530 C H A P T E R 16
Why Not Carry Your Group with You in Case You Need It?
At the end of the day’s session, the group’s leader group by giving the members of some therapeutic
thanked the members for their active engagement in groups a card to carry with them, as a symbol of their
the group’s work and reminded them to “Put the group membership. They were reminded that they
group into your pockets and carry us with you: Rely on were valued members of their therapy group and
us when you need support, guidance, and feel alone” that they should know that their group was with
(Marmarosh & Corazzini, 1997, p. 65). them all the time. Those in a no treatment control
condition received the same therapeutic
Therapeutic groups, as groups, provide their experiences—but they did not get a card or the
members with support and encouragement, but also a reminder to keep the group in their pocket.
group-level identity that supplements their individual-
istic, personal identity. As social identity theory would People who received the card considered the
predict, when group membership is salient and valued, group to be of greater value to them, personally. And,
then the qualities of that group—including resilience, one week later, they also reported higher self-esteem,
mastery, and social assurance—become their charac- supporting the predicted relationship between social
teristics. The group, when incorporated in their social identity and self-worth. This gain, however, was not
identity, provides members with social and psycholog- experienced by those who had just joined the group, or
ical resources that they can draw on when facing stress by those who already had relatively high self-esteem
and adversity. before the intervention. The results, however, affirm
the value of groups, for they yield benefits for their
Psychologists Cheri Marmarosh and John Corazzini members even when they are separated from them.
(1997) tested this benefit of membership in a therapeutic
initially thought. The group may also include indivi- experience a fuller range of interpersonal processes,
duals who are coping well with many difficulties, and including feedback about their strengths and weak-
these upward social comparison targets symbolize the pos- nesses, pressure to change originating from multiple
sibility of progress. Although successful group sources, role models whose actions they can emulate,
members—the fellow cancer survivor who is in com- and opportunities to practice the very behaviors they
plete remission, the AA member who has stayed sober are seeking to refine. Of the 10 therapeutic factors in
for three years, or the caregiver who is managing to Table 16.3, observational learning, interpersonal
care for her elderly mother and still attend college— learning, and guidance all involve learning from
may make some group members feel like failures, these other people: social learning (Day, 2014).
successful outliers provide a standard for defining one’s
own goals (Arigo, Suls, & Smyth, 2014). Observational Learning Albert Bandura (1986),
like all learning theorists, assumes that people
16-2b Social Learning acquire new attitudes and behaviors through expe-
rience. His social learning theory, however, sug-
When people who are striving to change meet with gests that people also learn by observing and
one other person—whether a trained therapist, coun- imitating other people. This theory explains how
selor, friend, or relative—they can discuss problems, infants learn their native language, why adolescents
identify solutions, and receive support and encourage- adopt the unhealthy habits of their peers, and how
ment. But even in the most therapeutic of dyads, the
individual shares perspectives, feedback, guidance, social learning theory A conceptualization of learning
acceptance, and comfort with only one other person. that describes the processes by which new behaviors are
A larger group, with its multiple members, is richer in acquired by observing and imitating the actions displayed
terms of its interpersonal and therapeutic resources. by models, such as parents or peers (developed by Albert
Within the social microcosm of the group, individuals Bandura).
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GROWTH AND CHANGE 531
individuals acquire new, health-promoting skills in group always responds positively each time she
therapeutic groups. Social learning is more than imi- contributes to the group discussion. Another mem-
tation, however. If members are not motivated to ber may realize that he is irritating if his comments
learn from their peers or if they are distracted and so are always met with anger and hostility. This inter-
do not watch others closely, social learning is unlikely. personal feedback helps members perceive them-
Such learning also requires members be able to selves more accurately. Individuals who are
remember and reenact the behavior they observed. socially withdrawn, for example, tend to evaluate
In general, people are more likely to learn through their social skills negatively even though the other
observation if they recognize that the actions they group members view them positively (Christensen
watch lead to positive consequences for the person & Kashy, 1998). Individuals also tend to rate them-
who performs them (Shebilske et al., 1998). selves as more anxious than others perceive them to
be. Extended contact with others in a group setting
Groups provide members with multiple models helps repair these negative, inaccurate perceptions
to emulate, including fellow group members and (Christensen & Feeney, 2016)
the group leaders. When, for example, members
who are skilled in expressing their feelings deftly Groups are also very willing to give direct,
describe their emotional reactions, the less verbally unambiguous feedback to members when they
skilled members may learn how they, too, can put engage in objectionable or praiseworthy actions
their feelings into words. When two members who (Kivlighan, 1985). Kurt Lewin was one of the first
regularly disagree with each other reach an accord, theorists to borrow the term feedback from engi-
others, who watch this reconciliation unfold, neering and use it to describe how others’ responses
learn how they can resolve interpersonal conflicts. to group members served as corrective guides for
Leaders can also model desirable behaviors by treat- subsequent actions (Claiborn, Goodyear, & Horner,
ing the group members in positive ways and avoid- 2001). The individual who is lonely because he
ing behaviors that are undesirable (Dies, 1994). alienates everyone by acting rudely may be told,
Researchers facilitated social learning in one study “You should try to be more sensitive” or “You
by arranging for the coleaders of therapy groups to are always so judgmental, it makes me sick.”
model social interactions that the members consid- Some groups exchange so much evaluative infor-
ered difficult or anxiety-provoking. The leaders mation that members withdraw from the group
then helped the group members perform these rather than face the barrage of negative feedback
same behaviors through role playing. Groups that (Scheuble et al., 1987). Skilled group leaders, how-
used explicit modeling methods showed greater ever, are careful to monitor the exchange of infor-
improvement than groups that only discussed the mation between members so that individuals
problematic behaviors (Falloon et al., 1977). receive the information they need in positive, sup-
portive ways (Morran et al., 1998).
Interpersonal Learning Most people believe that
they can come to know themselves—their Guidance When group members discuss issues,
strengths, their weaknesses, their tendencies, and concerns, problems, and crises, other group mem-
their satisfactions—through self-reflection. But bers frequently help by providing advice, guidance,
much self-knowledge is gained socially; people and direction. Members of support groups, for
implicitly monitor their impact on other people example, exchange considerable factual and personal
and draw conclusions about their own qualities information about their disorder or concern as well as
from others’ reactions to them. In therapeutic suggestions for problem management. Group leaders,
groups, the other members become, metaphori- in addition to guiding the flow of the session through
cally, mirrors that members use to understand questioning, summarizing, and rephrasing members’
themselves (Cooley, 1902). A group member may statements, also provide information, suggest solu-
begin to think that she has good social skills if the tions, confront the members’ interpretations of
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532 C H A P T E R 16
problems, and offer their own interpretations. This leadership teams are particularly beneficial, as they
guidance ranges from explicit suggestions and offer a fuller perspective on gender issues and serve as
directions to more existentially challenging insights models of positive, nonromantic heterosexual relation-
(Solomonov et al., 2016). ships. In general, two cooks tend to improve, rather
than spoil, the therapeutic broth, but the advantages of
Some therapists are more directive than others. coleadership are lost if the leaders are unequal in status
Those who adopt a leader-centered approach— or engage in power struggles during group sessions
typical of psychoanalytic, Gestalt, and behavioral (Arnardottir, 2002).
groups—guide the course of the interaction, assign
various tasks to the group members, and occupy the 16-2c Group Cohesion
hub of the centralized communication network. In
some instances, the group members may not even Just as cohesion is a key ingredient for effective mili-
communicate with one another, but only with tary squads, production groups, and management
the group leader. Other leaders, however, adopt a teams, so cohesion contributes to the effectiveness of
directive, democratic style of leadership. This more change-promoting groups. Groups are more effec-
group-centered approach, which is more typical in tive as change agents if they are unified and members
interpersonal therapy groups, requires members to feel tightly bonded to the group and its members
engage with one another rather than only with the (Cartwright, 1951). Without cohesion, feedback is
leader. Such therapists function as facilitators and not accepted, norms do not develop, and members
agenda setters; they help the members examine pro- do not attend with enough regularity to create a
blems and generate alternatives, but their influence stable atmosphere for influence. Members are also
does not necessarily exceed that of any other member more accepting of each other in cohesive groups.
(Luke, 2014) Cohesion creates the climate for acceptance that is
so critical for therapeutic success.
Both directive and nondirective approaches are
effective, so long as the leaders are perceived to be Sources of Cohesion The concept of cohesion has
caring, helpful in identifying the cause of members’ generated considerable definitional and measurement
problems, and skilled in keeping the group on task debate among those who study therapeutic groups. To
(Lieberman & Golant, 2002; Lieberman, Yalom, & some, cohesion is the group-level equivalent of the
Miles, 1973). Moreover, just as leaders in organiza- working alliance that links therapist and client in
tional settings sometimes vary their interventions to one-to-one therapy. Others suggest that cohesiveness
fit the situation, so effective leaders in therapeutic is what creates the psychological safety needed for
settings shift their methods over time. During the members to feel comfortable revealing their weak-
early stages of treatment, members may respond nesses to other members. Still others suggest that the
better to a more directive leader, whereas in the essence of cohesion is a sense of belonging to the group
later stages, a less directive approach may yield (see Marmarosh & Van Horn, 2010). However, as
more positive results (Kivlighan, 1997). Chapter 5 noted, a group’s cohesion is influenced by
a number of factors, and no single factor can be named
As in other groups, therapeutic ones often which is the critical ingredient that must be added to
benefit from coleadership: having two rather the group so that it can become a cohesive one. A
than one leader (Miles & Kivlighan, 2010). The therapeutic group, like any group, may exhibit both
two leaders can lend support to each other, and they social and task cohesion: Social cohesion, in a thera-
can also offer the group members their combined peutic group, is defined by the strength of positive
knowledge, insight, and experience. Male–female relational bonds among members but also the absence
of negative relationships (Thayer & Burlingame, 2014).
coleadership Two or more individuals sharing the orga- Task cohesion is determined by a commitment to the
nizational, directive, and motivational duties of the lead-
ership role.
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GROWTH AND CHANGE 533
group and its therapeutic processes (or positive work- stage of development—adjourning. If a group does
ing relationships). However, cohesion may also be not move through these stages, its members will not
based on identity and belonging (collective cohesion), be able to benefit from the experience (MacKenzie,
shared feelings (emotional cohesion), and the integrity 1994, 1997; Yalom with Leszcz, 2005).
of the group’s structural features—including the bond
between the members and the leaders (structural Counseling psychologist Dennis Kivlighan and
cohesion). his colleagues (1984) illustrated the important impact
of group development on therapeutic outcomes by
Cohesion and Group Development Just as stud- matching interventions to the developmental stage
ies of all types of groups suggest that a group’s cohe- of the group. Groups were given structured help in
siveness depends on its longevity and stage of expressing either anger or intimacy before either the
development, so studies of therapeutic groups sug- fourth or the ninth group session of their therapy.
gest cohesion ebbs and flows across the life course of The information dealing with anger clarified the
the group. Even when the group’s task is a therapeu- value of anger as a natural part of group participation
tic one, time is needed to achieve cohesiveness. and provided suggestions for communicating it. The
Through continuous, guided, and increasingly skill- information dealing with intimacy clarified the value
ful communication, group members come to iden- of intimacy in groups and provided suggestions for its
tify and better understand previously unrecognized appropriate expression toward others. As anticipated,
motives and emotions, they become more rational when the interventions matched the groups’ devel-
in dealing with life’s problems, and they acquire opmental stage—for example, when group members
valuable interpersonal skills, but these gains will received the information on anger during the storm-
occur at a pace set by the group’s gradual develop- ing phase (session 4) and the information on inti-
ment. In one study, investigators observed and coded macy during the norming phase (session 9)—the
the behaviors displayed by adolescents in a program participants displayed more comfort in dealing with
of behavioral change. These groups did not immedi- intimacy, more appropriate expressions of intimacy
ately start to work on self-development issues nor and anger, fewer inappropriate expressions of inti-
did the members try to help one another. Rather, macy, and more congruence between self-ratings
groups first moved through orientation, conflict, and and other ratings of interpersonal style (Kivlighan,
cohesion-building stages before they began to make McGovern, & Corazzini, 1984).
therapeutic progress (Forsyth & Diederich, 2014).
Consequences of Cohesion Cohesion, as noted
These changes in cohesiveness that occur over in Chapter 5, can lead to negative consequences,
time in therapeutic groups are largely consistent with particularly if social pressures become too powerful,
Bruce Tuckman’s (1965) five-stage theory of group if the group’s norms are not productive ones, and if
development (see Chapters 1 and 5). During the less-involved members feel as though they are out-
forming stage, individual members are seeking to siders in their own group. However, in groups with
understand their relationship to the newly formed a therapeutic purpose, the positive consequences of
group and strive to establish clear intermember rela- cohesion far outnumber the negative. Cohesive
tions. During the storming stage, group members groups tend to retain their members—attendance
often find themselves in conflict over status and rates are higher and dropout rates are lower. Mem-
group goals; consequently, hostility, disruption, and bers of cohesive therapy groups are more satisfied
uncertainty dominate group discussions. During the with their membership, and they describe the expe-
norming phase, the group strives to develop a group rience as more comfortable and less stressful. Com-
structure that increases cohesiveness and harmony. munication rates depend upon cohesiveness. The
The performing stage is typified by a focus on quantity of communication is greater in cohesive
group productivity and decision making. Finally, groups, participation is more equally distributed
when the group fulfills its goals, it reaches its last among all members, and members disclose more
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534 C H A P T E R 16
personal information. Cohesive groups are also Self-Disclosure Over Time Group members
superior sources of emotional and social support for generally need time to move from relatively superfi-
their members. When a group is cohesive, the mem- cial disclosures to more personal ones. When groups
bers are more engaged in the group and its change- first convene, members usually focus on mundane
promoting processes, they take part in the planning topics and avoid saying anything too personal or pro-
of the group’s topics and activities, and they express a vocative. In this orientation stage, members try to form
sense of closeness (rather than conflict) with the a general impression of each other and also strive to
other members. Cohesive groups also exert a stron- make a good impression themselves. In the exploratory
ger influence on their members than noncohesive affective stage, members discuss their personal attitudes
groups; members are more likely to internalize the and opinions, but they avoid intimate topics. This
group’s norms and avoid dysfunctional behavior for stage is often followed by the affective stage when a
fear of letting the group down. Of all the curative few topics still remain taboo. When the group
factors that work to promote change in groups, reaches the final stage, stable exchange, all personal
cohesion may be the only necessary condition for feelings are shared (Altman & Taylor, 1973).
an effective change-promoting group: A therapeutic
group that lacks cohesion may not be therapeutic Self-disclosure can be something of a challenge
(Higgenbotham, West, & Forsyth, 1988). for some individuals. People experiencing personal-
ity or psychological disturbances, for example, often
16-2d Disclosure and Catharsis disclose the wrong sorts of information at the wrong
time (McGuire & Leak, 1980). Men and boys, too,
Change-promoting groups provide members with are generally more reserved in their self-disclosures
the opportunity to disclose privately held (Kilmartin, 1994). Thus, therapists must sometimes
information—about themselves and other people— take special steps to induce males to share personal
with others in the group. As Yalom explains: “It is information about themselves and must model dis-
the affective sharing of one’s inner world and then closure and incorporate disclosure rituals in the
the acceptance by others that seem of paramount group (Horne, Jolliff, & Roth, 1996). Men’s reluc-
importance” in group therapy (Yalom with Leszcz, tance to disclose can even undermine the quality of
2005, p. 56). This process of self-disclosure is one of the group experience for all participants: The more
the primary benefits of both support and therapeutic men in the therapeutic group, the fewer benefits are
groups, for each new self-disclosure deepens the reported by participants (Hurley, 1997).
group’s intimacy, and this increased closeness then
makes further self-disclosures possible (Agazarian, Expressing Strong Emotions Members do not
2001). In sharing information about themselves, only express insights, uncertainties, or worries that
members are expressing their trust in the group and they usually keep to themselves. Sometimes, instead,
signaling their commitment to the therapeutic process they also disclose emotions that they usually keep
(Shechtman & Dvir, 2006). Disclosing troubling, hidden: anger, hostility, sadness, grief, and even sexual
worrisome thoughts also reduces the discloser’s level tensions. Some experts, accepting the psychoanalytic
of tension and stress. Individuals who keep their view that the buildup of such emotions is unhealthy,
problems secret but continually ruminate about them value this emotional release, which is called catharsis.
display signs of physiological and psychological Others, however, have suggested that “blowing off
distress, whereas individuals who have the opportunity steam” is rarely helpful, for in the extreme, venting
to disclose these troubling thoughts are healthier and heightens members’ psychological distress and upset
happier (Pennebaker, 1997). (Ormont, 1984). Groups that accept members’ out-
bursts, however, provide a supportive setting that will
self-disclosure The process of revealing personal, inti-
mate information about oneself to others. catharsis The release of emotional tensions.
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GROWTH AND CHANGE 535
help members better understand their emotions and concern for others’ well-being—then they will, in
how they can regulate them. time, come to realize that they are dominant, critical,
emotional, or caring, respectively. Also, because
16-2e Altruism groups start from scratch, with no background expec-
tations, members realize that others’ perceptions are
The group’s leader is not the only source of help relatively pristine. Malcolm may typically blame his
available to group members, for members can help gruffness on the demands made by his role as boss
each other. This mutual assistance benefits both and Rachel may think her moodiness is caused by
parties. Even though the group’s leader is the offi- her family; but if Malcolm is gruff and Rachel is
cial expert in the group, people are often more moody in group, then they must consider the possi-
willing to accept help from people who are similar bility that these qualities are part of who they are.
to themselves (Wills & DePaulo, 1991). The helper,
too, “feels a sense of being needed and helpful; can Individuals are somewhat leery of joining thera-
forget self in favor of another group member; and peutic groups because they recognize that the group
recognizes the desire to do something for another may see them for what they are—and that this
group member” (Crouch, Bloch, & Wanlass, 1994, appraisal may not match their own self-definition
p. 285). Mutual assistance teaches group members (Ringer, 2002). They also tend to resist information
the social skills that are essential to psychological that is discrepant from their self-views, dismissing the
well-being and elevates their sense of self-worth source of the feedback as biased. Groups, however,
by affirming their value to others (Pagano, Post, & offset these tendencies, for when multiple individuals
Johnson, 2011). Helping others also reduces the agree in their appraisals, the member is more likely
psychological threat of having to ask for, and rely to accept the accuracy of these evaluations (Jacobs,
on, help from others (Alvarez & Leeuwen, 2015). 1974). Also, when the feedback is given in the con-
text of a long-term, reciprocal relationship, it cannot
Mutual assistance is particularly important in sup- be so easily dismissed as biased or subjective. Group
port groups. Mended Hearts—a support group that leaders, too, often reward members for accepting
deals with the psychological consequences of open- rather than rejecting feedback, and the setting itself
heart surgery—tells its members that “you are not works to intensify self-awareness.
completely mended until you help mend others”
(Lieberman, 1993, p. 297). AA groups formalize and Even qualities that are unknown to others and to
structure helping in their 12-step procedures. Collec- the individual can emerge and be recognized during
tive helping is also an essential component of group- group interactions (Luft, 1984). As self-perception
level approaches to dealing with traumatic events. theory suggests, people often “come to ‘know’ their
own attitudes, emotions, and other internal states par-
16-2f Insight tially by inferring them from observations of their
own overt behavior and/or the circumstances in
All groups, provide members with information that which this behavior occurs” (Bem, 1972, p. 2). If
will allow them to construct an answer to the ques- individuals observe themselves acting in ways that
tion, Who am I? Groups not only provide explicit suggest that they are socially skilled—for example,
information about members’ personal qualities, but disclosing information about themselves appropriately
they also provide indirect feedback by responding in and maintaining a conversation—then they may infer
certain ways. If, for example, other people routinely that they are socially skilled (Robak, 2001). Members
treat Malcolm as if he was hostile and Jolene as if she may find that, as they act in ways that are inconsistent
was sagacious, then in time Malcom and Jolene may with their original self-conception, their self becomes
realize they have these qualities. When members see increasingly complex and, in consequence, more sta-
themselves acting in a particular way consistently— ble (Vickery et al., 2006).
say, by dominating the group interaction, criticizing
others, displaying strong emotions, or expressing Studies of group members’ evaluations of
the therapeutic experience attest to the importance
of gaining these self-insights. When participants in
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536 C H A P T E R 16
Hope 5 10 15 20 adjusting to a new job or wish that you could be
Universality Percentage more productive when you are at work. Perhaps
Vicarious learning you have finally resolved to stop smoking or drink-
Interpersonal learning ing, or you just cannot seem to get over the depres-
sion that has enveloped you since your mother
Guidance passed away last year. Whatever the problem, you
Cohesion have not succeeded in changing on your own. So
Self-disclosure you decide to join a change-promoting group.
