Discontinuity effect
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The discontinuity effect is known as the tendency for the competitiveness displayed between different, interacting groups to be out of proportion and markedly greater to the competitiveness displayed between interacting individuals.[1] Given that group competition over scarce resources is believed to lead to group-level conflict (see, realistic group conflict theory), it has been asserted that the link between competition and conflict is also considerably more powerful between groups than between individuals.[1] Although individual group members may been cooperative in nature, once individuals join together to make collective unit, individual orientations favoring cooperation tend to be overshadowed by competitive orientations of the group.[2]
Causes
The discontinuity effect is believed to emerge from several different causes that ultimately combine to intensify inter-group conflict.[3] First of all, when individuals congregate to form groups, they typically become more greedy. This change in disposition develops as group members realize they are in competition with others to achieve group-level gains.[3] Secondly, people tend to fear aggregations of individuals (i.e., groups) more than they fear individuals in singularity. Thirdly, group members sometimes feel pressure to maintain a sense of group duty. Fourthly, diffusion of responsibility is believed to contribute to the discontinuity effect. Individual group members generally feel that they are not entirely responsible for their own personal actions while their actions are carried out in a group setting. .<ref>Meier, B. P., & Hinsz, V. B. (2004).
See also
References
- ^ a b Forsyth, D. R. (2009). Group dynamics (5th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.
- ^ Wildschut, T., Pinter, B., Vevea, J. L., Insko, C. A., & Schopler, J. (2003). Beyond the group mind: A quantitative review of the interindividual intergroup discontinuity effect. Psychological Bulletin, 129, 698–722.
- ^ a b Pinter, B., Insko, C. A., Wildschut, T., Kirchner, J. L., Montoya, R. M., & Wolf, S. T.(2007). Reduction of interindividual–intergroup discontinuity: The role of leader accountability and proneness to guilt. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,93, 250-265.