Group Psychology:

Lecture (Material from Freud, Bion, de Board)

February 20, 2001

Why examine the psychology of group phenomena in a course on health and human development?

Freud writes: "In the individual's mental life someone else is invariably involved, as a model, as an object, as a helper, as an opponent; and so from the very first individual psychology, in this extended but entirely justifiable sense of the words, is at the same time social psychology as well" (Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego, p.3).

Each person operates within groups. We have the larger group of the human race, then countries, races, religions, regions, schools, families, friends, seminars, study groups, and love relationships. Each of these is a group of a sort, and we all exist within the structure of such groups. Groups have the power to exercise decisive influence over the mental life of an individual.

There are times when an individual, previously described and understood according to her individual development, will operate in completely different ways, confounding what we know about her, because of a particular group in which she is a part. Thus, to really understand human nature, we cannot neglect the study of groups and the effects of groups on the individual.

5-10 minutes: Take a few minutes on a piece of paper to write down two groups of which you are currently a member. Reflect on how each group operates and if, while in that group, you feel you sometimes act 'differently' than you normally act

In this lecture, I am going to review some of the theorists who have contributed to our understanding of group psychology, and related these to individual psychology, and examine the concept which is at the root of all of these phenomena. To gather this information, I have used Freud, Bion, and de Board. As we go along, I will ask you some questions that you can apply to the groups that you have just described.

There are many theorists who have contributed to understanding of group psychology; I am going to review a few of them, and if there is time, I will go over more contributions.

Le Bon: the jumping off point for Freud. Wrote Psychologie Des Foules [1895]. Le Bon said: The most striking peculiarity presented by a psychological group is the following.

"Whoever be the individuals that compose it, however like or unlike be their mode of life, their occupations, their character, or their intelligence, the fact that they have been transformed into a group puts them in possession of a sort of collective mind which makes them feel, think, and act in a manner quite different from that in which each individual of them would feel, think, and act were he in a state of isolation.”

While le Bon described the process, he didn't really explain why groups were able to have such an effect on the individual. He said that people were influenced by suggestion. But Freud did not find this a satisfactory explanation. (In Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego)

Freud's question was : "What is the nature of mental change which groups force upon the individual?" His wrote that it was the libido, a form of love, that was the binding force that people experience in groups.

We call by that name the energy regarded as a quantitative magnitude (though not at present actually measurable), of those instincts which have to do with all that may be comprised under the word "love." The connection comes from the emotional ties that are expressions of libido (de Board, p,17).

Freud used as examples to describe his ideas the Army and the Church both artificial organizations which one may not leave without persecution. He writes that the same illusion holds each organization together, that there is a head who loves all in the group with an equal love. In the church, it is Christ. And in the army it is the commander in chief.

Two key concepts: Identification and transference.

Anyone tell me what you think these concepts are?

Identification is a concept that Freud introduced--in this process, the person wishing to be like the other person, "introjects' that person (the head of the organization) into his ego. This is the psychological process where the members of a group, wishing to identify with their leader, incorporate his ideas and attitudes and make them their own.

The other key notion that is critical in thinking about groups is Freud's notion of transference--that the love that we experienced as an infant, and is now gone, is renewed and found in current love relationships. Freud believed that at the heart of all relationships, there was transference--the notion that some of what was going on was a hope to retrieve the long lost and still longed for bliss of the oneness with mother. Transference happens in psychoanalysis. It also happens in the relationship within groups and in relationship to the leader of groups. The leader of a group can be loved, and when he or she disappoints us, will be reviled as no other. (Think of our country's response to Clinton's fall from grace--when he showed us to be no more extraordinary than any of the rest of us--and how viciously he was pursued.)

Five to ten minutes: In the groups which you wrote about before, can you describe the leaders, what qualities do they possess? Are these qualities that are exceptional? Are they qualities they have because they are in the position they are in?

Can you think of how people in the group relate to the leaders? If you think about it, do you feel that there is more emotion about the leader (boss, priest or religious leader, teacher, parent) than makes sense. Do other people treat the leader in ways that do not seem appropriate?

Can you think of some examples where individuals in groups take on the qualities of the leader? Does this occur in any of the groups you wrote down in which you are a part?

[Examples of this are also young girls following rock stars, boys in gangs, following and imitating the leader.]