Catharsis Would this group really help you?
Altruism 16-3a Empirical Support for
Insight
0 Group Treatments
F I G U R E 16.2 Group members’ ratings of the value Researchers and therapists have been debating the
of therapeutic factors in groups. effectiveness of both individual and group treat-
ment methods for years. As clinical studies of ther-
SOURCE: From “Participants Perception of Therapeutic Factors in Group apeutic outcomes have become increasingly
Counseling: The Role of Interpersonal Style and Stage of Group Develop- sophisticated scientifically, treatment professionals
ment” by D. A. Kivlighan, Jr. & D. Mullison, 1988, Small Group Behavior, have sought to identify evidence-based treat-
19, 1988. Copyright 1988 by Sage Publications, Inc. Reprinted by permission ments (EBTs): those that have been shown to be
of Sage Publications, Inc. effective for specific problems and disorders using
objective measures and evaluations (Kazdin, 2011).
therapeutic groups were asked to identify the events Do group methods deserve to be on the list of rec-
that took place in their groups that helped them the ognized EBTs?
most, they stressed incidents related to universality,
interpersonal learning, cohesion (belonging), and Meta-Analytic Reviews Initial efforts to deter-
insight (see Figure 16.2; Kivlighan & Mullison, mine if group approaches qualify as EBTs were ham-
1988). But time and type of group also matter. For pered by the methodological shortcomings of early
example, during later sessions, members value inter- studies of group effectiveness. Reviewers, after sifting
personal learning more but universality less. Also, self- through hundreds of studies evaluating the effective-
understanding is less important in support groups, but ness of group interventions, rejected most as so
more important in affect-focused and interpersonal methodologically flawed that they yielded no infor-
therapy groups (Kivlighan & Holmes, 2004). Also, mation whatsoever (Bednar & Kaul, 1978, 1979,
some individuals are more concerned with gaining 1994). But as researchers gathered more data using
self-understanding than are others: Those who stress more precise scientific controls, including clinical
the value of self-understanding tend to benefit the trials, the results generally weighed in favor of
most from participation in a therapeutic group (Butler group-level interventions. Although they rarely sup-
& Fuhriman, 1983; MacNair-Semands & Lese, 2000). ported Lewin’s law of change by finding group
approaches were superior to individual-level methods,
16-3 THE EFFECTIVENESS they indicated group-level and individual-level treat-
OF GROUPS ments were equal in effectiveness (Barlow, 2010).
What would you do if you were bothered by some evidence-based treatments (EBTs) Clinical proce-
personal problem? Perhaps you have trouble mak- dures whose effectiveness has been documented through
ing friends. Maybe you are having difficulties objective, scientifically rigorous research procedures.
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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
GROWTH AND CHANGE 537
What Makes a Group a Therapeutic One?
Researchers, in their studies of change-promoting q The advice we share in this group is very
groups, have identified a relatively short list of processes helpful.
that combine to help the group members overcome
personal challenges, hone their interpersonal skills, and Cohesion and Support
achieve a healthier sense of self and well-being.
q We accept, understand, and support each other.
Instructions. To review the many factors that sus- q We have developed strong bonds of trust in this
tain change in groups, identify a group that provides
support and guidance for its members. The group may group.
be a fictional one (e.g., a close-knit group or family
portrayed in film and television), or one to which you Self-disclosure
belong: families, friendship circles, associates at work,
student study groups, scientific labs, sports teams, and q We all open up in this group, sharing thoughts
so on can be “therapeutic.” Put a check in each box if and feelings.
the item describes the group you have in mind.
q We disclose our true selves, as best we can, in this
Universality group.
q We are all in the same boat, dealing with problems Catharsis
that are more common that we first thought.
q Sometimes people let off a little steam in the
q Our discussions are a reminder that our issues are group, but the group is OK with that.
ones many of us are facing.
q The group is the place where people can let out
Hope their emotions, if they need to.
q When someone in the group makes progress, it Altruism
inspires the rest of us.
q The members of this group are there for each
q The group is a source of hope and reassurance other.
that the future will be brighter.
q We help each other, often putting others’ needs
Observational Learning before our own.
q We all learn a lot by listening to others talk about Insight
their problems.
q We learn a lot about who we are, as individuals, in
q We all watch and learn from each other in this this group.
group.
q This group helps us gain self-insight.
Interpersonal Learning
Interpretation. Researchers have developed a
q The group is teaching me how to get along better number of scientifically tested measures of the thera-
with other people. peutic factors, but the items listed here are intended
only to provide a review of the most frequently iden-
q We let each other know when the things we do tified sources of change in groups. If you checked more
cause problems and misunderstandings. than half of the boxes, then the group you rated is
potentially one that can help members move toward
Guidance the personal and interpersonal goals they have set for
themselves. (For more information about measuring
q People in the group give each other good therapeutic factors see MacNair-Semands, Ogrodnic-
suggestions. zuk, & Joyce, 2010.)
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538 C H A P T E R 16
Many of these reviews rely on meta-analysis to processes, and still others train members to perform
summarize the findings from multiple studies. certain behaviors through videotaped feedback,
Counseling psychologist Gary Burlingame and his behavioral rehearsal, and systematic reinforcement.
colleagues, for example, in a series of rigorous
meta-analyses of hundreds of experimental, quasi- Given this diversity of purposes and procedures,
experimental, and correlational studies, repeatedly one might expect some types of groups to emerge as
conclude that group methods are effective for more effective than others. Yet differences in treat-
helping people deal with depression, bipolar disor- ment effectiveness are relatively rare. Group psy-
ders, social phobia, panic disorder, obsessive com- chotherapists Morton Lieberman, Irvin Yalom, and
pulsive tendencies, bulimia nervosa, binge-eating, Matthew Miles (1973), for example, investigated the
substance-related problems, trauma, and the psy- overall impact of a 12-week experiential group on
chological complexities of physical illnesses. These members’ adjustment. They began by assigning 206
analyses indicated that group methods are better for Stanford University students to 1 of 18 therapy groups
some problems than others—particularly social pho- representing 10 different theoretical orientations.
bia and substance abuse (Burlingame, MacKenzie, & Trained observers coded the groups’ interactions,
Strauss, 2004). The effectiveness of group treatment with particular attention given to leadership style.
also depends on the nature of the group’s structure Before, during, immediately after, and six months fol-
and dynamics. Groups that generate higher levels of lowing the participation, Lieberman and his colleagues
member-to-member interpersonal feedback and gathered information about each group members’
stronger working relationships among members are self-esteem, attitudes, self-satisfaction, and adjustment
more effective than other groups. The use of preg- from the group leaders, the group members’ acquain-
roup preparation and providing a higher level of tances, and the group members themselves.
structure during early group sessions also improves
outcomes. Overall, the data are clear: Group meth- Somewhat unexpectedly, researchers discov-
ods work. As Burlingame and his colleagues explain: ered that no one theoretical approach had a
“when identical treatments, patients, and doses are monopoly on effectiveness. For example, two sep-
compared, individual and group formats produce sta- arate Gestalt groups with different leaders were
tistically indistinguishable outcomes” (Burlingame included in the design, but the members of these
et al., 2016, p. 457; see, too, Burlingame, Fuhriman, two groups evidenced widely discrepant gains. One
& Mosier, 2003; Burlingame & Krogel, 2005; Fuhri- of the Gestalt groups ranked among the most suc-
man & Burlingame, 1994; Kösters et al., 2006; cessful in stimulating participant growth, but the
McRoberts, Burlingame, & Hoag, 1998). other Gestalt group yielded fewer benefits than all
of the other groups.
Types of Groups and Effectiveness Change-
promoting groups conform to no single set of pro- A number of factors could account for this
cedures: Some groups are leader-centered, others apparent equivalence of therapies (Stiles, Shapiro, &
group focused; a group’s activities can range from Elliott, 1986). First, the various group therapies may
the highly structured (interpersonal learning groups) be differentially effective, but researchers’ measures
to the wholly unstructured (encounter groups); in may not be sensitive enough to detect these varia-
some groups, members themselves are responsible tions. Second, a group’s effectiveness may depend as
for running the meeting, whereas in other situa- much on who is in the group and who leads the
tions, the facilitator runs the session (structured group as on the methods used. The question is not
groups). Group practitioners also vary greatly in “Is Therapy X more effective than Therapy Y?” but,
their orientations and techniques: Some focus on “What type of group run by which therapist is effec-
emotions with Gestalt exercises, others concentrate tive for this individual with this type of problem?”
on the here and now of the group’s interpersonal (Paul, 1967). Third, although group interventions
are based on widely divergent theoretical assump-
tions, these assumptions may not lead to differences
in practice. The leader of a Gestalt group and the
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GROWTH AND CHANGE 539
leader of a psychodynamic group, for example, may towards the self, attitudes towards others, and inter-
explain their goals and methods in very different dependence,” but that behavior is more resistant to
theoretical terms, but they may nonetheless rely on change (Gibb, 1971, p. 855).
identical methods in their groups. Fourth, as the
concept of therapeutic factors suggests, despite their 16-3b Using Groups to Cure: Cautions
heterogeneity in purposes and procedures, therapeu-
tic groups have certain characteristics in common, Empirical evidence suggests that group approaches
and these common aspects of groups and their are generally effective—at least as effective as indi-
dynamics may account for their therapeutic effects. vidual treatments and definitely better than no
treatment at all. However, this positive appraisal is
Participants’ Appraisals Most people, when a qualified one. Although group approaches are
asked if they would prefer to receive treatment in a often effective, they do not work for everyone or
private session with a therapist or in group sessions, for all types of psychological difficulties.
express a clear preference for the one-to-one
approach (Shechtman & Kiezel, 2016). Even thera- Premature Terminations Not everyone who
pists themselves tend to favor individual methods joined the group following the bus accident remained
over collective ones (Piper, 2008). This tendency in the group. Four individuals, after the first session,
depends, in part, on cultural factors. The idea of join- did not return to the group. Several members
ing with other people who are initially strangers to attended the sessions during the return trip only spo-
discuss highly personal matters is viewed with more radically. One person, when later asked about the
suspicion in some social groups and cultures than in experience, said it did not help at all (Turner, 2000).
others. However, those who have actually partici-
pated in group therapy—the consumers of group- Any treatment will be ineffective if the treatment
based treatments—generally give group approaches regimen is not followed—if people stop taking their
high marks. One study, conducted by Consumer medications, fail to comply with their physician’s self-
Reports, asked respondents to rate a variety of treat- care instructions, or do not attend their group treat-
ments. All psychological methods, including group ment sessions—and the results will likely be disap-
interventions, were rated positively. AA received par- pointing. However, because therapeutic groups are
ticularly positive evaluations in this study (Seligman, often voluntary associations—individuals can choose
1995, 1996; see also Christensen & Jacobson, 1994). to attend or not attend meetings—those who lack
commitment to treatment goals tend to attend meet-
The effects of group approaches are also more ings only sporadically or drop out altogether. Such
evident when members themselves appraise the premature terminations are problematic for any
gains they have achieved through participation. therapeutic intervention, but changes in membership
One review, for instance, identified 26 controlled are particularly disruptive for therapeutic groups
studies of personal growth groups that (1) used both because they create instability in the group’s compo-
pretest and posttest measures, (2) met for at least 10 sition and dynamics (MacNair-Semands, 2002). Most
hours, and (3) had a long-term follow-up (at least premature terminations result from failed expectations
one month after termination). Summarizing these about the purposes of the group or from an inade-
methodologically superior studies, the reviewers quate match between the group member’s goals and
concluded that group treatments did result in the leader’s methods. Dropout rates can be minimized
enduring positive changes, but primarily on self- by prescreening potential members, providing an ini-
report questionnaire data and not on behavioral tial briefing that describes the group’s requirements,
measures (Berman & Zimpfer, 1980). These and
other findings suggest that groups are most useful premature terminations The withdrawal of a partici-
in promoting changes in “sensitivity, feeling man- pant from a change-promoting group that occurs before
agement, directionality of motivation, attitudes the individual has reached his or her therapeutic goals.
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540 C H A P T E R 16
limiting conflict during sessions, and making certain in support groups, but statistics maintained by the
that the group atmosphere is supportive, nonevalua- NTL indicate that 25 individuals who participated
tive, and nonthreatening (Burlingame et al., 2011; in the program prior to 1974 experienced a severe
Mitchell & Mitchell, 1984). psychological reaction (Back, 1974). This number
represented less than 0.2% of the participants.
Casualties A participant who decides to leave the
group before he or she has benefited in any way is a Overhelping Joining in a therapeutic group gener-
premature termination, or dropout, but a casualty is a ally yields positive outcomes for participants, but in
member who is significantly harmed by the group some cases less is more. If individuals attribute their
experience. A casualty might, for example, attempt success in dealing with a problem to the group, and
suicide as a result of the group experience, require not to themselves, then they become dependent on
individual therapy to correct harm caused by the the group—even if they themselves were the source
group, or report continued deteriorations in adjust- of the successful coping outcomes. In such cases the
ment over the course of the group experience. Casu- group is engaged in overhelping—it appears to be ren-
alties can most often be traced to a particularly negative dering aid to the individual, but it is taking credit for
event in the group. In one study, for example, an indi- success it did not earn (Gilbert & Silvera, 1996). This
vidual sought psychiatric treatment immediately after criticism has been raised in evaluations of the effec-
the group attacked her for being overweight: tiveness of process debriefings, which were discussed
earlier in this chapter (Devilly, Gist, & Cotton, 2006).
She stated that the group was an extremely
destructive one for her. The group operated by Multicultural and Cross-Cultural Complexities
everybody “ganging up on one another, thir- Group approaches have proven to be effective means
teen to one, and bulldozing them until they of helping individuals achieve personal growth, devel-
were left on the ground panting.” She was opment, and change, but the tried-and-true techniques
bitterly attacked by the group and finally that work in one cultural context may not be culturally
dropped out after an attack on her in which she appropriate when applied in another society or sub-
was labeled “a fat Italian mama with a big shiny group. Psychodynamic methods originated in Western
nose.” She was also told that she probably had Europe, interpersonal learning groups have their roots
“a hell of a time getting any man to look at in England’s Tavistock traditions, and support groups
her.” (Lieberman et al., 1973, p. 189) are primarily an American invention. These therapeu-
tic procedures—talking with a professional about one’s
The number of casualties reported in studies has psychological concerns, meeting with others in a
ranged from a low of none among 94 participants in group context to develop interpersonal and self-
a human relations training lab followed up after five regulatory skills, and dealing with symptoms
months (Smith, 1975, 1980) to a high of 8% of through medication—are all consistent with Western
the participants in a study of 17 encounter groups approaches to health and medicine, but these methods
(Lieberman et al., 1973). A relatively high casualty may seem foreign if applied in a different culture.
rate (18%) was obtained in one study of 50 married
couples who participated in marathon encounter Researchers and group practitioners must con-
groups, but this rate was inflated by the problems sider the cultural context when studying groups and
the couples were experiencing before entering the using group methods for therapeutic purposes
group (Doherty, Lester, & Leigh, 1986). No evi- (Cheung, van de Vijver, & Leong, 2011). The cultur-
dence is available concerning the rate of casualties ally competent researcher and group practitioner
“must have a good understanding of the diversity of
casualty An individual whose psychological well-being cultural worldviews and their potential impact on the
declines rather than improves as a result of his or her relationships, behaviors, and willingness to participate
experiences in a change-promoting group. in therapeutic group work” (DeLucia-Waack, 2010,
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GROWTH AND CHANGE 541
p. 97). People the world over share a common desire 16-3c The Value of Groups
to maximize their well-being, but how they achieve
that goal will depend on where they are in the world. Groups are not all benefit with no cost. Groups can
For example, when a tsunami caused widespread dev- demand great investments of time and energy from
astation and loss of life in coastal areas of Asia, school their members. Although groups provide social sup-
psychologists developed a group-level intervention port, they are also a source of considerable stress for
program designed to help grade-school children better their members. Groups, too, can socialize members in
understand and express their feelings, identify sources ways that are not healthy and set processes in motion
of stress, and develop effective coping strategies. The that increase dysfunction (Forsyth & Elliott, 2000).
program was based on methods used successfully in
the United States, but it was modified after extensive The checkered impact of groups, however, in no
analysis of the cultural practices and values of the peo- way detracts from their significance in shaping mental
ple of Sri Lanka (Nastasi et al., 2011). Similarly, thera- health. Groups help their members define and con-
pists in Israel working with both Jewish and Arab firm their values, beliefs, and identities. When indivi-
students in experiential learning groups had to sub- duals are beset by problems and uncertainties, groups
stantially modify some of their methods. Fortunately, offer reassurance, security, support, and assistance.
the groups were conducted by experts with experi- Groups are places where people can learn new social
ence working in multicultural groups, and techniques skills and discover things about themselves and others.
were adapted to minimize the negative impact of a set Groups, too, can produce changes in members when
of cultural practices that warned against revealing other approaches have failed. Both researchers and
vulnerabilities to nonfamily members (Shechtman, mental health professionals who understand groups
Goldberg, & Cariani, 2008). recognize their healing power, for groups help their
members change for the better.
CHAPTER REVIEW
What are some of the ways that groups are used to by offering interpretations and working
help their members change? through transference effects. Such therapies use
a variety of analytic methods drawn from
1. Individuals often turn to groups for help in Freud’s (1926/1955) approach to treatment,
achieving personal and therapeutic change. including identifying unresolved conflicts.
