The Effect of Situational Factors on Collective & Crowd Behaviour (OCR GCSE Psychology): Revision Note

Collective and crowd behaviour

• People often behave differently in groups or crowds than they do when alone

• These changes in behaviour can be explained by situational factors, such as:

  • the presence of others

  • deindividuation

  • cultural influences

• Collective behaviour refers to the actions of two or more individuals acting together for a common purpose

  • When individuals become part of a crowd, their behaviour can be strongly influenced by others around them

• Le Bon (1896) argued that people in crowds lose their sense of self, responsibility, and morality — behaving instinctively as part of a group mentality

  • This can lead to impulsive or aggressive actions that individuals would not usually consider when alone

• However, Reicher (1984) suggested a more positive explanation

• He proposed that crowds act based on a shared social identity — a common background, culture, or purpose

  • E.g. during the 1980 St Paul’s riots, Reicher found that while rioters attacked police cars (the 'out-group'), they avoided harming local residents or damaging small businesses (the 'in-group')

• This shows that crowd behaviour can still be controlled and purposeful rather than purely chaotic

Deindividuation

• Deindividuation occurs when people in a crowd lose their sense of individuality and personal responsibility

  • This can make them feel anonymous and less accountable for their actions

• As a result, they may act in ways they normally wouldn’t when they are on their own

  • E.g. being more aggressive or destructive than normal

• Situational triggers for deindividuation include:

  • large crowds: make individuals feel anonymous and harder to identify

  • uniforms, masks or similar clothing: reduce self-awareness and increase feelings of belonging to the group

  • heightened emotions: excitement or anger can spread quickly through the crowd

• Prentice-Dunn and Rogers (1989) suggested that when people lose self-awareness, they also stop worrying about consequences

  • This can lead to anti-social acts like vandalism or violence

• However, deindividuation doesn’t always lead to negative outcomes

• In some cases, it can result in pro-social behaviour, such as helping others during emergencies when people act together with a shared purpose

Culture on pro-social & anti-social behaviour

• Cultural factors also influence how people behave in groups

  • Psychologists often compare collectivist and individualist cultures to explain differences in crowd and collective behaviour

• Collectivist cultures (e.g. Mexico, Kenya, the Philippines):

  • emphasise the needs of the group over the individual

  • encourage cooperation, sharing, and helping others

  • are associated with higher levels of pro-social behaviour

    • e.g. altruism and helping family or community members

• Individualist cultures (e.g. the USA, UK):

  • focus on personal success and independence

  • may show less group-oriented behaviour and lower levels of pro-social acts

  • are sometimes associated with more anti-social behaviour

    • e.g. when competition or inequality is high

• Research by Whiting and Whiting (1975) found that children raised in collectivist cultures were more pro-social than those in individualist cultures

  • Kenyan children helped more with household chores and looked after younger siblings compared to American children

• Moghaddam (1993) found that people raised in communal environments, such as a kibbutz, were more likely to help others and share resources

  • Nadler (1986) found that children brought up on a Kibbutz were much more likely to give help to others compared to children brought up in a city environment

• In contrast, the 2010 Gallup World Poll and Piotrowska et al. (2015) found that countries with high income inequality tend to have higher levels of anti-social behaviour

• This suggests that social inequality is a situational factor that can increase frustration and reduce social cooperation