Melanie Klein: describes how mental energy arises and is distributed. In her view, the infants only reality is the mother's breast and all feelings of the infant come from what the breast provides (all warmth, bliss, food, contentment) and doesn't provide (frustration, anger, hate.) Klein felt that if the mother provides loving care, then the infant can invest less energy into splitting off the bad feelings and can develop more loving feelings towards the mother.

Bion: a psychoanalyst from the Kleinian school, found that individual psychology is fundamentally group psychology. Behavior by one member of the group influences, and is influenced by, all other members. His work in psychiatric hospitals, and later at Tavistock in England led to his contributions to understanding how groups work.

Development of T-Groups (training) A Laboratory method of learning.

The purpose of these groups involved the development of human skills of behavior and the understand of the processes of human relations. There are three main goals of a T-Group:

1. To increase the ability to appreciate how others are reacting to one's own behavior

2. To increase the ability to gauge the state of relationships between others,

3. To increase the ability to carry out skillfully the behavior required by the situation.

The distinct way t-groups work is that they are led by leaders who do not lead, who instead put the responsibility for what happens in the group back onto the group itself. What tends to happen in such groups is that there is a strong transference behavior between the members of the group and the leader, and neurotic impulses of individuals who are members of the group tend to flourish--and you often learn much about yourself and about how others react towards you.

My experiences in the t-groups in which I was involved. Seattle t-group.

Five minutes: Think about some things you have learned about yourself from the groups in which you are a member. How do you react to other members, the leader, ways in which you are more outspoken, or quieter? Does the group accentuate qualities that you have?

Johari Window

Behavior known to Self-------------Unknown to selfà

Behavior

known

To

others

Public	Blind
Hidden	////////////////////////////// ///////////////////////////// ///////////////////////////// //////////////////////////// ///////////////////////////// ////////////////////////////

Bennis (1964) attempted to describe basic behaviors in any T-group.

In terms of the individual member of a T-group, there are two areas of internal uncertainty.

Dependence on Authority and Authority Figures:

Dependent Find comfort in rules and agenda and wish to rely on 'experts.' (conflicted)

Not conflicted

Counter-dependent Discomforted by authority (conflicted)

Interdependent --forms and deals with Personal relationships:

Over personal --feel they must establish and maintain a high degree of intimacy. (conflicted)

Not conflicted.

Counter personal--avoid intimacy (conflicted)

Three minutes: Do you fit in this chart in the two groups that you wrote down earlier? Can you identify others who fit into these patterns?

Bennis developed the following model for development of a T-Group

Phase 1--Dependence

a. Dependence--(Flight) Beginning of the group--anxiety--search for group goals and roles. Most behaviors are those which has been approved by authorities in the past--yet the common feeling is that the trainer is not telling them what to do.

b. Counter Dependent--(fight) The group feels that the trainer has failed them miserably and they become counter dependent. Subgroups emerge and trainer is bullied or ignored. Secret hope is that trainer has some plan out of the chaos, and the failure of the group is theirs, and not leaders.

c. Resolution--(catharsis). A most crucial and fragile phase, arising from the previous two stages. Bonds of mutual support and trainers words have made an impact. Independent members play a strong role and group is able to openly discuss and challenge the trainer's role and authority. Outcome is that the group achieves autonomy.

Phase 2--Interdependence

a. Enchantment--(flight) . Resolution of authority problem gives group a feeling of euphoria. All is wonderful yet rigid norms are set which attempt to prevent anything from destroying this apparent group harmony.

b. Disenchantment--(fight) Group now subdivides into the over-personals and counter-personals--those who want complete intimacy and those who reject intimacy. Intimacy breeds contempt. Anxiety arises from each individual that he might be rejected if his true self is revealed. Phase frequently revealed by absenteeism and boredom.

c. Consensual validation: the end of the group is approaching, strong pressures to resolve the interdependency problem and establish a method of role evaluation. Independents can cut through by requesting an evaluation of this role. Then fears of rejection are diminished when tested against reality. Then accept on another's differences without categorizing them as either good or bad, and genuine understanding and communication can take place.

In your seminar: if it were a classic t-group, where would your group be in this model?

Bion: A practicing psychoanalyst of the Kleinian school published work between 1943 and 1952 that has contributed greatly to the development of the study of groups.