As Lewin’s law of change states, “It is usually
easier to change individuals formed into a ■ Members of humanistic groups, such as
group than to change any one of them Rogers’s (1970) client-centered approach,
separately” (Lewin, 1951, p. 228). seek existential meaning, positive self-
regard, and a better understanding of
2. Most change-oriented groups focus on thera- themselves and their emotions.
peutic adjustment (therapy groups), interpersonal
and emotional growth (interpersonal learning ■ Gestalt group therapy, developed by Perls
groups), or overcoming addictions or other life (1969), makes use of experiments, techni-
stresses (support groups). ques, and extensive role-playing methods
to stimulate emotional growth.
3. Therapeutic groups are usually conducted by a
mental health professional and focus on psy- ■ Psychodrama, developed by Moreno (1934),
chological problems. also uses role play and physical activities.
■ In group psychoanalysis, the therapist helps ■ In interpersonal group psychotherapy, the
members to gain insight into their problems leader takes advantage of the group’s
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542 C H A P T E R 16
dynamics to help members learn about ■ Many support groups, such as AA, empha-
how they influence others and how others size inspirational testimonials, mutual help,
influence them. This “here-and-now” shared similarities, collective encourage-
method was developed by Yalom (Yalom ment, and changing the member’s social
& Leszcz, 2005). networks.
■ In cognitive-behavioral therapy groups, the ■ Studies of online support groups for pro-
therapist uses principles derived from blems ranging from cancer to sexual abuse
learning theory to encourage specific to psychological disorders have suggested
behaviors while extinguishing others. This that these groups provide many of the same
approach makes use of behavioral methods, resources to members as do face-to-face
including behavioral contracts, modeling, support groups.
behavior rehearsal, and feedback.
How do groups promote change?
4. Interpersonal learning groups help relatively
well-adjusted individuals improve their 1. A number of therapeutic factors operate in groups
self-understanding and relationships with to promote change. They include hope, uni-
others. versality, observational learning, interpersonal
learning, guidance, cohesion, self-disclosure,
■ In training groups, or T-groups, developed by catharsis, altruism, and insight.
Lewin and his associates, members were
encouraged to actively confront and 2. Hope and universality: Groups, by providing
resolve interpersonal issues through opportunities to engage in social comparison
unstructured discussions. and mutual support, convince members of
the universality of their problems, elevate
■ In psychoeducational groups, members take their levels of hope, and instigate a shared,
part in planned exercises that focus on a group-level identity (Marmarosh & Corazzini,
specific interpersonal problem or skill. 1997).
Most of these interventions involve a
learning cycle that begins with an orient- 3. Social learning: Because groups include
ing overview and then moves from multiple individuals, rather than just a single
experience to discussion to analysis to therapist/helper and a single client, they can
application. Kolb’s (1984) experiential make use of the sources of interpersonal
learning theory assumes individuals learn learning described in Bandura’s (1986) social
best through a combination of direct learning theory.
experience, observation, analysis, and
action. ■ Groups facilitate observational learning
(modeling of behaviors), interpersonal
■ Process debriefing groups are used to help feedback, and guidance (direct instruction).
individuals who have experienced signifi-
cant trauma cope with the event and are ■ Coleadership (two or more leaders are
designed to reduce PTSD. present at all sessions) provides more
opportunities for social learning, feedback,
5. Support groups often form spontaneously and mutual guidance. Group facilitators,
when people combine their energies and like all group leaders, vary considerably
efforts in an attempt to cope with or over- along the directive–nondirective
come a common problem. These groups dimension.
tend to be problem-specific, highly interper-
sonal, communal, autonomous, and 4. Group cohesion: Cohesion may be a necessary
perspective-based. condition for an effective change-promoting
group.
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GROWTH AND CHANGE 543
■ As in all groups, cohesion can be based on emotions, and actions, and so qualify as
attraction, task commitment, shared iden- evidence-based treatments.
tity and emotion, and strong relational
bonds. ■ Meta-analytic reviews, such as those con-
ducted by Burlingame and his colleagues
■ Therapeutic groups, like all groups, gen- (2016), indicate group approaches are
erally become more cohesive over time as more effective for certain problems (e.g.,
they move through the basic forming– social anxiety and addictions) than for
storming–norming–performing–adjourn- others (depression).
ing stages of development identified by
Tuckman (1965). ■ Although group approaches adopt a variety
of methods, studies such as the one con-
■ Kivlighan’s work indicates that interven- ducted by Lieberman, Yalom, and Miles
tions are more effective when they match (1973), do not consistently identify one
the developmental stage of the group type of group method as superior to
(Kivlighan et al., 1985). another.
■ Cohesion yields a number of positive ■ Individuals who have participated in
consequences for therapeutic groups, group-level interventions rate their
including membership retention, effectiveness very positively, with one
improved communication, and increased survey indicating that AA was rated as
influence of the group on the the most effective of all such groups.
individual.
2. Group approaches are generally effective, but
5. Self-disclosure and catharsis: Groups become they do not work for everyone or for all types
more intimate as members reveal private of psychological problems.
information about themselves (self-disclosure).
When group members vent strong emo- ■ The number of individuals who drop out
tions, the resulting catharsis may reduce their of treatment, premature terminations, is
stress. higher in group treatments compared to
individual treatment.
6. Altruism and insight: Group members also ben-
efit from the increased self-confidence pro- ■ A small fraction of participants in groups
duced by helping others and by gaining insight experiences significant negative reactions
about their personal qualities from other group to the experience and so are considered
members. psychological casualties.
■ People generally prefer individual-level ■ Interventions are more effective when
treatment methods, in part because of they are consistent with both the norms,
uncertainty about what the group will values, and practices of a particular cultural
reveal to them about themselves. context.
■ Individuals who have taken part in 3. More research is needed to understand fully
therapeutic groups rate insight as one of the nature of the therapeutic group and its
the most important of the curative factors. impact on members, but given the powerful
self-processes and interpersonal processes that
How effective are groups in bringing about such groups instigate and the positive findings
change? already reported by researchers, groups should
be considered a proven method for promoting
1. Most group approaches are effective methods growth and change.
for helping individuals change their thoughts,
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544 C H A P T E R 16
RESOURCES
Chapter Case: The Bus Group theories, and available research on Yalom’s
basic principles of interpersonal group
■ “Group Treatment of Trauma Survivors therapy that stress the therapeutic factors
Following a Fatal Bus Accident: Integrat- common to all group approaches to
ing Theory and Practice” by Andrew L. change.
Turner (2000) details the methods used to
help college students recover from a tragic ■ Group Development in Practice: Guidance for
bus accident that occurred during a Clinicians and Researchers on Stages and
semester-abroad program. Dynamics of Change by Virginia Brabender
and April Fallon (2009) reviews in detail
Group Approaches to Change previous theories pertaining to group
development and identifies ways that
■ “Group Psychotherapy” by Gerald Corey therapists can both orchestrate, and adjust
and Marianne Schneider Corey (2016) is a to, the inevitable changes that occur in
concise analysis of the principles that are groups over time.
common to nearly all group-level
approaches to change, including pregroup Group Effectiveness
screening, establishing trust, encouraging
disclosure, and consolidation of learning. ■ Specialty Competencies in Group Psychology
by Sally H. Barlow (2013) is packed with
■ Handbook of Group Counseling and Psycho- details about the field of group
therapy, edited by Janice L. DeLucia- psychotherapy—the historical background,
Waack, Cynthia R. Kalodner, and Maria theoretical issues, and continuing
T. Riva (2014), is an advanced sourcebook controversies—but also an expert’s careful
useful for anyone doing a serious analysis analysis of the interpersonal processes that
of group psychotherapy, with entire sec- determine the course and outcome of
tions devoted to best practice, diversity, group psychotherapy.
and treatment groups in specific contexts
with special populations. ■ “Small Group Process and Outcome
Research Highlights: A 25-year Perspec-
■ Psychological Effects of Catastrophic Disasters: tive” by Gary M. Burlingame and Jennifer
Group Approaches to Treatment, edited by L. Jensen (2017) reviews key empirical
Leon A. Schein, Henry I. Spitz, Gary M. studies of group psychotherapy, with special
Burlingame, and Philip R. Muskin, with attention to member characteristics, leader-
Shannon Vargo (2006), is a comprehensive ship, and cohesion, before marshaling the
compendium of group-based methods of evidence that confirms the effectiveness of
dealing with traumatic events. group methods for a wide variety of psy-
chiatric disorders. This article is one of
Therapeutic Factors in Groups many excellent articles in the Special Issue
for the 75th Anniversary of the American
■ The Theory and Practice of Group Psychother- Group Psychotherapy Association.
apy (5th ed.) by Irvin D. Yalom with
Molyn Leszcz (2005) describes cases,
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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Crowds and
Collectives
17C H A P T E R
CHAPTER OVERVIEW CHAPTER OUTLINE
A detailed study of groups would be incomplete if 17-1 Collectives: Forms and Features
it did not consider the dynamics of larger social 17-1a What Are Collectives?
collectives. For centuries, people have wondered 17-1b Gatherings
at the seemingly inexplicable actions that people 17-1c Crowds
undertake when part of a crowd or collective. 17-1d Mobs
Juries, teams, squads, clubs, and cults are all intrigu- 17-1e Panics
ing, but so are riots and rumors; crowds and crazes; 17-1f Collective Movements
and mobs and movements. These groups are often 17-1g Social Movements
portrayed as unpredictable, irrational, and over-
powering, but careful analysis will correct these 17-2 Collective Dynamics
misconceptions about these extraordinary forms of 17-2a Contagion
human association. 17-2b Convergence
17-2c Deindividuation
■ What is collective behavior? 17-2d Emergent Norms
17-2e Social Identity
■ What theories explain collective behavior?
17-3 Collectives Are Groups
■ How different are collectives from other types 17-3a The Myth of the Madding Crowd
of groups? 17-3b Studying Groups and Collectives
Chapter Review
Resources
545
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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
546 C H A P T E R 17
Arab Spring: Social Movement or Mob Rule?
The people of Egypt had suffered for too long. Infla- different kinds of people mixed together in the
tion was driving up the cost of living, people were out square—men and women, young and old, well-to-do
of work, and those who did have jobs were paid too and poor—but all were united by their opposition to
little. They could have sought a remedy through polit- Mubarak. The mass of protestors spontaneously orga-
ical action, but their basic civil rights were severely nized their political actions, including chants, demon-
curtailed. Years before, the government had enacted a strations, and protests, as well as security, entertainment,
set of emergency procedures to stabilize the country— and a supply system. They set up wireless networks and
censorship, curfew, and enhanced police power—but used Facebook to coordinate their activities.
had never relaxed them. The police and other govern-
mental agencies repressed dissent in any form. Anyone Protest in a totalitarian regime, however, is dan-
who sought to speak out against the ruling party, the gerous. The activists encountered violent opposition;
National Democrats, and their leader, Hosni Mubarak, at least 800 people were killed during the 18 days of
risked harassment, imprisonment, or death. the uprising. The police brutality was indisputable:
Video uploaded to Facebook and YouTube shared
In January 2011, this smoldering state of discon- with a horrified world footage of police in riot gear
tent transformed into an active revolution in what has severely beating and kicking unarmed protestors.
been called the Arab Spring or the Arab Revolution. Groups of violent men, labeled “thugs” by the local
Only a month before, the citizens of Tunisia had forced Egyptians, roamed the streets and sometimes the
their country’s president to resign through a series of square, brutally beating protestors and broadcasters.
demonstrations and protests. Possibly heartened by On February 2nd, violence intensified when men
that success, millions of Egypt’s citizens began to pro- armed with clubs, riding horses and camels, attacked
test against Mubarak and his government through the square, touching off a night of violence. The
demonstrations, marches, labor strikes, and other attack, however, may have worked to further solidify
forms of civil disobedience. These actions occurred the protesters, hardening their resolve (Khalil, 2011).
across the country, but were centered in the nation’s
capital, Cairo, at Tahrir Square (Liberation Square). The On February 10th, the protest reached its climax.
citizens were, by law, not permitted to assemble, but The relentless pressure of the protestors and the
on January 25, thousands converged on the square international community prompted Mubarak to
and refused to leave. Others soon joined them, with announce his decision to not seek reelection. This
numbers reaching well above 100,000. The crowd concession, however, did not placate the Arab Spring
called for the resignation of Mubarak and free elec- protesters: They wanted him removed from office
tions with multiple candidates. immediately. Faced with continuing bloodshed and
instability, the Egyptian military forcibly removed
By January 28th, Tahrir Square had become “a Mubarak from office on February 11th and set up a
sort of utopian mini-state” (Khalil, 2011, p. 245). Many provisional government.
The science of group dynamics is based on one core to rebellion. Most collectives do not behave in odd,
assumption: People act collectively. Much of this col- atypical ways. Each day, thousands upon thousands of
lective action occurs in relatively small groups, and the collectives form and disband around the world and
field of group dynamics (and this book as well) has most help rather than hurt their members. But collec-
concentrated on such groups—cliques, work squads, tives are, at their core, groups, and, like any other
juries, sports teams, corporate boards, crews, bands of group, they can do surprising things, including starting
explorers, and so on. But individuals also—sometimes revolutions.
unwittingly and sometimes purposely—can become
members of much larger groups. Some of these col- This chapter describes collectives, explains their
lectives, like the gathering of protesters at Tahrir dynamics, and tries to repair their reputation. It
Square, are concentrated in a specific location. Others, begins by first describing the wide variety of collec-
however, are widely dispersed, as when Egyptian citi- tives, for they can range from the accidental con-
zens throughout the country shifted from complacency vergences of unrelated individuals to groups with
faithful followers who remain members for many
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 547
years. The chapter then considers both classic and As these historical examples reveal, people not
contemporary theoretical analyses of collective only join with others in small groups but also in very
behavior, beginning with the provocative argu- large ones, and the impact of these groups on their
ments presented by Gustave Le Bon (1895/1960) members can be large as well. This section considers
in his book The Crowd and ending with new theo- the forms these collectives can take—the different
ries that strive to correct common misconceptions types of collectives that researchers have
about these extraordinary forms of human associa- identified—and their features—the qualities that are
tion (Bond, 2014; Milgram & Toch, 1969). typical of these unique types of social aggregates.
17-1 COLLECTIVES: FORMS 17-1a What Are Collectives?
AND FEATURES A collective is a relatively large group of people
who display similarities in actions and outlook. Pri-
Just as humans have lived in small groups for all mary and social groups, such as families, best
time, so have they also joined much larger gather- friends, clubs, juries, and work crews, are not col-
ings. For as long as anyone can remember, religious lectives, for they are too small, too structured, and
devotees have gathered at the foot of Mount Kai- their membership too well-defined and stable. Nei-
lash in Tibet, for the mountain is considered sacred ther are they categories, which include individuals
by five religions. As many as 50,000 spectators who share some distinguishing quality in common
watched exhibitions and gladiatorial competitions such as nationality or eye color. The members of
in Rome’s Colosseum. In 1096, thousands upon collectives, instead, are joined by some type of
thousands of Europeans, urged on by Pope Urban common interest or activity. The men and
II, marched to Jerusalem to “free the Holy Land women who gathered at Tahrir Square, for exam-
from the pagans.” ple, were unified by their desire to create social
change, and that shared focus created commonali-
Even in ancient times, some of these collectives ties in their thoughts, actions, and emotions
acted in unexpected ways. For example, the first (Muukkonen, 2008).
entry in historian Hilary Evans and sociologist
Robert Bartholomew’s (2009) encyclopedia of The Characteristics of Collectives Collectives,
extraordinary social behavior is the Abdera Outbreak, like groups in general, vary in size, duration,
which occurred in the third century BC in Abdera, form, and function. They tend to be large, but
Greece. The populace developed an unusual fond- some collectives are huge—as when millions of
ness for the play Andromeda by Euripides and took to individuals respond similarly to some fashion
reciting lines from the play throughout the day and craze. In some cases, all the members of a collective
night, with people dressing to fit particular roles. are together in one place, and so they “can monitor
Evans and Bartholomew end their listing with the each other by being visible to or within earshot
Zoot suit riots of 1942 and 1943. U.S. naval personnel of one another” (Snow & Oliver, 1995, p. 572).
stationed in Los Angeles, California, roamed through Other collectives, in contrast, involve individuals
the city streets in search of men wearing zoot suits— who are dispersed across great distances. All
a style of clothes featuring long suit coats and pleated
trousers with tight cuffs, popular among men of the collective A relatively large aggregation of people who
Mexican-American community. Once located, the are responding in a similar way to an event or situation,
“zooters” were surrounded, bullied, and in some including people who all occupy the same location (a
cases beaten. The city ended the violence by ban- crowd) as well as mass phenomena in which individuals
ning zoot suits. Table 17.1 lists several other exam- are dispersed across a wide area (collective movements).
ples of recent collectives.
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548 C H A P T E R 17
T A B L E 17.1 Examples of Collectives from the Last Hundred Years
Year Event
1919
Reform movements, including the Women’s Christian Temperance Union and the Anti-Saloon League,
succeed in their efforts to ban alcoholic beverages in the United States. The ban’s side effects include
the rise of organized crime and willful violation of the law by citizens, and it is repealed in 1933.
1938 On Halloween night, Orson Welles broadcasts the radio program The War of the Worlds. Some listen-
ers believe the dramatization is a real news broadcast, and react by warning relatives and taking
defensive precautions. The effect of the broadcast is exaggerated by the media, however.
1943 The citizens of Denmark, fearing that Germany would seize and kill its Jewish citizens, spontaneously
organize the transportation of nearly all Jews to safety in Sweden (Abrahamsen, 1987).
1943 Mrs. Mullane, a contestant on a radio program, was told to collect pennies as a service to the nation’s
war effort. The announcer asked listeners to send Mrs. Mullane a penny and gave her address on the
air. Within weeks, she received more than 200,000 letters and over 300,000 pennies.
1954 Rumors that windshields were being damaged by nuclear fallout circulate in Seattle, Washington. Fear
escalates as the media devote much attention to the issue and residents demand government interven-
tion. Subsequent investigation reveals that no damage at all has occurred (Medalia & Larsen, 1958).
1958 Wham-O Manufacturing Company begins selling a plastic toy named the Hula-Hoop. Millions are sold
within a four-month period, but the hoops’ popularity ends abruptly. The hula-hoop is dubbed the
“greatest fad of the 20th century” (Evans & Bartholomew, 2009, p. 249).
1962 Sixty–two workers in a manufacturing plant experience nausea, pain, disorientation, and muscular
weakness; some collapse. Physicians conclude the illness is psychological in source (Kerckhoff, Back, &
Miller, 1965).
1970 The Brazilian soccer team defeats the Italian team in the World Cup Tournament, setting off a series
of celebrations. More than 100 people die, and many more are injured by fireworks, brawls, automo-
bile accidents, and shootings.
1979 A crowd in Cincinnati, waiting for a concert by the rock group The Who, jams when the ticket takers
at the doors are unable to keep pace with the flow of the crowd into the arena. Eleven persons are
killed and many others are injured.
2011 An audience of 114,804, one of the largest number of spectators in the modern college football era,
assembles on September 10 at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor to watch the University of Michigan
team play rival Notre Dame.
2012 On the ninth day of the month of hajj, at noon, more than two million people gather on the Plain of
Arafat in Saudi Arabia, the site of the prophet Mohammad’s final sermon—arguably the largest gath-
ering of people to assemble in one place at any time in history.
