Group integrity

 

Meaning and characteristics of group integrity:

According to Festinger (1950), “Group integrity is the result of all the forces that compel members to remain in the group.”

According to Lindgren (1979), "The attraction that a group develops for its members is called its integrity."

According to Lindjay and Aronson (1975), "Integration refers to those forces which bind the various elements of a group together and which thus prevent disintegrative effects."

Analysis of the above definitions reveals the following characteristics of group integrity-

1.    The main characteristic of group integrity is attraction or attractiveness. The extent to which a group is able to attract its members, it is considered holistic.

2. The effectiveness of group integrity remains as long as collective forces prevail. When the collective strength becomes weak, the integrity of the group starts decreasing.

3. The characteristic of loyalty is found in the group as a whole. This means that an entire group remains very loyal towards its members.

4. High level of group integrity brings a feeling of satisfaction among the group members.

5. One characteristic of group integrity is high group productivity.

6. When there is more integrity in the group, the group members not only have favourable attitude towards the group goal but also achieve it in less time.

7. When group integrity is high, group morale is also high.

Determinants or factors of group integrity:

The determinants of group integrity include those factors or variables that have an impact on group integrity. The totality of the group increases or decreases. Description of some such determinants

1.  Group size: The size of a group directly affects the integrity of that group. Studies have shown that integrity is greater in small groups than in large groups. The reason is that the members of a small group are in direct contact with each other and interact more, which increases their understanding among themselves and as a result, the integrity of that group also increases.

2. Group composition: Group composition also affects group integrity in various dimensions. Group composition means what type of members structure the group. It has been observed that when a group is composed of members who are not affiliated with any other group, high integrity is found in such a group. Kurt Lewin (1948) has confirmed this experimentally.

3. Satisfaction of needs- Satisfaction of the needs of group members has a deep impact on group integrity. There are two types of members in any group – effective or important members and ineffective or ordinary members. The role of effective and important members is more important for the group than the role of ineffective and secondary members. As a result, the group fulfils most of the needs of the dominant members and the essential needs of the ordinary members. In this way the group does not fulfil the needs of its members equally but in a differentiated manner. When this differentiation is more, then the integrity of the group is low. On the other hand, when this difference is less, that is, most of the needs of both types of members in the group are fulfilled, then the integrity of that group is high.

4. Group actions- Group actions are also an important factor affecting group integrity. In a study by Hackman and Oldman (1976), when employees' tasks, activities, and responsibilities were increased, these employees began to experience their work as more attractive, which increased cohesiveness in the group. It has also been observed in some other studies that the more group related activities are done at the collective level, the more the group members participate in the group, as a result, the attraction in the group increases and the integrity of the group increases.

5. Group leadership system- This is a significant factor affecting the integrity of the group. Lippitt and White (1943) conducted an experiment on boys of a club to see the effects of three types of leadership systems, namely, authoritarian, democratic and laissez-faire, on group integrity. They found that the group with a democratic leadership system was the most inclusive. Cartwright (1968) also found similar results.

6. Attractiveness among members-Attractiveness among group members is a variable which has been seen to have a direct impact on the integrity of the group. When group members remain attractive, integrity is maintained in the group. On the contrary, as the mutual attraction of the members decreases, the integrity of the group starts decreasing. In this context, Festinger and Kelly (1951) conducted a study on a group of tenants whose group integrity was quite low. The reason for low group cohesion in these was that the tenants considered each other to be of lower and weaker class due to lack of mutual liking and attraction, that is, they did not have mutual interaction between them. This experiment result clearly indicates that the attractiveness of group members is an important determining element or factor of group integrity.

7. Motivation –To a large extent, group cohesion depends on the motivation or ability of group members to work together to achieve that goal. In the studies conducted in this direction, it has been observed that when the motivation among the group members is high towards the group's goal, then they always try to fulfil the group's goal. In this stage, group integrity remains high. On the other hand, when there is absence or lack of such motivation among the members, then the members of the group are not enthusiastic towards achieving the goals or targets. In this stage group integrity becomes low.