Inter-group relations have a great impact on the actions

Inter-Group Relations

Inter-group relations have a great impact on the actions that people partake in each day. Everyone belongs to many different groups; your race, gender, favorite sports team, your college, even the place you were born are all examples of groups. When first asked to think of groups and hierarchies many of us may look to demographic affiliations like race, ethnic group, or gender. But their are many other ways that we affiliate ourselves. This is an example of how in-group and out-group relations work. As our text makes clear, an in-group is a social group to which a person identifies as being a member. By contrast, an out-group is a social group with which an individual does not identify.

This week we will be looking at the dynamics of in-groups and out-groups in our lives. One way to understand this is to think back to middle or even high school. Remember those days when the most important part of your day was not to get a good grade on a test, but rather to get a compliment from the coolest person in school. Remember spending hours choosing outfits in order to find something that would set you apart and bring positive attention?

Check out this clip from the movie Mean Girls as a way to remind you of how the cliques (in and out groups) interacted in High School

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRteokw7m80&t=10s

Though we can laugh (or cringe) at these stereotypical portrayals, they are more accurate then we'd like to think. In addition, many of us believe that we moved beyond these kinds of dynamics as adults. But, if you think of your relationships at work, school, your social life -- even your family -- I think you will agree that we find ourselves in the midst of cliques and in and out groups, even today.

For this week's discussion, I'd like you to talk about the in-groups and out-groups in you own life -- past or present. Though you can talk about your past, I'd be more interested in your take on how these dynamics play out in your current situation.

PROMPT Options: Choose one (1) of the two prompts to answer this week:

Prompt A. Describe life inside your in-group. What unifies or binds you together? What, if any, rules or expectations do you follow together?

OR

Prompt B. Describe an experience you have had as an member of an out-group. What does it feel like to be on the outside looking in? What measures have you taken to try affiliate with the in-group?