2017 The largest single-day protest in U.S. history takes place on the day after Donald Trump’s presidential
inauguration as 470,000 people, many in knitted pink hats, gather at the Mall in Washington, DC.
collectives, however, are distinguished by their behaviors. Members of collective movements,
members’ “common or concerted” form of behav- although not interacting in face-to-face settings,
ior or reaction (McPhail, 1991, p. 159). Members act in similar ways to achieve a common purpose.
of a crowd, for example, may move in the same They are moving in the same direction, psycholog-
direction or perform the same general types of ically and socially, even though they are dispersed.
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 549
Collectives
Gatherings Crowds Collective
movements
Audiences Queues Mobs Street Diffusions Trends Social
crowds movements
Aggressive Panics Rumors Fads
mobs Crazes
Mass
delusions
Riots Escape
Acquisitive
Criminal
mobs
F I G U R E 17.1 A classification of collectives.
Collectives also vary in their duration and recognizing that any classification scheme will fail
cohesion. Some are planned groups created for a to do justice to their variety and complexity,
specific purpose, but most collectives result from Figure 17.1 distinguishes among gatherings,
the press of circumstances or through self- crowds, and collective movements. Gatherings
organizing dynamics. They tend to be open groups, include audiences and queues; they are relatively
with no defined standards for membership or for- well-organized collectives, although they can trans-
mal operational strategies. Because membership is form from gatherings into crowds quickly. Crowds
fluid, relationships between individual members include various types of temporary assemblages,
are less intimate than those that link members of such as street crowds, mobs, riots, and panics. Soci-
smaller groups. If a typical group is two or more ologist Neil J. Smelser (1962), in his analyses of
individuals who are connected to one another by collective behavior, calls crowds “collective out-
and within interpersonal relationships, a typical col- bursts,” for they can come into existence rapidly
lective is a large number of individuals who are but often fade away just as quickly. Collective move-
connected by similarity in action and outlook rather ments (or mass movements), he suggested, emerge
than by close, intimate relationships. Collectives, over longer periods of time and can influence
too, are by reputation more unconventional than widely dispersed individuals. Collective movements
other groups. They tend to exist outside of tradi- include the diffusion of ideas and opinions through-
tional forms of social structures and institutions, out a populace—people passing rumors from one to
and, as a result, their members sometimes engage another, for example, are engaged in collective
in atypical, unruly, unconventional, or even aber- behavior, as are those who change their preferences
rant behaviors. Collectives often do surprising and practices to match some passing trend, fad, or
things (Turner, 2001a). craze. Social movements, in contrast, are more
deliberate—and often more organized—attempts
Types of Collectives The diversity of collectives to achieve political, social, and economic reform.
is so great that no single classification scheme is The following sections examine each of these
sufficient to categorize their many forms. But types of collectives in more detail.
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550 C H A P T E R 17
How Do Audiences Know When to Stop Clapping?
Audiences may seem like the least dynamic of groups, stopped clapping more abruptly than it began. The
but even these loose collections of quasi-independent gap between the first person stopping clapping and
individuals respond as one when the event ends: they the last was only 2.6 seconds. Clapping rates varied,
clap. Researchers, wondering just how audiences with some audience members were clapping only
managed to coordinate their clapping, filmed groups about 10 times before stopping and others clapping
of students listening to formal presentations. At the away over 30 times. These differences were consistent
end of each presentation, the group applauded, but across presentations, suggesting some of us are dispo-
this period of applause was highly structured rather sitionally longer clappers than others. The researcher
than random. The audiences did not “burst” into did not find, however, that audience members were
applause: The delay between the end of the presen- influenced by the clapping of people located near
tation and the first clap of applause was, on average, them. Instead, it was the general volume of the clap-
2.1 seconds. Then, more and more members of the ping that prompted them to begin and end their dis-
audience began clapping until, three seconds later, all play of approval. Even the more sedate audience
the audience members were applauding. Each person members joined into the group applause as the sound
applauded for about six seconds, and the group got louder (Mann et al., 2013).
17-1b Gatherings pathways and occupy locations that are determined
by seating arrangements or by custom. While
Gatherings combine aspects of smaller groups with observing, they may perform a variety of behaviors,
qualities found in larger, more amorphous, crowds. including clapping, cheering, shouting, or question-
Congregations listening to a sermon, wedding guests ing, but these actions are usually in accord with the
at the reception, audiences in a theater, and tick- norms of the particular setting. Moreover, when the
etholders waiting patiently in line for admission to event or performance has ended, the audience dis-
a baseball park have all deliberately assembled perses in an orderly fashion (Köster et al., 2015).
together for an express purpose; like small groups,
they have boundaries, goals, and relatively clear Audiences, although relatively staid collectives,
structures that define how members should act. nonetheless exert considerable social pressure on
But, like crowds, the gathering’s longevity is very their members. Audience members expect each
limited, and individuals are linked by a common other to abide by the norms of the setting, and
focus and not by their relations to one another. those who fail to do so—say, by speaking too loudly,
using a cell phone, or otherwise flaunting the unspo-
Audiences A gathering of individuals in a particu- ken rules of the situation—put themselves at risk for
lar area to observe some event or activity is called an a social rebuke. Audience members also tend to act
audience (or conventional crowd). Unlike a crowd that in relatively synchronized fashion—clapping, laugh-
forms spontaneously when some event creates a ing, and exiting the situation in unison. Laughter, for
shared focus, individuals join audiences deliberately, example, is highly contagious within an audience:
and they are bound more tightly by social conven- People are thirty times more likely to laugh when
tions that dictate their location and movements (Blu- with others than when alone (Provine, 2017).
mer, 1946). They enter the focal area via aisles or
Queues An assemblage of people awaiting their
audience A gathering of onlookers who observe some turn—a queue—is a unique type of gathering.
performance, event, or activity; audiences tend to be
conventional in behavior, and they disperse when the queue A line, file, or set of people who are waiting for
event they are watching concludes. some service, commodity, or opportunity.
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 551
Queue comes from the French word for braided situations, and so are sustained by social norms of
hair and so pays etymological homage to the fairness and orderliness (Dold & Khadjavi, 2017).
queue’s most common shape—a relatively straight Queues are based on the principle “first come,
line. But some settings, such as theme parks, lob- first served” (or “first in, first out”), so those who
bies, and registration offices, shape the queue into a violate that norm risk sanction by the group (Zhou
zigzag pattern through the use of stanchions and & Soman, 2008). When members join the queue,
ropes. Other establishments create dispersed queues they accept its rules, even though the group will
by assigning queuers a number and then summon- disband once it serves its purpose.
ing them through a beeper or announcement when
it is their turn. Queues can also be segmented into Milgram studied queues by having both male
subgroups that are permitted to enter together, as and female accomplices queue jump 129 lines wait-
when passengers board a plane in groups based on ing outside ticket offices and the like in New York
seat assignment. Some queues, too, are not at all City. Working either alone or in pairs, the accom-
linear, as when those waiting to board a bus or to plices would simply say, “Excuse me, I’d like to get
enter a crowded concert venue move in a relatively in here,” and then insert themselves in the line. In
unregulated way toward the entryway. an attempt to determine who would be most likely
to enforce the norm, Milgram also included either
Members of a queue, like those in an audience, one or two passive confederates in some of the
will probably never meet again. But also like an queues he studied. These individuals, who were
audience, those in a queue have joined deliberately planted in the line in advance, stood directly behind
to achieve a particular goal, and thus, as members of the point of intrusion (Milgram et al., 1986).
the collective, they are bound by certain norms of
behavior (Mann, 1970). Queues are an interference, People objected to the incursion in nearly half
for they prevent people from immediately achiev- of the lines studied. In a few cases (10.1%), queuers
ing their goal of acquiring tickets, services, or other used physical action, such as a tap on the shoulder
commodities, but they also protect people from or a push. In 21.7% of the lines, the reaction was
late-arriving competitors for these commodities. verbal, such as “No way! The line’s back there.
As social psychologist Stanley Milgram and his col- We’ve all been waiting and have trains to catch”
leagues explain: or “Excuse me, it’s a line.” In another 14.7% of
the lines, queuers used dirty looks, staring, and hos-
As in the case of most social arrangements, tile gestures to object to the intrusion nonverbally.
people defer to the restraints of the form, but Objections were also more prevalent when two
they are also its beneficiary. The queue thus persons broke into the line rather than one, and
constitutes a classic illustration of how indivi- they were least prevalent when two confederates
duals create social order, on the basis of a separated the intruders from the other queuers.
rudimentary principle of equity, in a situation Confirming the motivating influence of self-
that could otherwise degenerate into chaos. interest, 73.3% of the complaints came from people
(Milgram et al., 1986, p. 683) standing behind the point of intrusion rather than
from people standing in front of the intrusion.
Social Order in Queues What prevents the
queue from breaking down into a disorderly Those who break into queues are not always
crowd? First, self-interest motivates the queue socially condemned. If they appear to be joining
members to protect their advantaged place in the someone who is holding a place for them in line
line against intruders. Every queue-jumper inflicts a or if they join a line near the rear where the tail’s
cost—the loss of time—on all those who are end is less well defined, then they are less likely to
pushed further back in line by their incursion. Sec- encounter resistance (Schmitt, Dubé, & Leclerc,
ond, queues are procedural preferences in many 1992). Condemnation is swifter, however, if those
in line believe that the queue jumper, by inserting
himself or herself into the line, may be increasing
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552 C H A P T E R 17
Percent of passersby 100 who look up
90
80 5 10 who stop
70 Size of stimulus crowd 15
60
50
40
30
20
10
123
F I G U R E 17.2 The mean percentage of people who looked up or stopped when they passed a single person or a
group of 2, 3, 5, 10, or 15 people looking up at a building.
SOURCE: From “Note on the Drawing Power of Crowds of Different Size,” by S. Milgram, L. Bickman, & L. Berkowitz (1969), Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology, 13, 79–82. Copyright 1969 by the American Psychological Association.
the chance that they will be disadvantaged in some creating, experimentally, crowds on a street in New
way—say, by failing to gain admission or having to York City. On two winter afternoons in 1968, his
accept a lower-quality seating position (Helweg- confederates stopped in the middle of the sidewalk
Larsen & LoMonaco, 2008). and stared, in rapt attention, at the sixth floor of a
nearby building. They remained in place as pass-
17-1c Crowds ersby flowed around them, and the researchers
recorded—from that very same window of the
Crowds tend to spring up when individuals who nearby building—how many stopped. They
happen to be located in the same general vicinity selected a busy street for their study, for an average
share a common experience. Variously labeled street of 50 people passed by during any given observa-
crowds or public crowds, these groups form in public tion period. And they varied the number of people
or semipublic places and are made up of people who seeded the group. In some conditions just one
who are strangers to one another—except for the person stood staring up, but other conditions
clusters of intact groups that they enfold. included as many as 15 confederates.
Crowd Formation Individuals who are sitting on How many would be drawn by the crowd, and
benches in a park, walking along a city sidewalk, or how many would resist? When they counted the
waiting for a bus may all occupy a common loca- number of people who actually stopped walking
tion, but they do not become a crowd unless some- and stood with the group, taking up the collective
thing happens—a fire, a car collision, or street stare, they discovered that more and more people
performance, for example—to create a common joined in as the stimulus crowd of confederates
focus of attention (Milgram & Toch, 1969). Mil- grew larger. Only 4% of the passersby joined a sin-
gram and his colleagues examined this process by gle starer, but 40% stopped in their tracks and
joined the large crowd—swelling the group in
crowds A gathering of individuals, usually in a public size from 15 to about 35 people (see Figure 17.2).
place, who are present in the same general vicinity and However, if a less stringent criterion for a crowd
share a common focus. was used—people needed only to share the same
focus of attention—then even a single individual
was capable of influencing 42% of the passersby to
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 553
look up. The crowd of 15 influenced even more— permeability diminishes as one moves nearer the center
86% of the passersby also looked up (Milgram, of the crowd. Also, roles, status hierarchies, and other
Bickman, & Berkowitz, 1969). The crowds may group structures may not be very evident in such
have grown larger still, but for two factors. First, crowds, but close probing usually reveals some under-
the confederates dispersed in different directions lying structure. For example, they usually take on one
after one minute, and when they left the crowd of two distinctive shapes—arcs (half-circles with all
usually dispersed quickly. Second, since there was members facing some focal point) and rings (full circles).
nothing interesting to observe, these groups could The focal point is known as a crowd crystal—one or
not hold members’ interest. When people realized more individuals who, by drawing attention to them-
there was nothing to see, they went on their way. selves or some event, prompt others to join them
(Canetti, 1962). Evidence also indicates that those
Some interpreted Milgram’s study as one more who occupy central positions in crowds are likely to
indication that people too easily fall under the be more actively involved in the experience than those
influence of a crowd. Milgram and his colleagues, who are content to remain on the fringes (Milgram &
however, questioned this conclusion. Although Toch, 1969).
there was nothing to be gained by joining the
crowds they created, the passersby did not know Consistencies in action parallel these consisten-
that; they naturally assumed that, “all other things cies in structure. Sociologist Clark McPhail and his
being equal, the larger the crowd the more likely its colleagues, after observing all kinds of public gath-
members are attending to a matter of interest” erings, identified a number of elementary behaviors
(1969, pp. 81–82). Crowds, then, serve as signals common to such groups (McPhail, 1991, 2006,
to seek out information—in most cases what is of 2008; Tucker, Schweingruber, & McPhail, 1999).
interest to those in the crowd will also be of interest Their listing includes the following:
to those who are outside of it.
■ Movement: Actions taken in common by group
Crowd Structure and Action Crowds are often members, such as clustering, queuing, surging,
short-lived, but even these fleeting collectives possess marching, jogging, and running.
a rudimentary social structure. Their boundaries are
relatively permeable at the edges of the crowd where ■ Positioning: The stance assumed by members in
individuals are allowed to enter and exit freely, but the space, including sitting, standing, jumping,
bowing, and kneeling.
What Happens When Crowds Must “Flow” in Two Directions?
Pedestrian bands are hybrid collectives, for they are another through the space. The pedestrians at the
part crowd but part queue. Bands occur when large front of the group lead the band, and those further
groups of people must move through a space, such as back in the crowd, seeing the more rapid movement of
a crosswalk, a hallway, or staircase, but in opposite those in the band, fall into line behind it. Some indi-
directions. Modeling these crowds at the individual viduals may attempt to make their way through the
level—as masses of independent individuals moving in crowd separately from the band, but in heavy crowds
two directions—cannot explain how these groups they find they must step out of the path of individuals
manage such complex situations so effectively with so approaching from the opposite direction and when
little attention to process. Only a shift in perspective, they do, they find themselves caught up in the band.
from the individual to the group, reveals their secret: They remain (in most cases) to gain the advantage of
The formation of coordinated subgroups nested in the the band’s efficient movement. The result: a synchro-
larger group. These bands develop when pedestrians, nized but spontaneously generated crowd flow
walking behind the preceding pedestrian, follow one (Yamori, 1998).
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554 C H A P T E R 17
■ Manipulation: Alteration of objects in the Celebratory Mobs Mobs, even though they
setting, such as throwing or moving objects. stimulate their members’ emotions, are not neces-
sarily irrational, nor are they necessarily violent.
■ Gesticulation: Gesturing, such as saluting and When teammates celebrate a victory, partiers parade
signaling (e.g., the raised middle finger and in the streets of New Orleans during Mardi Gras, or
power fist). patriots celebrate the end of a conflict, the members
display collective effervescence: outward expres-
■ Verbalization: Communicating through sions of such positive emotions as joy, jubilation,
language forms, such as chanting, singing, and exhilaration (Hopkins et al., 2016). Supporters
praying, reciting, or pledging. of the winning team in a sports competition, for
example, frequently gather in small mobs to express
■ Vocalization: Communicating with paralin- their happiness over the team’s victory: cheering
guistic sounds, such as ooh-ing and ahh-ing, and shouting, hugging and gesturing to one
cheering, booing, whistling, laughing, or another, waving the school banner or flag, and
wailing. dancing. The displays of emotion are particularly
robust in specific areas where fans congregate, sug-
■ Orientation: Moving into a particular formation gesting they serve to bolster the celebrants’ identifi-
within the space, such as clustering, arcing, cation with the team. These after-victory rituals
ringing, facing, or vigiling. seem to be more theatrical than unguarded expres-
sions of positive affect (Snow, Zurcher, & Peters,
McPhail did not include mayhem as one of his 1981).
categories. He spent years studying and observing
crowds, but he rarely saw people in them acting in Flash mobs, too, tend to be emotionally pos-
inappropriate or unusual ways. itive crowds—although they are too contrived to
be considered true mobs. Flash mobs are large
17-1d Mobs groups of people who gather together, at a particu-
lar place and time, to perform some sort of point-
When a gathering of people—a crowd, an audi- less, obscure, or puzzling behavior before quickly
ence, or even a queue—becomes emotionally dissembling. Most flash mobs are recreational, in
charged, the collective can become a mob. Mobs that they are not intended to make any type of
tend to form when some event, such as a crime, a political statement or to significantly disrupt other
catastrophe, or a controversial action, evokes the social activities. Rather, they are usually harmless or
same kind of affect and action in a substantial num- playful group displays, such as dancing, chanting, or
ber of people. The hallmark of the mob is its emo- singing. In most cases, these mobs are orchestrated
tion (Lofland, 1981). Early accounts of mobs argued through the use of communication technologies,
that individuals in mobs were so overwhelmed by including email, instant messaging, and postings at
their emotions that they could no longer control Internet sites, and so participants are likely linked
their actions. Unless the situation is diffused, the via social networks; they are not complete strangers
mob becomes volatile, unpredictable, and capable to one another. Flash mobs are thought to have
of violent action. Mobs, as their name implies, are begun in New York City, but have been observed
crowds that are in motion—they are mobile, with
members moving together from one location to
another, massing in a single location, or just milling
about in unpatterned ways (Hughes, 2003).
mob A disorderly, emotionally charged crowd; mobs flash mobs A group, often recruited through social net-
tend to form when some event, such as a crime, a catas- works of peer-to-peer contacts or using computer-based
trophe, or a controversial action, evokes the same kind of technologies (e.g., cell phones and text messaging), that
affect and action in a substantial number of people. gathers at a particular place and time to perform some
sort of innocuous behavior before quickly dissembling.