His findings:

1. Individual psychology is fundamentally group psychology. Behavior by one member of the group influences and is influenced by, all the other members.

2. The rational working of the group is profoundly affected by the emotions and irrational feelings of its members. The full potential of the group is only released when this fact is recognized and dealt with.

3. Administrative and managerial problems are simultaneously personal and interpersonal problems expressed in organizational terms.

4. The group develops when it learns by experience in gaining greater contract with reality.

What Bion did was treat the entire T-group as a patient--he was the psychoanalyst, in the Kleinian school. He had no agenda, and basically treated the group as a whole. He came to recognize over time, and treating many T-groups, that there were certain behaviors that groups fall into--certain assumptions that are both unspoken and unconscious and are the basis for the behavior in the group. The states of the group are emotional states, and the group is operating under basic assumptions which can change over a meeting, or remain in sway over a period of weeks.

Even though most groups get together in order to ideally get some work done, in many cases groups find many ways not to accomplish anything. Instead, they become opportunities for the members of the group to work out all kinds of psychological issues that have nothing to do with the point of the group and in fact prevent work from being done. Only when the psychological issues are resolved, can the group become a true work group.

Bion learned that there are three ways groups can avoid doing work and stay out of touch with reality. He labeled these modes of dependency, pairing, and fight or flight. Any group can be in one of these modes, or in a work mode, at any time, and can move from one mode to another.

1. Dependency is when the group adopts a sense that the leader is the sole source of knowledge and the members of the group are immature, don't have the answers, and essentially need only to wait for the answers to their problems will appear. The leader ins such a group cannot live up to the high expectations of the group, inevitably fails, and the group will then pick a new leader, often the least able to lead, who also fails, and then the group goes back to the first leader.

2. Pairing: The pairing assumption group behaves as if two people can pair off and create a new, as yet unborn, leader, a Messiah will be born to deliver them from their anxieties and fears. Such groups are characterized by in depth conversations between two of the members, who unconsciously hope for some wonderful outcome from this discussion.

3. Fight or Flight. In this mode of behavior, the group acts as if the purpose of the group is to fight something or run away from it. "If the group is pre-occupied with this basic assumption, it will ignore all other activities or, failing this, it will attempt to suppress or run away from them. The leader in such a group is a complete creation of the group, and is expected to recognized danger and enemies. The groups activities are focused on these fantasies and reality is not tested or kept at bay. Otherwise, "the group would have to deal with the frightening realization that the enemy that threatens them is not outside the group, but within.

The work group is a group that functions to actually get work accomplished. All groups ostensibly have work to do. In order to achieve their goals, a group has to cooperate, sometimes organize administratively. Members realize that they need to deal and develop their skills before they contribute, and understand that by taking part in the group, they can develop these skills. A work group mode results in growth and development, and the basic assumption group mode stagnates and regresses. The work group is an open system, working to balance ideas within the group from those without--basic assumption modes are closed systems, ignoring reality and defending themselves against it.

Five minutes: Can you identify some of these behaviors in the two groups you are in?

DeBoard, the author of a wonderful little book call the Psychoanalysis of Organizations, gives an excellent review of various the theories of groups and group dynamics, and then contributes his own view of how he believes they are all connected.

De Board's contribution to understanding group functioning is the use the idea of mental energy as the underlying concept of all that we understand about how groups behave.

The basic notion behind these theories is the idea of Mental Energy.

Mental energy: Mental energy powers the psychic apparatus; the part of the mind that processes information received through the sense and that then results in physical activity…A memory, a perception, or an idea only gains significance for an individual when the psychic apparatus invest it with a charge of energy. This concept of mental energy is central to Freud's dynamic theory of personality and is called cathexis. When an idea or memory is cathected, it is energized and has the power and drive to affect behavior either immediately or in the future.

[There was a study done by Zeigartnik, who worked with the famous psychologist Lewin. She asked groups of people to do a series of tasks, memorizing words, putting together small objects in patterns. Some of the tasks were interrupted and left unfinished, and other were allowed to be completed. When she recalled the groups weeks later, she found that the tasks that people remembered were the ones which they had not been allowed to complete--and the results were striking. De Board would say that the tasks left undone were cathected, had mental energy, that kept them in mind. This could also explain how, as we were hearing about altzheimers patients, that memories often retained are ones that were not completed in their lives. So this is the notion of cathexis.]

