communities and online. You can learn much more about group polarization and other social phenomena with Alvernia University’s fully online Bachelor of Science in Psychology. With an online psychology bachelor’s degree, you can help people overcome their troubles as a mental health advocate and substance abuse counselor, or become eligible to pursue graduate studies.

What is the difference between groupthink and group polarization explain with examples?

While groupthink results in decisions made based on the desire of not upsetting a group of people, group polarization results in an extremely conservative decisions where the group members are cautious and risky decisions where the group members are risk-averse.

What is group polarization examples?

Group Polarization Examples Some examples of these include discussions and decisions made about public policy, terrorism, college life, and all types of violence. One example of informational influence within group polarization is jury verdicts.

What is groupthink and group polarization?

Group Polarization: In group polarization, people in the group end up having extreme views or opinions. Groupthink: In groupthink, people go along with the group idea and discard their personal opinion.

What is an example of groupthink?

Two well-known examples of Groupthink in action are the Challenger Space Shuttle disaster and the Bay of Pigs invasion. Engineers of the space shuttle knew about some faulty parts months before takeoff, but they did not want negative press so they pushed ahead with the launch anyway.