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 555
in public places throughout the world (Gore, 2010; peaceful crowd is transformed by a negative expe-
Lemos, 2010). rience into a violent mob. For example, on the final
night of the 1999 Woodstock music festival, an
Aggressive Mobs The night that Mubarak was antiviolence group named PAX asked the audience
forced from office, the crowds of people massed to light candles as an expression of unity. The con-
at Tahrir Square celebrated their victory with unre- certgoers instead used the candles to burn down the
served jubilation. But, mixed in with these celebra- outdoor venue. At sporting events, the violence of
tory mobs, were more malevolent ones. One of localized mobs sometimes diffuses through a much
these mobs attacked and sexually assaulted a female larger portion of the spectators, resulting in large-
reporter for a Western news agency. The mob of scale hostility, destruction, and harm. In Europe
men beat her with sticks and poles, tore out her and South America, for example, riots during soc-
hair, ripped off her clothing, and assaulted her sex- cer matches frequently result in injuries and death.
ually until a group of Egyptian women formed a
protective barrier around her (Replogle, 2011). In other cases, riots are an expression of unrest
and protest in the general population. In 1921, for
Aggressive mobs engage in violent, criminal example, Whites in Tulsa, Oklahoma, attacked the
behaviors. Whereas the emotion of celebratory highly successful Black business community of
mobs is positive, the aggressive mob’s dominant Greenwood. Hundreds were killed, and 35 city
emotion is anger. These groups engage in a variety blocks of Black-owned businesses were destroyed.
of unlawful actions, including destruction of prop- In 1980 and 1992, residents of Liberty City, Florida,
erty, looting, arson, assault, and rape. Their attacks and Los Angeles, California, rioted when police offi-
on their victims are generally termed mobbing. cers charged with brutality were found not guilty. In
2011, riots occurred in a number of cities in England,
The lynch mob is an example of such a collective. including London. Analysis of these outbursts sug-
White people in the southern areas of the United gests that confrontations between police and local
States joined together to form these mobs that residents, who were already angered by police actions
attacked and killed African Americans, often by hang- and substantial reductions in social services, resulted in
ing. The first documented lynch mob occurred in open intergroup conflict (Reicher & Stott, 2011).
1882, but, by 1950, lynch mobs had killed thousands, Riots are also sometimes motivated by a collective
due in part due to the systematic failure of civil desire to loot and steal. For example, in 1969,
authority to intervene to prevent such violence when the police force of Montreal went on strike
(Beck, Tolnay, & Bailey, 2016). Hooligans are also for 17 hours, mayhem broke out all over the city.
examples of violent mobs. Hooligans, to oversimplify Professional crimes skyrocketed, but the noncriminal
a complex social process, are groups of violent sports population also ran amok. A heterogeneous crowd,
fans and are usually associated with European football including impoverished, wealthy, and middle-class
(soccer) teams. These mobs of fans, often intoxicated, people, rampaged along the central business corridor,
mill about in the streets and pubs around the stadiums, looting, and vandalizing (Clark, 1969).
attacking fans who support the opposing team (see
Hopkins & Treadwell, 2014, for more information). 17-1e Panics
Riots Riots can be construed as mobs on a much Some mobs are charged with a different set of emo-
larger scale. They often begin when a relatively tions than anger; they are fearful, anxious, and
frightened. These mobs have panicked, for they are
riots A large and often widely dispersed crowd whose either desperately seeking out a limited resource
wanton and unrestrained behavior violates rules of civil that they fear will run out (acquisitive panics) or,
and legal authority (e.g., harassment, looting, destruction and more typically, fleeing from an aversive situa-
of property, assault, and violence). tion (escape panics).
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556 C H A P T E R 17
Acquisitive Panics When large numbers of peo- he must attack it…. The more fiercely each
ple face a situation of scarcity, their desire to acquire man “fights for his life,” the clearer it becomes
the resource sometimes triggers anxiety and a loss of he is fighting against all the others who hem
self-regulation. Queues, for example, can break him in. They stand there like chairs, balus-
down, and individuals may be so intent on acquir- trades, closed doors, but different from these in
ing the scarce commodity that they act with callous that they are alive and hostile. (Canetti, 1962,
disregard for others’ well-being. Acquisitive panics pp. 26–27)
are generally associated with consumer settings,
when individuals are attempting to purchase scarce Panics often result in a staggering loss of life. In
products or those that are priced below their value. 1903, for example, a panic at Chicago’s Iroquois
For example, before the advent of online shopping, Theater killed nearly 600 people. When a small
a number of retailers in the United States launched fire broke out backstage, the management tried to
their winter holiday consumer season on the Friday calm the audience. But when the house lights when
following the national holiday Thanksgiving Day. out and the fire was visible behind the stage, the
This event, called “Black Friday,” was sometimes crowd stampeded for the exits. Some were burned,
marked by incidents of panic as shoppers arrived and others died by jumping from the fire escapes to
at the retailers well before the scheduled opening the pavement, but many more were killed as fleeing
and then crowded into the facility to make their patrons trampled them. One observer described the
purchase. When researchers stationed observers panic this way:
outside the doors of 21 large retailers in the early
morning of one Black Friday, in 80% of the loca- In places on the stairways, particularly where a
tions, large crowds of 50 or more shoppers formed turn caused a jam, bodies were piled seven or
before the stores opened for business. At all the eight feet deep. Firemen and police confronted
locations, the initial opening triggered a period of a sickening task in disentangling them. An
panic and crowd turbulence, and at 14% of the occasional living person was found in the heaps,
locations, the crowd was so large that it continued but most of these were terribly injured. The
to push to gain entry for more than 30 minutes. heel prints on the dead faces mutely testified to
Some of the shoppers in the group appeared to be the cruel fact that human animals stricken in
excited by the situation, but many showed evidence terror are as mad and ruthless as stampeding
of anxiety, irritability, frustration, and aggravation cattle. Many bodies had the clothes torn from
(Simpson et al., 2011). them, and some had the flesh trodden from their
bones. (Foy & Harlow, 1928/1956)
Escape Panics When large numbers of people
face danger, their desire to escape can result in a Experimental simulations of panicked crowds
further decline of social coordination of the group’s suggest that individuals who must take turns exiting
movement. Groups often respond calmly to a catas- from a dangerous situation are most likely to panic
trophe, such as a fire, flood, or earthquake, but if when they believe that the time available to escape
the situation is seen as very dangerous and the is limited and when they are fearful of the conse-
escape routes are limited, a crowd can become a quences of a failure to escape (Kelley et al., 1965;
panicked mob (Strauss, 1944). Members, fearing Mintz, 1951). Larger groups, even if given more
personal harm or injury, struggle to escape both time to escape, are also more likely to panic than
from the situation and from the crowd itself: smaller ones (Chertkoff, Kushigian, & McCool,
1996). If a large group can be split up into smaller
The individual breaks away and wants to groups that are led separately to exits, the time
escape from it because the crowd, as a whole, is taken to exit is reduced, but few groups can achieve
endangered. But because he is still stuck in it, this level of control over their movements during a
panic (Sugiman & Misumi, 1988).
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 557
Panics as Queue Failures As noted earlier in the Many municipalities and promoters, to prevent
chapter, queues serve to maintain social order and a repeat of this type of tragedy, have banned general
public safety, and their function becomes particu- admission seating: All tickets are for specific seats
larly clear when queues collapse into disorganized within the venue. However, in places where general
crowds. Such a queue failure occurred in 1979 in admission seating is permitted, norms often develop
a gathering of concertgoers waiting to gain admis- to create queues to prevent crowding. Before shows
sion to a concert by the rock band The Who in by the band U2 in the United States, for example,
Cincinnati. Many fans had general admission tickets fans holding general admission tickets arrive at the
rather than assigned seating. So, in order to get a venue hours (or even days) before the doors open.
spot near the stage, fans had come to the venue They organize their wait, however, in a fairly elabo-
early so they could enter as soon as the doors rate, normative system, in which each person’s order
opened. However, the queue was disorganized— in the line is recorded by self-appointed “line Nazis.”
no lines had formed, and when the doors opened, Line breaking is not tolerated, although friends are
the group of 8,000 individuals pushed forward as a permitted to hold places for late-arriving friends,
mass. The results were deadly. The back of the provided that others nearby in the line are fully
group moved faster than the front, and the flow informed about the later arrival of additional queue
jammed near the clogged doors. People were liter- members. In general, more committed fans are more
ally swept off their feet by the surge, and some adamant about maintaining the queue’s norms
slipped to the concrete floor. Those around them (Helweg-Larsen & LoManaco, 2008).
tried to pull them back to their feet, but the over-
crowded mass of people pushed on toward the Crowd Safety Crowd disasters are a worldwide
open doors. As the rear of the crowd continued phenomenon because the primary ingredients for
to push forward, the crowd swept past those who such tragedies—large numbers of people who
had fallen, and they were trampled underfoot. gather in spaces that are too confining—are present
Eleven people were killed (Johnson, 1987). in all cultures. Even when individuals planning such
events are careful to engineer the site to fit the
The group waiting for the Who concert was number of attendees, the dynamics of crowd move-
initially a queue—a disorganized queue, but a ment, combined with unforeseen events, often
queue nonetheless. When the venue failed to result in uncontrolled, chaotic crowd occurrences.
open the doors on time, it is likely that a queueing A relatively well-organized queue, for example, can
effect occurred. Members of delayed queues tend become too compacted and so bottlenecks form
to inch forward, creating the illusion of progress, along the group’s path at points where its pathway
but also compression of the crowd. When the is obstructed—even if the obstruction is a minor
doors opened, the queue surged forward to one. Organizers usually make certain that the
release the pressure and jammed. The crowd lost entry points are smaller than the exit points, but
its capacity to move in a coordinated way, and this arriving crowds may bypass the entry barricades,
instability caused density to rise even further resulting in far greater pressure on the interior of the
(Helbing & Mukerji, 2012). Although the news group. In some cases, too, negative assumptions about
media described the crowd as a drug-crazed stam- crowds—that they are unpredictable, emotional, and
pede bent on storming into the concert, police primal—shift the blame to the people in the group
interviews with survivors indicated that the and away from significant influences: complacency,
crowd members in the center of the crush were inadequate planning, deteriorated facilities, communi-
trying to escape the overcrowding rather than to cation breakdowns, insufficient training, and so on.
get into the concert. Some individuals in the Too often the emphasis is on crowd control
crowd were struggling to get out of danger, but rather than crowd safety (Challenger & Clegg, 2015;
others were Good Samaritans who helped the Wijermans et al., 2016).
injured (Johnson, 1987).
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558 C H A P T E R 17
Is There Safety or Danger in Numbers?
It is said that there is safety in numbers, but there is colleagues, to determine the source of the danger,
danger as well. A dozen people were killed when a conducted extensive analyses of video recordings of a
police raid triggered a panic in a crowded club in deadly crowd event in 2006. They discovered that, in
Mexico City, Mexico. When the thousands of pilgrims most cases, some portions of the group moved more
massed on a narrow road to the Chamunda Devi tem- quickly than others, and density varied significantly
ple in India panicked 147 people were killed and scores across the entire crowd. As in vehicular traffic jams, the
injured. In Germany, at a street festival called the Love group began to move in stop-and-go waves: Portions
Parade, people crowding into the venue sought to of the crowd would move forward more quickly than
escape up a narrow staircase, but when the flow seemed prudent, given the congestion, and would
jammed, 21 people were killed and 500 injured. In then have to stop quickly when those in front of them
China, at least three shoppers died during a rush on were moving slower. Groups could tolerate these
sale items at a superstore located in Beijing. When a waves until density became extreme. But once density
rumor raced through a huge gathering of Shiite Mus- reached a very high level—as great as 10 people per
lims in Baghdad that a suicide bomber was in their square meter—the group transitioned into what
midst, the crowd panicked and pushed forward across Helbing calls the “turbulence phase.” The crowd
a narrow bridge with concrete barriers for security. members collided with one another, people lost their
Nearly 1,000 people were killed. footing, and, if they fell, the densely packed crowd
unintentionally moved over them, killing or injuring
Sociologist Dirk Helbing, who studies ways to them (Helbing, Johansson, & Al-Abideen, 2007;
prevent these kinds of tragedies, is also a physicist, so Johansson et al., 2008; Moussaïd et al., 2010).
he draws on studies of the flow of fluids and gases
through constrained spaces to explain the movement These findings suggest one certain solution: Control
of large groups. Most flow systems are stable and the number of people entering the area by constricting
predictable, but when they are overloaded—too much the size of the entry points so that they are smaller than
fluid is pumped through too small a pipe—the system the size of the exits. Cross-flows within the crowd should
fails. Similarly, when too many people attempt to also be minimized, if possible, by creating lanes within
move through a constrained space, the system can be the space—similar to lanes on a highway. The research-
overwhelmed and the flow will jam. Once clogged, ers also recommend installing “pressure relief valves”:
those trapped in it are likely to be injured (Helbing structures that can be opened should the densities
et al., 2005; Hughes, 2003). become too great. Helbing also recommends reviewing
the space where events are to be held immediately
Helbing and his colleagues (2007) took this before the event to identify any obstacles. These recom-
approach in their studies of fatal crowd disasters that mendations were applied when Jamarat Bridge was
occurred at the Jamarat Bridge in Saudi Arabia. This renovated: multiple levels and emergency exit ramps
pedestrian bridge is used by Muslims during the cere- leading down from the sides of the bridge were added.
monial stoning of the Jamrah Pillars. Helbing and his
17-1f Collective Movements means formalized or universally recognized (Smelser,
1962). But like crowds, collective phenomena come
Not all collective phenomena transpire at close dis- in many varieties, including (1) such social diffusions
tances. In some cases, individuals who are dispersed as rumors, mass delusions and trends, and (2) social
may act and react in similar and often atypical ways. movements.
Such curious phenomena are variously termed
collective movements, mass movements, or dispersed Rumors The rumors had been circulating around
collective behavior, although this terminology is by no the crowd of 100,000 gathered at Tahrir Square
throughout the day. Mubarak was to address the nation
collective movements A large aggregation of indivi- that night, and the rumors all said the same thing: He
duals, widely dispersed across space and time, who display was going to announce his resignation. These rumors
similarities in activities, reactions, interests, and so on. built the throng’s emotions up to a state of happy
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 559
readiness that turned to anger when Mubarak prom- atypical thoughts, feelings, or actions in a group
ised, instead, to not seek another term in office. or aggregation, including psychogenic illness, com-
mon hallucinations, and bizarre actions (Penneba-
Rumors provide people with a means of exchang- ker, 1982; Phoon, 1982). Such episodes are
ing information about threatening situations and so uncommon, but they have occurred regularly
have a calming effect on groups and communities. throughout the modern era. For example, the
Sometimes, however, rumors can instigate more neg- Werther syndrome is named for Johann Wolfgang
ative reactions to uncertainty and play a part in trig- von Goethe’s (1749–1832) novel The Sorrows of
gering riots and panics. Future rioters, for example, Young Werther. Many young men of the time imi-
often mill about for hours swapping stories about tated the eccentric style of dress of the book’s hero,
injustices before taking any aggressive action. Panics Werther, but some went too far. They killed them-
and crazes, too, are often sustained by rumors, partic- selves in the same way as Werther did. Choreomania
ularly when perpetuated by news reports and public is the term used to describe the compulsive dancing
announcements (Allport & Postman, 1947). An epi- crazes of the late Middle Ages. Tulipomania caused
demic of koro (a rare delusion characterized by the fear financial ruin for many who speculated in the tulip
that one’s sex organs will disappear) that swept bulb market in Holland in the 1600s. Many traders
through the Han region of China, for example, was lost their savings when the price of bulbs plum-
traced to exposure to rumors about the fictitious mal- meted in 1637. Biting mania was a fifteenth-century
ady (Cheng, 1997). Similarly, the 1999 Woodstock epidemic of mass delusion that began when a Ger-
music festival riots were preceded by a day of rumors man nun developed a compulsive urge to bite her
circulating through the crowd about what the final associates, who in turn bit others, until the mania
night of the concert would bring (Vider, 2004). spread to convents throughout Germany, Holland,
and Italy. Note, too, nearly all cases of mass delu-
Social psychologist Ralph Rosnow (1980) identi- sions have been exaggerated in their retelling (see
fied two conditions that influence the spread of Evans & Bartholomew, 2009).
rumors—the degree of anxiety that individuals are
experiencing and their uncertainty about the true nature In some cases, unexplained epidemics of ill-
of the situation. He argued that just as individuals often nesses are thought to have been cases of psycho-
affiliate with others in threatening situations, “ambigu- genic illness rather than organic illness. For
ous or chaotic” situations tend to generate rumors. By example, in June 1962, workers at a garment fac-
passing rumors, individuals convey information (albeit tory began complaining of nausea, pain, disorienta-
false) about the situation. Rumors also reduce anxiety tion, and muscular weakness; some actually
by providing, in most cases, reassuring reinterpretations collapsed at their jobs or lost consciousness. Rumors
of the ambiguous event (Walker & Berkerle, 1987). spread rapidly that the illness was caused by “some
After the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant acci- kind of insect” that had infested one of the ship-
dent, for example, authorities opened a rumor control ments of cloth from overseas, and the owners began
center to supply more accurate information to the making efforts to eradicate the bug. No bug was
community (Rosnow & Kimmel, 1979; Rosnow, ever discovered, however, and experts eventually
Yost, & Esposito, 1986). concluded that the “June Bug incident” had been
caused by mass delusion (Kerckhoff & Back, 1968;
Mass Delusions Rumors provide the basis for Kerckhoff, Back, & Miller, 1965).
mass delusion—the spontaneous outbreak of
mass delusion The spontaneous outbreak of atypical psychogenic illness A set of symptoms of illness in a
thoughts, feelings, or actions in a group or aggregation, group of persons when there is no evidence of an organic
including psychogenic illness, common hallucinations, basis for the illness and no identifiable environmental
and bizarre actions. cause.
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560 C H A P T E R 17
Researchers can never definitively determine country, and some people were predicting that
which cases of widespread illness are socially pro- the game would replace all other sports as the coun-
duced rather than biologically produced, but one try’s favorite form of recreation. The craze died out
study of work groups identified 23 separate cases within six months (LaPiere, 1938).
that involved large numbers of individuals afflicted
with “physical symptoms … in the absence of an Trends are changes in attitudes, actions, and
identifiable pathogen” (Colligan & Murphy, 1982, behaviors that influence large segments of a popu-
p. 35). More than 1,200 people were affected by lation, such as whole communities or regions.
these outbreaks, with most reporting symptoms that Many of these changes are relatively ordinary
included headaches, nausea, dizziness, and weak- ones; shifts in the use of the Internet and micro-
ness. Many were women working in relatively wave ovens, for example, illustrate the diffusion of
repetitive, routinized jobs, and the illness often a technological innovation across the world.
spread through friendship networks. Similarly, stud- Others, in contrast, are more capricious and unpre-
ies of pupils in school often conclude that many dictable. A fad, for example, is an unexpected,
epidemics, such as outbreaks of fainting or nausea, short-lived change in the opinions, behaviors, or
are caused by hysterical contagion (Bartholomew, lifestyles of a large number of widely dispersed indi-
1997). Some experts believe that many of the ill- viduals. Fads, such as the hula hoop, Pokémon Go,
nesses and medical complaints that are blamed on and mood rings, are remarkable both because they
the presence of irritants in office buildings and influence so many people so rapidly and because
schools—the so-called sick building syndrome—are they disappear without leaving any lasting impact
actually psychogenic illnesses (Murphy, 2006). on society. Crazes are similar to fads in most
respects, except that they are just a bit more irratio-
How can group-level delusions be controlled? nal, expensive, or widespread. Swallowing live
Organizational experts suggest that as soon as the goldfish, streaking (running about naked in a public
possibility of a physical cause is eliminated, work- place), and the widespread use of cocaine in the
ers should be told that their problems are more 1980s all qualify as crazes. Finally, fads that pertain
psychological than physical. A second means of to styles of dress or manners are generally termed
limiting the spread of such delusions involves fashion trends. Ties and lapels expand and contract,
altering the setting. The outbreaks often occur women’s hemlines move up and down, and last
when employees have been told to increase their season’s color takes a backseat to this season’s
productivity or when they have been working shade (Bourdieu, 1984; see Table 17.2).
overtime. Poor labor–management relations have
also been implicated, as have negative environ- 17-1g Social Movements
mental factors, such as noise, poor lighting, and
exposure to dust, foul odors, or chemicals (Colli- During the 2011 Occupy Wall Street movement in
gan, Pennebaker, & Murphy, 1982). Larger out- the United States, large numbers of citizens took up
breaks of rumors and hysteria that sweep across residence in the parks and plazas near the commer-
whole regions and countries can be countered by cial centers of major cities to protest the exploitive
providing citizens with clear, accurate information practices of large corporations. In the spring of
from trusted sources. 2012, a strike by millions of workers in Spain closed
most of the businesses in major cities and brought
Trends In 1929, as the United States plunged transportation to a standstill. On January of 2017,
into the Great Depression, people had little time
or money to spend playing golf. But several entre- trends The general direction in which the attitudes,
preneurs set up “miniature golf courses” in cities, interests, and actions of a large segment of a population
and the idea took hold of the nation with a ven- change over time, including fashion trends, fads, and
geance. Miniature golf spread over the entire crazes.