Daniel's spelling bee: he still remembers the word that he missed--and always will--but has no memory of the words he got right. And how many of you remember something that you got wrong on a test, or an experience that you felt was unresolved in some way, and go over it and over it. This is a memory that is cathected.

There is a finite amount of mental energy available, and if a great deal of energy is used on one thing, there is less for other things. For example, if there is a memory that is considered painful or dangerous, it may be cathected but be repressed into the unconscious, where it is out of conscious awareness. However, it takes much energy to keep this notion repressed, leaving less mental energy for whatever task is at hand. If there are a great number of ideas that are being suppressed, the person can behave in ways where he is clearly unable to cope with everyday stresses.

Can you think of some examples of this kind of thinking?

Mature adults who can cope in the world are ones who can interact in the world and with people. However, there are times when the environment presents problems for the individual, and people develop survival mechanisms to deal with threats.

Anxiety can develop in the face of real or imagined dangers--and when experiencing anxiety, the person tries to rid himself of the threat. If it is an external threat, the person will avoid the danger or overcome the danger. However if the threat perceived comes from within, there are other ways of dealing with this kind of threat. Freud called this neurotic anxiety, and the techniques for dealing with these are called ego defenses. The threats from within are changed around to become threats from without--but all this takes a great deal of mental energy--and does not allow the person the energy needed for continued development.

PROJECTION: a common defense against internal anxiety. "I Hate You" which produces much anxiety, is turned into "You hate me"--which now is externalized and can be dealt with.

While this reduces the anxiety in the moment, the sense of anxiety remains, and mental energy is used up in the process.

In Lord of the Flies, there is a "creature" that the boys blame for all kinds of events, and put a great deal of energy into pleasing that creature, who, when reality is faced, is nothing very terrifying at all.

In order for the situation to be truly resolved, the real cause of the anxiety must be determined--this requires self knowledge and a strong ego.

Phobias are an example of individual projection. The object of the fear: spiders, mice, fish, bats, snakes, take up the mental energy of the person--and the real reason for the fear, whatever it may be, is not acknowledged until, like the character in Lord of the Flies to unveils the "creature," reality finally intrudes and shines the light onto the creature that holds such fear. When that happens, the phobia will no longer hold power over the individual.

In real work situations, sometimes a person will create such projections in response to their own anxiety--and there are some work situations that increase the level of anxiety by the nature of the way they are organized. The more threatening the external situation, the more likely a person will resort to projection (de Board, p.134).

It should be the goal of work environments to create spaces where people can be relaxed and comfortable and where mental energy can be used to accomplish the work, and not be spent in fighting real or perceived dangers. "Otherwise groups and even the total organization can resort to projection and water their energy in aggression and hostility."

With Bion's notion of groups, when the group is working effectively, all its energy is dealing with the task at hand--the group is engaging in reality, the pressures of the environment, and the problems of individuals working cooperatively with each other. When the group feels threatened, anxiety causes it to withdraw energy form the task at hand and it must use its energy to defend itself against these anxieties--it moves into the basic assumption modes of dependency, fight/flight, or pairing. Now, no work can be done and no development can take place.

When an individual is weakened when it has to defend against anxieties, so a group is weakened when it moves into one of these basic assumptions.

Why it is so difficult to change organizations, or groups, or any relationship, is that certain defense systems are in place that help the individuals deal with the relationship, group or system. Change means challenging these defenses, restructuring the patterns, coming into a serious form of disequalibrium which increases anxieties, making individuals more tense and more vulnerable. A change means leaving the old and familiar system which has worked so far and moving into a new system, with new power arrangements, and requiring the establishments of new social defense sytems.

We can see this happening with the Gen Ed DTF at Evergreen. There is much resistance to changing a system that is seen as working: comments I have heard from older faculty are: “at least I will be retiring.”

"Unless people have the opportunity to participate in the changes they will not be able to influence the formation of new social systems and the result will be an increase in suspicion, hostility, and aggression."

The concept of mental energy is one which must be understood when we are thinking about individual development or group processes. Mental energy is the driver of all that is creative in people and the more we are able to be aware of our own psychic issues, and in groups, to face the problems of groups head on and resolve conflict, the mental energy that is available to solve problems will instead be used to keep the fears at bay, and things will remain static.