This assignment will give you experience observing and interacting with people o

This assignment will
give you experience observing and interacting with people outside of the classroom. It has
been designed to provide you with the opportunity to develop skills, synthesize
knowledge, and integrate learning in a real-world setting. This goal is
accomplished by challenging you to
physically attend and observe a group.
Note: Social and family events, religious services,
classes, court proceedings, lectures, and sporting events are not acceptable
events for the purpose of this assignment.
Purpose: To provide
you with an opportunity to experience a group setting and analyze how the
presence of others substantially influences the behaviors of its members
through social facilitation.
Observe a group discussing a topic of
interest, such as a focus group, a community public assembly, a department
meeting at your workplace, or local support group.
Study how the group members interact
and influence one another.
Analyze how the group behaviors and
communication patterns influence social facilitation.
Integrate your findings with
evidence-based literature from journal articles, the course text, and
additional scholarly sources. The literature
should be about group patterns, not about the content of the meeting.
Process: You will
participate as a guest at an interest group meeting in your community to gather
data for a qualitative research paper. Once you have located an interest group,
contact stakeholders, and explain the purpose of your inquiry. After you
receive permission to participate, you will schedule a date to attend the
meeting; at which time you will observe the members and document the following
for your analysis:
·
How were the people arranged in the
physical environment (layout of room and seating arrangement)?
a.
·
What
is the composition of the group, in terms of number of people, age, sex,
ethnicity, and so on?
·
What are the group’s purpose, mission, and goals?
·
What
is the duration of the group (short- or long-term)? Explain.
·
Did
the group structure its discussion around an agenda, program, or rules of order?
·
Describe
the structure of the group. How is the group organized?
·
Who
are the primary facilitators of the group?
·
What subject or issues did the group
members examine during the meeting?
·
What types of information did members
exchange in their group?
·
What
were the group’s norms, roles, status hierarchy, or communication patterns?
·
What
communication patterns illustrated if the group was unified or fragmented?
Explain.
·
Did
the members share a sense of identity with one another (characteristics of the
group, similarities, interests, philosophy, and so on)?
·
Was
there any indication that members might be vulnerable to groupthink? Why or why
not?
·
In your opinion, how
did the collective group behaviors influence individual attitudes and the
group’s effectiveness? Provide your overall analysis.
Write a 1,050- to 1,400-word
paper incorporating your analysis with evidence to substantiate your
conclusion.