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 561
T A B L E 17.2 Types of Collectives
Type Defining Characteristics
Audience Spectators at an exhibition, performance, or event
Queue A waiting line or file of individuals
Crowd A temporary gathering of individuals who share a common focus or interest
Mob An acting, moving crowd, often antagonistic or destructive
Riot A large, less localized, and less organized mob
Panic A threatened crowd, seeking to escape from danger or competing for a scarce commodity
Rumor Unverified information passed from one person to another
Mass delusion The spontaneous outbreak of atypical thoughts, feelings, or actions in a group or aggregate,
including psychogenic illness and bizarre ideas and actions
Trend An abrupt but short-lived change in the opinions, behaviors, lifestyle, or dress of a large
number of dispersed individuals (includes fads, crazes, and fashions)
Social movement A deliberate, organized attempt to achieve a change or resist a change in a social system
hundreds of thousands of women in over 80 coun- SMOs have all the structural characteristics of any
tries around the world demonstrated in support of organization, including goals and objectives, rational
women’s rights and social justice, many wearing planning, and bureaucratic leadership structures
pink knit hats as a symbol of their solidarity. The (McAdam, McCarthy, & Zald, 1988).
Arab Spring began when millions of citizens of
Tunisia rose up and eventually overthrew their Types of Social Movements Social movements,
political leaders; uprisings, rebellions, and civil war like crowds, vary in their longevity and their goals
in other Middle East countries, including Egypt, (Appelbaum & Chambliss, 1995). Reformist move-
Bahrain, and Libya, soon followed. ments seek to improve existing institutions, often
through civil disobedience and demonstrations.
A social movement is a deliberate, relatively The U.S. civil rights movement, for example,
organized attempt to achieve a change or resist a sought to change existing laws that gave unfair
change in a social system. Social movements, like power to Whites, but the movement did not chal-
other forms of collective behavior, often arise sponta- lenge the basic democratic principles of the coun-
neously in response to some problem, such as unfair try. Revolutionary movements, in contrast, seek more
government policies, societal ills, or threats to personal sweeping changes in existing social institutions. The
values. Social movements are not short-lived, how- revolts in France in the late 1700s and the Arab
ever. Over time, they tend to gain new members, Spring of 2011 were revolutionary movements,
set goals, and develop leadership structures, until for the protesters sought to change their existing
eventually they change from spontaneous gatherings system of government. Reactionary movements,
of people into social movement organizations (SMOs). instead of trying to achieve change, seek to resist
it or even to reinstate extinct social systems. The
social movement A collective movement making a Ku Klux Klan is one such movement, as are
deliberate, organized attempt to achieve a change or many militia groups and groups that argue against
resist a change in a social system. alternative lifestyles. Communitarian movements strive
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562 C H A P T E R 17
Was the Arab Spring a High-Tech Revolution?
The Arab Spring—a cascade of demonstrations, pro- frame their social movement. During the Arab Spring,
tests, and riots in several countries in the Middle East— information about the growing levels of dissent in the
took many political analysts by surprise. Countries such nation was communicated using Facebook, blog post-
as Egypt were considered to be strong states and weak ings, and online satellite news services. When Egypt’s
societies—two conditions that generally discourage state-run news service published misleading informa-
social change. Strong states have powerful, central- tion, people turned to technology to circumvent these
ized, autocratic forms of government. Such govern- controls and share information that would otherwise
ments usually suppress rebellion through coercive be suppressed. The leaders of the movement used
means. These nations were also thought to be weak technology to express the basic premises of the move-
societies, in the sense that the citizens were divided ment and respond to challenges mounted by pro-
among themselves (Dupont & Passy, 2011). Yet, the Mubarak groups. The movement used social media to
events of the Arab Spring proved the experts wrong, develop its identity—as a source of unification of
for change not only happened—it happened quickly. It Egypt that stood apart from political and religious
was as if some new social force, one that accelerated practices or ideologies. Technology was also used for
the process of change in those countries, was at work. more practical, organizational purposes; participants
for demonstrations, protests, and marches were in
That new ingredient to social change might be some cases recruited using tweets and Facebook event
technology. The protesters became what technology postings rather than through more traditional, word-
expert Howard Rheingold (2002) calls a smart mob: a of-mouth methods.
social movement organized through the use of infor-
mation technology, including cell phones and the The Arab Spring social movement was not entirely
Internet. Although street demonstrations at the World a high-tech protest; activists took to the streets, occu-
Trade Organization summits, protestors camping out pied Tahrir Square, confronted pro-Mubarak forces,
during Occupy Wall Street, and the roving mobs that and engaged in heroic acts of civil disobedience.
formed during the recent English riots may have Technology, however, significantly influenced the
looked like traditional collectives, all were created—or, context and forms of the social movement, just as it is
at least, organized—using communication technolo- influencing nearly all types of groups. When the citi-
gies. Most people rely on the Internet to access news zens of Paris stormed the Bastille in July of 1789, they
and entertainment resources, communicate with managed it without cell phones, Twitter, and Face-
friends and family, and for shopping, but political book. Today’s and tomorrow’s rebellions, in contrast,
activists use the Internet to mobilize, organize, and will likely be wired (and wireless) ones.
to create more ideal living conditions than currently by happenstance; instead, the marches, demonstra-
exist in modern society, often by withdrawing from tions, and rallies were all part of a planned, organized,
contact with nonmembers. The communes of the and orchestrated attempt to secure social change.
1960s were communitarian movements, as are
many alternative religious movements (cults). The success of the anti-Mubarak movement in
Egypt was due, in part, to its navigating the political
The Politics of Social Movements The Arab demands identified by three overlapping theoretical
Spring was as much a political process as a social perspectives. According to political opportunity theory,
one. The protesters did not gather at Tahrir Square to succeed the movement needed to take advantage
of any and all political opportunities (Meyer, 2004).
smart mob Any group, including social movements, The uprising in Egypt followed a similar citizen
mobs, or crowds, that uses computer-based technologies revolt in Tunisia that resulted in the overthrow of
(e.g., cell phones, text messaging, and the Internet) to that country’s government. These events upset the
organize and initiate its activities. region’s status quo, providing a temporary window
of opportunity for the movement to engage in more
forceful forms of protest. The movement also gained
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 563
considerable strength when student protesters were another constantly, and during the course of those
joined by a number of different groups within that daily interactions, they discussed the nation’s pro-
society, including labor groups, shopkeepers, profes- blems, exchanged ideas, passed along rumors, and
sionals, Coptic Christians, and Islamists (Goldstone, planned remedial actions. Through this process of
2011). As resource mobilization theory explains, success- contagion, interest in and support for the move-
ful movements must identify and marshal sources of ment diffused throughout the nation, as one person
support for the movement. Money must be raised; influenced another. When contagion occurs rap-
equipment, provisions, and, in some cases, weapons idly, it can generate a cascade: A chain reaction of
acquired; new recruits must be convinced to join; change that flows through the group (Sunstein &
and allies identified (McAdam, McCarthy, & Zald, Hastie, 2015).
1988). Last, framing theory argues movements require
a meaningful account of their nature, objectives, and Le Bon’s Crowd Psychology The concept of
goals. People must know what the movement stands contagion was popularized as an explanation of col-
for and what it hopes to achieve (Walder, 2009). lective and crowd behavior by Gustave Le Bon in
The Arab Spring leaders created a coherent image his book, The Crowd, in 1895. Le Bon was fasci-
for the group that stressed nonviolence, shared iden- nated by large groups, but he also feared their ten-
tity, and an end to the Mubarak regime. Technology dency to erupt into violence. Perhaps because of
also contributed to the movement’s success by pro- these biases, he concluded that a crowd of people
viding a means of disseminating its message widely could, in certain instances, become a unified entity
(McGarty et al., 2014). that acted as if guided by a single collective mind.
Le Bon wrote:
17-2 COLLECTIVE
Whoever be the individuals that compose it,
DYNAMICS however like or unlike be their mode of life,
their occupations, their character, or their
Scholars have pondered and debated the vagaries of intelligence, the fact that they have been
collectives for centuries, seeking to specify the fac- transformed into a crowd puts them in posses-
tors that can transform individuals so thoroughly sion of a sort of collective mind which makes
and so unexpectedly. Although many answers them feel, think, and act in a manner quite
have been offered, this section narrows the analysis different from that in which each individual of
by focusing on five theoretical explanations that them would feel, think, and act were he in a
have stood the test of time and study. Each theory state of isolation. (1895/1960, p. 27)
focuses on a different aspect of collective behavior,
including motivational mechanisms, normative Le Bon believed that no matter what the indi-
interpretations, and identity and its loss. Each one vidual qualities of the people in the group, the
is selective in its focus, but taken together they pro- crowd would transform them, changing them
vide considerable insight into a wide array of col- from rational, thoughtful individuals into impulsive,
lective phenomena (Lang & Lang, 1961). unreasonable, and extreme followers. Once people
fall under the “law of the mental unity of crowds”
17-2a Contagion (1895/1960, p. 24), they act as the collective mind
dictates. He believed that emotions and behaviors
People, when interacting with one another, do not could be transmitted from one person to another
only pass along germs, infections, and viruses, but
they also pass along ideas, actions, and outlooks. In contagion The spread of behaviors, attitudes, and affect
Egypt during the Arab Spring uprising, for exam- through crowds and other types of social aggregations
ple, the people of Egypt interacted with one from one member to another.
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564 C H A P T E R 17
just as germs can be passed along, and he believed a circular process is thus initiated that eventually
that this process of contagion accounted for the culminates in full-blown behavioral contagion.
tendency of group members to behave in very sim-
ilar ways (Wheeler, 1966). Contagion versus Diffusion Le Bon considered
contagion to be a negative process; he likened the
Contagion in Collectives Many of Le Bon’s spread of ideas and information throughout a crowd
speculations have been discredited, but he was right to an infectious disease. Social network analysis, in
about one thing: As Chapter 7 noted, contagion is contrast, discards the pejorative connotations of the
common in groups (Chartrand & Lakin, 2013). One concept of contagion by arguing that information
person laughing in an audience will stimulate laugh- diffuses throughout the network because its mem-
ter in others. Question and answer sessions after a bers are joined together in social relations. Diffu-
lecture usually begin very slowly, but they soon sion, then, is not the result of the contamination
snowball as more and more questioners begin raising of one person by another, but is instead due to
their hands. Individuals’ emotions tend to converge the rational exchange of information within a net-
over time when they interact frequently in groups. work (Drury, 2002).
Mimicry of others is so basic a process that some
researchers believe that mirror neurons are active Diffusion starts when some bit of information,
when others’ actions are observed and that these such as a rumor, information about an event, an
neurons evoke matched behavior in the observer interpretation, an emotion, or a description of an
(Semin, 2007; cf Hickok, 2014). Mimicry explains experience, is passed from one individual (a node)
why members of collectives act as if they are guided to another. If that node does not pass along the
by a single mind: As one person imitates the next, information, diffusion ends—unless the initiator
the collective seems to act in a uniform manner. passes the information to other nodes in his or her
network. If, however, the second individual passes
Le Bon believed that such contagion processes the information onward to one or more contacts,
reflected the heightened suggestibility of crowd then the information begins to propagate through-
members, but other processes may be at work as out the network. How quickly its spreads and how
well. Because many crowd settings are ambiguous, widely depends, in part, on the structure of the
social comparison processes may prompt members network. For example, information will diffuse
to rely heavily on other members’ reactions when more rapidly in networks that are dense and cen-
they interpret the situation. Contagion may also tralized and when the nodes are organized into
arise in crowds through imitation, social facilitation, clusters (Ugander et al., 2012).
persuasion, or conformity (Tarde, 1903).
All nodes within a network are not created
Sociologist Herbert Blumer combined these equal in their capacity to influence the diffusion
various processes when he argued that contagion process. Journalist Malcolm Gladwell (2000), for
involves circular reactions rather than interpretive example, distinguishes between people with large
reactions (Blumer, 1957). During interpretive inter- social networks (connectors), the individuals who
actions, group members carefully reflect on the are opinion authorities (mavens), and those who
meaning of others’ behavior and try to formulate are able to persuade others to change their minds
valid interpretations before making any kind of (salespeople). Relative to most people, these influ-
comment or embarking on a line of action. During ential individuals can push an idea much more
circular reactions, however, the group’s members rapidly to many more people. Connectors, for
fail to examine the meaning of others’ actions cau- example, have been identified as one source of
tiously and carefully and, therefore, tend to misun- the rapid shift in popularity of new musical groups.
derstand the situation. When they act on the basis When investigators asked fans of a new musical
of such misunderstandings, the others in the group group how many other people they told about
also begin to interpret the situation incorrectly, and the band, they discovered that most fans told only a
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 565
What Makes a Video Go Viral?
Millions of videos have been uploaded by users to the spread and the video’s popularity index increases,
video-sharing site YouTube since it was founded in more and more viewers who equate popularity with
2005. Most videos that are posted are viewed by only a quality watch it. Second, when individuals who have
small number of people, but others attract a much many connections to others in the social network of
wider audience in a very short period of time: they go the Internet, such as celebrities, sports figures, Internet
viral. Such videos as Gangnam Style, Taylor Swift’s information and news sites, and media blogs, endorse
Blank Space, Evolution of Dance, and Kony 2012 were a video, a popular video can become a viral video. The
viewed millions of times over the course of only a few Kony 2012 video, for example, was viewed 40 million
days. Why do some videos go viral, and others go times in only four days when it was endorsed by a long
nowhere (Susarla, Oh, & Tan, 2012)? list of celebrities and well-respected news sites. Viral
videos, then, result from contagion. The next time you
One basic ingredient: substantial sharing across watch a viral video, remember you are part of an
social networks. YouTube makes the sharing of video Internet-based collective.
recommendation easy. As these recommendations
few other people. But a small number of the fans— trigger for the spontaneous release of previously
the connectors—told many more of their friends unexpressed desires. As social critic Eric Hoffer
about the group, including one individual who (1951) wrote, “All movements, however different
claimed to have spread the message to more than in doctrine and aspiration, draw their early adher-
150 people (Reifman, Lee, & Apparala, 2004). Adver- ents from the same types of humanity; they all
tisers now target such influential persons, in the belief appeal to the same types of mind” (p. 9).
that if they win them over as customers, the rest of
their network will follow (Watts & Dodds, 2007). Who Joins Crowds and Collectives? Are people
who take part in crowd activities different, in terms
17-2b Convergence of their personalities and values, than people who
do not join such groups? Early conceptions of
Many explanations of collective behavior suggest crowds, which portrayed their members as less
that people are not changed by collectives, because intelligent, more easily influenced, more impulsive,
they were similar to one another from the very and more violent, have not received consistent
start. Convergence theory assumes that indivi- empirical support (Martin, 1920; Meerloo, 1950).
duals who join rallies, riots, movements, crusades, Nor have attempts to link participation in more
and the like all possess particular personal character- unusual forms of collective behavior—such as
istics that influence their collective tendencies. Such cults or radical religious groups—to psychological
aggregations are not haphazard gatherings of dissim- problems. Those who join radical religious groups
ilar strangers; rather, they represent the conver- are usually teenagers or young adults, and although
gence of people with compatible needs, desires, they tend to be more idealistic and open to new
motivations, and emotions. By joining in the experiences and are higher in psychological depen-
group, the individual makes possible the satisfaction dency, they show no signs of psychological distur-
of these needs, and the crowd situation serves as a bance (Bromley, 2001, 2007; Walsh, Russell, &
Wells, 1995). Those who take part in sports-
convergence theory An explanation of collective related mobs and riots are usually younger men
behavior assuming that individuals with similar needs, who have engaged in aggressive crowd activities
values, or goals tend to converge to form a single group. in the past, but they are generally unremarkable in
other respects (Russell & Arms, 1998).
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566 C H A P T E R 17
Those who take part in social movements, in sociologist Walter Runciman (1966) explains,
contrast, tend to be more politically engaged. In egoistic deprivation (or personal deprivation)
terms of basic personality, they are no more likely occurs when individuals are dissatisfied with their
to be extraverted or introverted or stable or unsta- level of prosperity relative to other individuals.
ble, but they do tend to be open to new experi- Fraternal deprivation (or group deprivation)
ences. They also tend to have liberal rather than occurs when the groups one belongs to do not
conservative political beliefs, and they are relatively enjoy the same level of prosperity as other groups.
engaged in political issues, in general. Even when Both forms of deprivation can influence well-
political and social events do not directly influence being, satisfaction, and happiness, but fraternal
them, they nonetheless consider them to be person- deprivation is associated with a collective response.
ally meaningful (Curtin, Stewart, & Duncan, 2010). Individuals experiencing egoistic deprivation may
be angry and disappointed, but those experiencing
People who join social movements also tend to fraternal deprivation (1) join with other group
be higher in self-efficacy—they believe that through members to take action against other groups or
their personal involvement, they can make a differ- organizations and (2) express more negative atti-
ence (Duncan, 2012). Self-confidence, achievement tudes and opinions about those groups (Smith
orientation, a need for autonomy, dominance, self- et al., 2012). Individuals who are active in revolu-
acceptance, and maturity are all positively correlated tionary social movements, such as the national sep-
with social activism (Werner, 1978). Individuals who aratist movements in Quebec and in Ireland, are
have a history of taking part in collectives tend to more likely to be dissatisfied with their group’s
jump at the chance to join new ones (Corning & outcomes than with their own personal outcomes
Myers, 2002), but those who have a history of (Abrams, 1990; Guimond & Dubé–Simard, 1983).
avoiding conflict are less likely to join (Ulbig &
Funk, 1999). 17-2c Deindividuation
Relative Deprivation People who feel that prin- Many early theorists alluded to the transformative
ciples of fairness and justice are violated by the sta- effects of collectives, but the term deindividuation
tus quo are also more likely to take part in social was not introduced until 1952 by social psychologists
movements. Collectives are often composed of Leon Festinger, Albert Pepitone, and Theodore
those who are impoverished, persecuted, or endan- Newcomb. They hypothesized that there
gered, but it is more the perceived unfairness of the
deprivation that determines involvement in a col- occurs sometimes in groups a state of affairs in
lective rather than the deprivation itself. Relative which the individuals act as if they were “sub-
deprivation is therefore more motivating than merged in the group.” … The members do not
actual deprivation: Those who join social move- feel that they stand out as individuals. Others are
ments tend to be people who have higher expecta-
tions but who have not succeeded in realizing these egoistic deprivation The psychological state that
expectations (Smith & Pettigrew, 2015). occurs when one feels one’s outcomes are inferior rela-
tive to other individuals’ outcomes.
Individuals who take part in social movements fraternal deprivation The psychological state that
are also more likely to be experiencing fraternal occurs when a group member feels his or her group’s
deprivation rather than egoistic deprivation. As outcomes are inferior relative to other groups’ outcomes.
deindividuation An experiential state caused by a num-
relative deprivation The psychological state that occurs ber of input factors, such as group membership and ano-
when individuals feel that, in comparison to others, their nymity, that is characterized by the loss of self-awareness,
attainments, outcomes, status, recognition, and so on are altered experiencing, and atypical behavior.
inadequate.
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 567
Inputs Deindividuation Outputs
Anonymity Loss of self-awareness Unusual behavior
(emotional, impulsive,
Reduced responsibility Reduced self- irrational, regressive, with
regulation
Group size high intensity)
(low self-monitoring,
Arousal disregard for norms, etc.) Cognitive and
emotional disturbances
Others
(sensory overload, drug (memory impairment,
self-reinforcement,
use, arousal, etc.) contagion)
F I G U R E 17.3 An input–process–output theory of deindividuation that proposes input factors create conditions
that lead to the state of deindividuation, which in turn results in deindividuated behaviors.
SOURCE: Zimbardo, P. G. (1969). “The Human Choice: Individuation, Reason, and Order versus Deindividuation, Impulse, and Chaos,” by P. G. Zimbardo
(1969), Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, 11, 237–307.
not singling a person out for attention nor is the crowds (see Mann, 1981). Disguises, too, can
person singling out others. (p. 382) increase anonymity. According to anthropological
evidence, warriors in 92.3% (12 out of 13) of the
Several years later social psychologist Philip most highly aggressive cultures—those known to
Zimbardo (1969) offered a more fully developed practice headhunting and to torture captives—
input–process–output model of deindividuation. disguise themselves prior to battle, whereas only
The inputs he identified include situational factors, 30% (3 out of 10) of the low-aggression cultures
such as the degree of anonymity and the size of the feature similar rituals (Watson, 1973).
group, as well as more psychological factors: sense
of responsibility, degree of arousal, and altered states Zimbardo confirmed anonymity’s impact
of consciousness due to the use of drugs or alcohol. experimentally by comparing the aggressiveness of
These factors, in turn, lead to the psychological anonymous groups to those whose members were
state of deindividuation, which in turn generates identifiable. Under an elaborate pretense, he asked
highly emotional, impulsive, and atypical actions all-female groups to give 20 electric shocks to two
(see Figure 17.3). While deindividuation may lead women. Anonymous groups wore large lab coats
to increasingly positive behaviors, it usually leads to (size 44) and hoods over their heads, and they
“aggression, vandalism, stealing, cheating, rudeness, were not permitted to use their names. Those in
as well as a general loss of concern for others” groups that were identifiable were greeted by name
(Zimbardo, 1969, 1975, p. 53). and wore large name tags; the experimenter
emphasized their uniqueness and individuality.
Anonymity Zimbardo’s theory identified ano- Although identifiability was unrelated to the num-
nymity as a primary precondition for deindividua- ber of shocks given (the average was 17 of 20), the
tion. When individuals join a large collective, they unidentifiable participants held their switches down
feel less identifiable, and this sense of anonymity nearly twice as long as the identifiable participants
may cause them to engage in behavior that they (0.90 seconds versus 0.47 seconds).
would never consider undertaking if alone. For
example, crowds and mobs that form at night Responsibility As Le Bon argued many years
tend to be more unruly and aggressive than daylight ago, the crowd is “anonymous, and in consequence
irresponsible” (1895/1960, p. 30). This diffusion of
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568 C H A P T E R 17
responsibility has been verified in dozens of studies of Percentage of children 60
people who faced various emergencies alone or in a transgressing Alone Group
group (see Chapter 7). Members of groups may also
experience a reduction in responsibility if an authority 50
demands compliance (Milgram, 1974) or if they do
not recognize the connections between their personal 40
actions and their final consequences. Some groups
actually take steps to ensure the diffusion of responsi- 30
bility, as when murderers pass around their weapons
from hand to hand so that responsibility for the crime 20
is distributed through the entire group rather than
concentrated in the one person who pulls the trigger 10
or wields the knife (Zimbardo, 1969, 2007).
0 Anonymous
Group Membership Deindividuation is a group- Nonanonymous
level process. Single individuals may feel unrecogniz-
able or uncertain as to their identity, but Zimbardo F I G U R E 17.4 The combined effects of anonymity
considers membership in a collective to be a neces- and group membership on counternormative behavior.
sary condition for deindividuation. Social psycholo-
gist Edward Diener and his associates (1976) tested SOURCE: Data from “Effects of Deindividuating Variables on Stealing by
this assumption in an ingenious study of Halloween Halloween Trick-or-Treaters,” by E. Diener, S. C. Fraser, A. L. Beaman, &
trick-or-treating. Their participants were 1,352 chil- R. T. Kelem (1976), Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 33,178–
dren from the Seattle area who visited one of the 27 183. Copyright 1976 by the American Psychological Association. Reprinted
experimental homes scattered throughout the city. by permission.
Observers hidden behind decorative panels recorded
the number of extra candy bars and money (pennies Group Size Social psychologist Leon Mann
and nickels) taken by the trick-or-treaters who were explored the relationship between group size and
told to take one candy bar each. The children came members’ emotional reactions to religious messages
to the house alone or in small groups (exceedingly in a field study of large evangelical services (New-
large groups were not included in the study nor ton & Mann, 1980). At the end of these services
were groups that included an adult). An experi- audience members were invited to become
menter manipulated anonymity by asking some chil- “inquirers” by coming forward and declaring their
dren to give their names and addresses. As expected, dedication to Christ. Mann discovered that in 57
the children who were members of groups took religious meetings, the correlation between crowd
more money and candy than children who were size and the proportion of people who moved
alone. So did the anonymous children compared to down to the stage to become inquirers was .43.
those children who gave their names. But when On Sundays, the correlation rose to .78. Other
these two factors were combined—children were studies suggest that larger groups may also be
part of a group and they were anonymous— more violent groups. A review of historical records
transgressions more than doubled (see Figure 17.4). of 60 violent mobs who attacked and lynched Black
These findings, which have been supported by other men in the south of the United States in the first
investigations, suggest that the term deindividuation is part of the last century revealed that they ranged in
used most appropriately in reference to people who size from 4 to 15,000, but that larger mobs were
perform atypical behavior while they are members more likely to attack more victims (Mullen, 1986).
of a group (Cannavale, Scarr, & Pepitone, 1970;
Mathes & Kahn, 1975). Arousal Zimbardo listed a number of other vari-
ables that can contribute to deindividuation,
including altered temporal perspectives, sensory
overload, a lack of situational structure, and the
use of drugs. Many of these factors, he suggested,
function by both arousing and distracting group
members. Zimbardo even suggested that certain
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 569
rituals, such as war dances and group singing, are each group six accomplices trained to facilitate or
actually designed to arouse participants and enable inhibit the development of deindividuation. In the
them to be deindividuated when the fighting starts: self-aware condition, the confederates seemed restless
“Among cannibals, like the Cenis or certain Maori and fidgety. Everyone wore name tags as they
and Nigerian tribes, the activity of ritual bonfire worked on tasks designed to heighten self-
dance which precedes eating the flesh of another awareness, such as providing personal responses to
human being is always more prolonged and intense questions, sharing their opinions on topics, and dis-
when the victim is to be eaten alive or uncooked” closing personal information about themselves. In
(1969, p. 257). Aroused individuals, as deindividua- the non-self-aware condition, Diener shifted the parti-
tion theory suggests, tend to respond more aggres- cipants’ focus of attention outward by having them
sively, particularly when in a group (Goldstein, perform a series of mildly distracting tasks. The pro-
2002). blems were not difficult, but they required a good
deal of concentration and creativity. In the deindivi-
Self-Awareness Zimbardo’s deindividuation the- duation condition, Diener tried to foster feelings of
ory posits that situational variables, such as anonym- group cohesiveness, unanimity, and anonymity by
ity and membership in a group, can in some cases treating the members as interchangeable and by
combine to induce psychological changes in group putting the groups through a variety of arousing
members. Deindividuated people, Zimbardo pre- activities.
dicted, should feel very little self-awareness, and
this minimization of self-scrutiny is the most imme- When Diener asked the participants to describe
diate cause of the atypical behaviors seen in how they felt during the study, he identified the
collectives. two clusters, or factors, shown in Table 17.3. The
first factor, loss of self-awareness, encompasses a lack
Diener (1979, 1980) tested this hypothesis by of self-consciousness, little planning of action, high
making use of an Asch-type experimental situation. group unity, and uninhibited action. The second
He created eight-person groups, but he included in factor, altered experiencing, is also consistent with
T A B L E 17.3 A Two-Factor Model of Deindividuation: Loss of Self-Awareness
and Altered Experiencing
Factor Typical Characteristics
Loss of self-awareness
■ Minimal self-consciousness
■ Lack of conscious planning as behavior becomes spontaneous
■ Lack of concern for what others think of one
■ Subjective feeling that time is passing quickly
■ Liking for the group and feelings of group unity
■ Uninhibited speech
■ Performing uninhibited tasks
Altered experiencing ■ Unusual experiences, such as hallucinations
■ Altered states of consciousness
■ Subjective loss of individual identity
■ Feelings of anonymity
■ Liking for the group and feelings of group unity
SOURCE: “Deindividuation, Self-Awareness, and Disinhibition,” by E. Diener, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 1160–1171. Copyright 1979 by
the American Psychological Association. Adapted by permission.
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570 C H A P T E R 17
deindividuation theory in that it ties together a participant, a “group of us sat closely together,
number of related processes, such as “unusual” touching, feeling a sense of friendship and loss as a
experiences, altered perceptions, and a loss of indi- group member left. I left with a feeling that it had
vidual identity. When Diener compared the been fun and nice” (Gergen, Gergen, & Barton,
responses of participants in the three conditions of 1973, p. 129). Apparently, the situation helped
his experiment, he discovered that (1) deindividu- people express feelings that they would have other-
ated participants displayed a greater loss of self- wise kept hidden, but these feelings were positive
awareness than both the non-self-aware and the rather than negative.
self-aware participants and (2) deindividuated parti-
cipants reported more extreme altered experiencing 17-2d Emergent Norms
than the self-aware participants.
Ralph Turner and Lewis Killian’s emergent norm
Other investigators have replicated these find- theory questions the idea that unusual psychologi-
ings. For example, in one study, members of four- cal and social processes operate in crowds and col-
man groups were led to believe that they were going lectives (Turner, 1964; Turner & Killian, 1972).
to deliver electric shocks to another person. Half of They reject one of the fundamental assumptions
the participants were prompted to focus their atten- of both Le Bon’s contagion theory and Zimbardo’s
tion on the situation, whereas the others were fre- deindividuation theory—that people in crowds
quently reminded to pay attention to their personal have lost self-control. Instead, they conclude that
feelings. Moreover, some participants were told that members of collectives act in ways that are consis-
their actions would be carefully monitored, whereas tent with the norms that are salient in the situation.
others were led to believe that their actions were not They are not acting in random, unpredictable ways,
going to be linked to them personally. The results of but rather are following the example set by others
the study supported Diener’s two-factor model of in the group. Granted, these emergent norms may be
deindividuation and suggested that both low self- unique and sharply contrary to more general socie-
awareness and altered experiencing caused increased tal standards, but they nonetheless exert a powerful
aggressiveness (Prentice-Dunn & Rogers, 1980, 1982, influence on behavior.
1983; Prentice-Dunn & Spivey, 1986).
Consider, for example, the unusual behavior of
Positive Deindividuation Deindividuation usu- some crowds that form near buildings where a per-
ally leads to negative, antisocial behavior, but not son is threatening to commit suicide by leaping
if cues that serve to prime aggressive responses are from a window or ledge. In some cases these
removed from the situation. In such circumstances, crowds transform from relatively passive audiences
people who feel anonymous may act in positive, into baiting crowds whose members urge the
even prosocial, ways (Johnson & Downing, 1979). jumpers to take their life. When Mann studied
Researchers, to examine this possibility, simply members of such crowds, he was unable to identify
placed some groups in totally darkened rooms and any similarities in personality or demographic char-
other groups in well-lit rooms and recorded how acteristics (as convergence theory would suggest).
the groups responded. All who participated in the He did note, however, that baiting became more
study were anonymous: they were escorted individ-
ually to and from the room and were assured that emergent norm theory An explanation of collective
the other participants would not be told their iden- behavior suggesting that the uniformity in behavior
tities. The individuals in the dark room reported often observed in collectives is caused by members’ con-
feeling aroused, but in no case did they exhibit formity to unique normative standards that develop
hostility, aggressiveness, or violence. Rather, nearly spontaneously in those groups.
everyone felt relaxed and at ease in the darkness, baiting crowd A gathering of people in a public loca-
surrounded by strangers. In the words of one tion whose members torment, tease, or goad others.
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 571
likely as crowd size increased. Mann suggested that social identity theory argues that joining a collective
larger crowds are more likely to include at least one does not lead to deindividuation but to a deperso-
person who introduces the baiting norm into the nalized sense of self that reflects group-level quali-
group. “In a large crowd at least one stupid or sadis- ties rather than individual ones.
tic person will be found who is prepared to cry
‘Jump!’ and thereby provide a model for suggestible Social Identity and Intergroup Conflict Studies
others to follow” (Mann, 1981, p. 707). Mann of both social movements as well as such fast-
reported evidence of conformity to the baiting forming collectives as riots and mobs suggest that
norm in crowds that not only encouraged the vic- social identity processes significantly influence
tim to “end it all” but also jeered and booed as who joins collectives and how people act once
rescuers attempted to intervene. they become members. Like the protesters in
Egypt, members usually recognize the characteris-
Emergent norm theory, in contrast to other tics expected of the prototypical member, and they
analyses of crowds and collectives, argues that col- define themselves in terms of those qualities. They
lectives are not out of control or normless. Rather, identify with the group, and experience positive
they are socially structured groups, but by an effects—including an increased sense of efficacy—
unusual, temporary, or group-specific norm rather by joining together with other like-minded
than by more traditional social standards. For exam- individuals. When, for example, social psychologist
ple, some cults condone mass suicide. Hooligans at Stephen Reicher asks individuals who have taken
British soccer matches consider violence a normal part in riots to describe the experience, few report
part of the event. When riots occur, it becomes feeling emotionally overwrought, impulsive, or out
commonplace to loot stores. After a week, the pro- of control. Instead, they describe themselves and
testers in Egypt did not think it was unusual to be their comembers as taking collective action in an
living in the open air at Tahrir Square. Although attempt to reach a goal that all members recognized
these events—when viewed from a more objective as appropriate in the given context (see Reicher,
perspective—may seem out of control and very 2015; Reicher & Stott, 2011).
strange, for the group members they are literally
“normal” (Reicher et al., 2016). Social identity theory stresses one aspect of col-
lective settings frequently overlooked by other the-
17-2e Social Identity oretical perspectives: Collective behavior is usually
intergroup behavior (Reicher et al., 1995; Wad-
Social identity theory, like emergent norm theory, dington, 2008). Riots in inner cities, for example,
takes issue with one of deindividuation theory’s usually occur when inner-city residents contend
core assumptions. Deindividuation theory suggests against another group: the police (Goldberg,
that people in collectives experience a loss of iden- 1968). Violence during athletic competitions often
tity, but the social identity model of deindividuation occurs when the fans of one team attack, en masse,
effects (SIDE) argues that people’s social identities the fans or players of another team (Leonard, 1980).
are actually amplified when they are members of a Protests on college campuses pit students against the
collective (Postmes & Spears, 1998; Spears, 2016). university administration (Lipset & Wolin, 1965).
For example, each individual who took part in the Gangs vie for turf against other gangs (Sanders,
protests at Tahrir Square likely had many unique 1994). Militia groups rise up to confront civil and
qualities—some were lawyers, others were students, judicial authorities (Flynn & Gerhardt, 1989).
some were religious, others were suspicious by Lynch mobs were crowds of Whites with high sol-
nature, others were kindly—but when they gath- idarity who attacked Blacks (de la Roche, 2002).
ered together they all became anti-Mubarak protes- The presence of an outgroup increases the salience
ters, and they acted in ways that were consistent of the collective identity and members begin to
with that identity (Polletta & Jasper, 2001). Thus, perceive themselves and the situation in ways that
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572 C H A P T E R 17
reflect the ingroup–outgroup bias: Other members Watts (in Los Angeles) explained, “I don’t believe in
of the ingroup are viewed positively, as are their burning, stealing, or killing, but I can see why the
actions, whereas outgroup members and their boys did what they did. They just wanted to be
actions are denigrated (see Chapter 14). noticed, to let the world know the seriousness of
their state of life” (Milgram & Toch, 1969, p. 576).
Reicher’s analyses of riots underscore collectives’ Similarly, members of large groups, such as industrial
intergroup character. For example, one riot occurred workers, students in large classrooms, people working
when members of the National Union of Students in bureaucratic organizations, and employees in com-
organized a demonstration in London. The leaders of panies with high turnover rates, may perform atypical
the group planned to march to the Houses of Parlia- actions just to stand apart from the crowd.
ment, but the police blocked their path. As the tension
between the groups escalated, the students became Psychologist Christina Maslach (1972) examined
more unified. When one member of the group was this individuation process by making two people in a
arrested by the police, students attacked the police unit four-person group feel individuated; she referred to
as a group. They also felt that the police were behaving them by name, made more personal comments to
violently and that they themselves only responded in them, and maintained a significant amount of eye
self-defense. As one student put it, “To some extent contact. She made the other two feel deindividuated
there was a feeling of there was the students and there by avoiding close contact with them and addressing
was the police and you knew which side you were on them impersonally. When these individuals were
so you had to be up in the front with students, you later given the opportunity to engage in a free-
know. And there was a lot of crowd empathy” (quoted response group discussion and to complete some
in Reicher, 1996, p. 126). questionnaires, the deindividuated participants evi-
denced various identity-seeking reactions. Some
Individuation A paradox permeates the analysis attempted to make themselves seem as different as
of individuality and collectives. On the one hand, possible from the other group members by giving
many theorists assume that submersion in a group more unusual answers to the questions, making lon-
results in the attainment of power and an escape ger comments, joining in the discussion more fre-
from societal inhibitions; hence, group members quently, and attempting to capture the attention of
seek and try to maintain the experience of deindi- the experimenter. Other participants seemed to
viduation. On the other hand, many psychologists redefine their identities by revealing more intimate
believe that people can enjoy psychological well- details of their personalities and beliefs through lon-
being only when they are able to establish and ger and more unusual self-descriptions.
maintain their own unique identities: “A firm
sense of one’s own autonomous identity is required 17-3 COLLECTIVES ARE
in order that one may be related as one human
being to another. Otherwise, any and every rela- GROUPS
tionship threatens the individual with loss of iden-
tity” (Laing, 1960, p. 44; see, too, Dipboye, 1977). All groups are intriguing, but groups that undertake
extreme or unexpected actions—cults, mobs,
An identity affirmation approach to collective crowds, and the like—fascinate both layperson and
behavior suggests that group members who feel researcher. Although groups are so commonplace
“lost” in a group will try to reestablish their individual that they often go unnoticed and unscrutinized,
identities. People in large crowds, for example, may atypical groups invite speculation and inquiry. But
act oddly to regain a sense of individuality, not are such groups mad? Do human beings lose their
because they feel anonymous. Individuals who take rationality when they are immersed in gatherings,
part in riots may do so not to protest their group’s crowds, mobs, and movements?
unfair treatment, but to reaffirm their individual iden-
tities. As one resident of the riot-torn community of
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 573
What Is Your Crowd Safety Awareness Level?
On any given day thousands of crowds will form and q I join crowds with two or more other individuals
disband without incident. But a small minority of these and we stick together.
crowds, and the members of them, will be unsafe:
Members may act violently, destructively, or panic. q I create informal connections with the people in
Joining a crowd can be an elevating experience, but my near vicinity.
the astute crowd member should monitor the situa-
tion, remaining ever mindful of the warning signs that q I move away from individuals in the crowd who
the situation could become fraught. are acting in disruptive or unusual ways.
Instructions. On the following list, identify the q In intergroup crowd situations I move to the cen-
safeguards you typically take as you prepare for, and ter of my group and avoid the fringe areas.
act in, situations that will involve large groups of peo-
ple, such as concerts, demonstrations and protests, q I usually act as others do, but remain mindful of
marches, or street festivals. alternatives; I think before I act.
q I avoid situations that will be crowded, poorly q I stay sober, vigilant, but relaxed when in crowds.
organized, and bring multiple identifiable groups
into contact (intergroup crowds). q I exit crowds when they become too crowded, too
threatening, or otherwise unsafe.
q In intergroup crowd situations (e.g., sporting
events and protests), I do not dress to openly Interpretation. Each of these recommendations
identify my allegiance to one side. will make it more likely your crowd experiences
will be good ones, and they are based on three
q When approaching the setting, I reconnoiter the overlapping principles. First, when people are in
space, identifying exits and places of safety. groups they tend to act as others do—but this
natural tendency can cause problems when the
q When in a moving crowd I repeatedly identify the majority of the group acts in ways that are mal-
closest exit and places of safety as my location adaptive. Resist the herd mentality. Second, there
changes. is safety in groups, so create associations with
smaller subgroups within the group when possible.
q I heed the regulatory mechanisms in the setting Stick together. Third, intergroup crowds are the
(fencing, pathways and walkways, barriers, sign- most likely crowds to experience mayhem. When
age, and personnel) as well as obstructions. possible, to avoid crowds that will encourage an
“us versus them” mindset.
17-3a The Myth of the Madding crimes in groups are given more lenient punishments.
Deindividuated and driven to conform to their
Crowd group’s norms, they are not held personally responsi-
ble for their actions (Colman, 1991).
For well over a century, most theorists and researchers
have assumed that crowds are unique social aggrega- Yet collectives are, at their core, groups, and so
tions; a “perversion of human potential” (Zimbardo, the processes that shape group behaviors also shape
1969, p. 237) where impulse and chaos replace reason collective behaviors. Many contemporary theorists,
and order. Le Bon argued that crowds develop a col- rather than assuming collectives are atypical groups
lective mind that leaves individual members unable to that require special theories that include novel or
think for themselves. Convergence theories assume even mysterious processes, argue the “madding
atypical groups are staffed by atypical people. Groups crowd” is more myth than reality. Collective
often develop odd, unusual norms, and members may behavior is not bizarre, but instead a rational
forget who they are when they sink too deeply into attempt by a number of individuals to seek change
their groups. This belief in the “madness of crowds” is through united action. These groups form, change,
so deeply ingrained in common conceptions of col- and disband following the same patterns that gov-
lectives that some individuals who commit violent ern other groups, and the internal structures and
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574 C H A P T E R 17
processes of collectives and more mundane groups broadcast, they have discovered that these events
are more similar than they are different. were sensationalized (Bartholomew & Goode,
2000). The pathologized mob of dancers comprised,
Sociologist Clark McPhail (1991) elaborated this in all likelihood, the members of a religious sect pass-
viewpoint in his book The Myth of the Madding Crowd. ing through the area on a pilgrimage (Evans &
McPhail maintained that early theorists were too Bartholomew, 2009). Many of the Dutch merchants
biased by their preconceived belief that crowds are who invested in the tulip bulb market prospered.
crazed. McPhail himself carried out extensive field Some lost money, but they probably fared better
studies of actual collectives over a ten-year period so than many investors in the U.S. stock market during
he could determine firsthand what such groups do. the 2000–2002 bubble market (Menschel, 2002).
His conclusions were threefold: And the story of the mass panic following the broad-
cast of the War of the Worlds is nearly entirely fic-
First, individuals are not driven mad by crowds; tional: Farmers did not stand in their fields with
they do not lose cognitive control! Second, shotguns, people did not flee from their homes in
individuals are not compelled to participate by terror, and no one was injured in panicky mobs flee-
some madness-in-common, or any other sov- ing the invaders (Socolow, 2008).
ereign psychological attribute, cognitive style, or
predisposition that distinguishes them from A closer look at the work of Le Bon’s
nonparticipants. Third, the majority of behaviors (1895/1960) crowd psychology also reveals weak-
in which members of these crowds engaged are nesses, both in terms of scholarship and scientific
neither mutually inclusive nor extraordinary, let objectivity. Although his writings did much to pop-
alone mad. (McPhail, 1991, p. xxii) ularize such concepts as group mind and contagion,
he borrowed heavily—some say, too heavily—from
Social psychologist John Drury (2002) reiterates the work of earlier scholars (van Ginneken, 2007).
this message in his critique of the continuing use of Moreover, his dire predictions about crowds and
the word “contagion” to describe the flow of infor- mobs were driven more by his racial and class-
mation through a crowd. As he explains, the term is based prejudices than the facts (Bendersky, 2007).
hopelessly derogatory and will forever be associated
with disease, corruption, illness, and pathology. He Meta-analytic reviews of Zimbardo’s theory of
recommends using more positive terms such as deindividuation also fail to confirm one of its key
identification and empowerment: principles: that individuals in groups act in ways that
are both unusual and counternormative (Spears,
Lone individuals endorsing a reactionary and 2016). Evidence indicates that membership in large
mystifying ideology have little power to act crowds and collectives is more often healthy and pro-
upon it. The most that they can do, perhaps, is motive, rather than harmful and injurious (Drury &
to act under cover of night…. However, col- Stott, 2015). Crowds and collectives are also the
lective support enables people to put their means to achieve positive social change: “Over the
beliefs into practice in broad daylight, even in last quarter-century they have forced the abandon-
the face of opposition from the police (Drury ment of unfair tax regimes, thwarted the destruction
and Reicher, 1999). In short, the crowd of cherished natural environments, ousted dictators
empowers. (Drury, 2002, p. 69) and brought about political and economic change
across entire regions” (Bond, 2014, pp. 57-58).
A hundred years of theory and research that have
pushed the “crowd-as-mad” position is a stalwart leg- Yet, people are quick to call crowds irrational
acy that cannot be easily dismantled. Yet the available and mad, even though the data do not support this
evidence favors a more balanced view of collectives. pronouncement. Violence occurs in crowds and
When scholars have reviewed some of the famous mobs, but it is relatively rare (McPhail, 1991). In
examples of crowd delusions, such as dancing mania most cases, individuals in collectives seek specific
and the supposed panic during the War of the Worlds goals and, by joining with others, they improve
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 575
their chances of reaching those goals. Even when a superior opponent; a jury reaching a verdict by
people are trapped in dangerous situations, such as carefully reviewing its mission and the evidence it
the crowd at The Who concert in the United States was given; a group led by a powerful authority figure
or the Love Parade in Germany, the crowd does not who manipulated the members through deceit and
behave badly. Many condemn such crowds, saying subterfuge; teams that worked to make products and
that they stampeded, but when researchers consider decisions, including military and political experts
the evidence, they usually conclude that the crowd who planned an ill-fated invasion; groups that had
panicked, but did not engage in selfish, destructive to deal with conflict within their ranks and conflict
behavior. Indeed, the amount of helping shown by with other groups; a heroic group trying to return to
the people in such crowds exceeds levels of helping Earth after circling the Moon; and a group of people
documented in studies of bystander interventions in who made use of the restorative, curative impact of a
emergencies (see Chapter 7). group to gain self-understanding and improve their
well-being. In this final chapter, we have turned to
Moreover, when crowds do engage in violence, examine crowds, mobs, and social movements.
it usually takes the form of intergroup conflict rather
than mindless aggression. Studies of riots, social These analyses have illuminated many of a
movements, and even criminal mobs, suggest that group’s most basic processes—how groups take in
violence occurs when these groups confront another and reject members; evolve over time; organize
group—and the conflict between the two escalates. their members in hierarchies of authority; perform
In many cases, the opposing group is a recognized tasks, both effectively and ineffectively; make plans
authority within the society—such as a police force and decisions; and succor their members and regulate
or a militia. These socially sanctioned groups are their behavior in context. But these analyses have also
generally judged more positively than the activists, revealed that groups are often misunderstood and mis-
protestors, and rebels, even though they are often managed. Whereas scientists have studied aspects of
more violent than the “mindless mob.” the physical world for centuries, only in the last hun-
dred years have they turned their attention to human
The crowd-as-mad and the crowd-as-group experiences and human groups in particular. Yet the
views must be reconciled in a more complete under- theories and studies of group dynamics we have
standing of collective behavior. Individuals, when examined here confirm the importance of groups in
immersed in a collective, do sometimes perpetrate all aspects of social life. Human beings are in many
great wrongs, yet most gatherings, crowds, and social ways individuals who are seeking their personal, pri-
movements act in ways that are unremarkable. vate objectives, yet they are also members of larger
Crowds are groups, and collective dynamics are for social units that may be seeking collective outcomes.
the most part the same as small group dynamics. As social creatures, embedded in a rich network of
Hence, the next time you hear of a crowd behaving mutual, collective, and reciprocal relationships, indivi-
oddly, do not dismiss its actions as one more illustra- duals cannot be understood fully without considering
tion of a group gone wrong. the social groups to which they belong.
17-3b Studying Groups and Fortunately, the field of group dynamics offers
the means of reducing our ignorance of this funda-
Collectives mental aspect of the human condition. Stanley Mil-
gram and Hans Toch, writing nearly 50 years ago,
In this book, we have examined many different asked this question: If we “do not take up the job of
groups—a team of mountain climbers; scientists understanding riots, panics, and social movements,
working to solve a problem; a search and rescue who will?” (1969, p. 590). Their question applies,
squad; a band of outcasts from the art community with equal force, to the study of groups in general.
that generated a cohesive movement that redefined If we do not take up the job of understanding
the world of art; a sports team that survived a plane groups, who will?
crash in the Andes; a hockey team that outperformed
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576 C H A P T E R 17
CHAPTER REVIEW
What is collective behavior? positive—one of elation and joy rather
than anger and hostility.
1. A collective is a relatively large group of people
who respond in a similar way to an event or ■ Aggressive mobs, such as lynch mobs and
situation. hooligans, engage in aggressive, violent
actions, including mobbing.
■ Collectives differ from other types of
groups in terms of size, proximity of the ■ Riots are large, disbursed, and typically
members, duration, conventionality, and hostile mobs.
intimacy of the relations among members.
5. Panics occur when crowds seek to escape a
■ Collectives sometimes engage in unusual situation (escape panics) or when fearful a val-
behaviors (Evans and Bartholomew, 2009). ued resource will run out (acquisitive panics).
2. Gatherings combine aspects of smaller groups ■ Group panics are dangerous situations.
with qualities found in larger, more amor- Eleven people were killed when a group
phous, crowds. waiting to gain admission to The Who
concert panicked due to overcrowding.
■ Audiences and queues are more norma-
tively regulated than crowds. Even rela- ■ Crowd disasters are common across the
tively simple behaviors, such as clapping, world. The queueing effect, turbulence,
are coordinated group-level actions. Vio- and overcrowding all combine to create
lations of norms in either type of collective dangerous crowd situations.
generally lead to negative sanctioning.
■ Studies of very large crowds, such as those
■ Milgram’s studies of line breaking suggest conducted by Helbing at the Jamarat
that queue members are both group- and Bridge, have identified the factors that
self-motivated (Milgram et al., 1986). contribute to injury in such crowds and
ways to reduce the danger (Helbing et al.,
3. Crowds include common crowds, such as street 2005).
crowds or public gatherings, audiences, queues,
and mobs (aggressive mobs and panics). 6. Individuals need not be concentrated in a single
location to display convergence in action, for
■ Milgram and his associates (1969) created such collective movements as rumors, trends (fads,
crowds on a New York City street by crazes, fashion trends), mass delusions, psychogenic
having people stare up at a building. The illness, and social movements can influence widely
larger the initial seed group, the more dispersed individuals.
people who joined the crowd.
■ Rosnow (1980) suggests that anxiety and
■ Crowds, although unstable and short- uncertainty are key triggers for rumor
lived, display consistent structures and transmission.
behavioral tendencies. McPhail (1991) has
documented the types of behaviors com- ■ The Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street
mon in such groups (e.g., movement, are examples of social movements.
position, manipulation, and gesticulation). Researchers have identified four types of
social movements: reformist, revolution-
4. Mobs include both positive and negative types ary, reactionary, and communitarian.
of crowds.
■ Political opportunity theory, resource
■ The emotional state of celebratory mobs, mobilization theory, and framing theory
including flash mobs, is generally very
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CROWDS AND COLLECTIVES 577
examine the political factors that influence ■ Studies of aggression in hooded college
the success of social movements. students (Zimbardo, 1969), Halloween
trick-or-treaters (Diener et al., 1976), and
■ Recent movements have made use of religious meetings support the basic model
information technologies, as described in (Newton & Mann, 1980).
Rheingold’s (2002) concept of a smart mob.
■ Diener (1980) suggests that the deindivid-
What theories explain collective behavior? uated state has two basic components—
reduced self-awareness (minimal self-
1. Le Bon (1895) maintained that crowds are consciousness, etc.) and altered experienc-
governed by a collective mind and that conta- ing (disturbances in concentration and
gion causes crowd members to experience judgment, etc.).
similar thoughts and emotions.
■ Deindividuation is most likely to generate
■ People tend to imitate each other, thereby negative outcomes when individuals are
increasing the likelihood that their actions part of a group and anonymous. However,
will become unified and coordinated in some cases deindividuation can lead to
(Blumer, 1957). positive, rather than negative, reactions.
■ Social network theory considers contagion 4. Turner and Killian’s (1972) emergent norm theory
to result from relatively common network argues that crowds often develop unique social
processes. As Gladwell (2000) points out, standards and that these atypical norms exert
some individuals in social networks (e.g., a powerful influence on behavior. The baiting
connectors) are more influential than are crowd, for example, forms when a group of
others. onlookers collectively urges someone to injure
him- or herself.
2. Convergence theories propose that the individuals
who join groups often possess similar needs and 5. Social identity theory suggests that much of the
personal characteristics. behavior of individuals in collectives can be
explained by basic identity mechanisms.
■ Involvement in social movements is related
to individuals’ personalities, sense of injus- ■ As Reicher (1996) notes, collective behav-
tice, self-efficacy, and identity. ior is often intergroup behavior, and so
individuals maximize their individual sense
■ Studies of relative deprivation, for example, of worth by identifying with the ingroup.
suggest that people whose attainments fall
below their expectations are more likely to ■ Work by Maslach (1972) and others indi-
join social movements. As Runciman cates that collective behavior in some cases
(1966) notes, individuals are more likely to represents an attempt to reestablish a sense
take collective action when they are of individuality.
experiencing fraternal deprivation rather than
egoistic deprivation. How different are collectives from other types of groups?
3. Zimbardo’s (1969) deindividuation theory 1. Recent analyses of crowds and collectives have
traces collective phenomena back to deindivi- questioned the “crowd-as-mad” assumption.
duation, which can be broken down into three Collectives differ from more routine groups in
components—inputs, internal changes, and degree rather than in kind.
behavioral outcomes. Inputs, or causes, of
deindividuation include feelings of anonymity, 2. Collectives, like groups in general, are often
reduced responsibility (diffusion of responsibil- misunderstood and mismanaged, but the field
ity), membership in large groups, and a of group dynamics offers a means of dispelling
heightened state of physiological arousal. this ignorance.
Copyright 2019 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
578 C H A P T E R 17
RESOURCES
Chapter Case: The Arab Spring systematically reviews theory and research
examining motivations for joining collec-
■ Liberation Square: Inside the Egyptian Revo- tive movements, and integrates that work
lution and the Rebirth of a Nation by Ashraf in a four-factor model based on unfairness,
Khalil (2011) provides a detailed, street- moral motivation, social identity, and
level view into the dynamics of Egypt’s instrumentality.
2011 revolutionary social movement.
■ “Deindividuation” by Russell Spears
Collective Behavior (2016) is a thorough analysis of the concept
of deindividuation, tracing it to its roots in
■ Outbreak! The Encyclopedia of Extraordinary the early crowd psychologies through the
Social Behavior by Hilary Evans and Robert classic studies in social psychology before
Bartholomew (2009) is a comprehensive and offering a theoretical synthesis based on the
well-researched analysis of all manner of social identity model of deindividuation
collective behavior that corrects many mis- effects (the SIDE model).
conceptions and myths about famous cases.
Collectives as Groups
■ The Power of Others: Peer Pressure, Group-
think, and How the People Around Us Shape ■ The Myth of the Madding Crowd by Clark
Everything We Do by Michael Bond (2014) McPhail (1991) expertly synthesizes prior
is a wide-ranging analysis of crowds, col- theoretical work on crowds with
lectives, contagion, and the continuing— McPhail’s field studies of actual crowds to
and primarily positive—impact of groups dispel many myths about crowds and
on their members. replace them with data-based
propositions.
Theoretical Perspectives
■ Mad Mobs and Englishmen? Myths and
■ “Collective Behavior: Crowds and Social Realities of the 2011 Riots by Steve Reicher
Movements” by Stanley Milgram and and Cliff Stott (2011) provides a theoreti-
Hans Toch (1969), although written nearly cally insightful description of the events
50 years ago, still offers fundamental leading up to the 2011 protests and riots in
insights into collective behavior. England, casting those events into a mod-
ern, crowd-as-group perspective.
■ “Psychological Processes in Social Action”
by Martijn van Zomeren (2015)
Copyright 2019 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
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