March 11, 2016
Blog IV "Group Think & The Herd Mentality"
One of the most fascinating phenomenas in human psychology is the concept of group think. I was first introduced to the term through experiene rather than from academia so it will forever be ingrained and etched in my understanding. "Group think", is defined as an phenomena within a group of people in which the desire for harmony or conformity results in irrational or dysfunctional descion making. In practical terms, it is when you shut down your abiity to reason or 'think' on your own because you don't want to "rock the boat" or the status quo. When I was a sophmore in College, I had joined a particular group that I thought would provide spirtual enlightment. One day, I walked away feeling perplexed and unsettled and asked myself "why"? When I spoke to the group leader, questions were discouraged and group members were encouraged to refocus on their experience rather than seeking understanding. This response added to my discomfort. The first law of nature is self-preservation and I felt uncomfortable enough to know that that particular group was not for me.
That year I immersed myself in studying cults and discovered that religious cults carried a trifecta of common threads; mind-control, group think and emotional contagion that transcends culture, race and class. I studied the lives of cult leaders that led people to their demise like; David Koresh, Jim Jones, and Shoko Asahara and discovered that these "leaders" were able to convince people to do horrendous acts because they denied their own intuituion and sought confirmation from the group rather than listening to their own voice of reason. I was astonished when I discovered that some of the group members were high-functioning doctors, scientists and individuals that denied their personal truth because they were enmeshed in an unhealthy group dynamic. When I studied closely, each group leader had a kernel of truth and were very charasmatic but some of their actions were incongruent to the message that they taught. Jim Jones, of the "People's Temple" used a mixture of faith and a social gospel that was appealing to the masses. He encouraged social justice and racial equality and was a friend to Mayor's and political leaders. He gave a message of hope and equality but he would often engage in public acts of humilation towards group members as a display of total allegiance. Incongruence of behaviors and any type of harm or humilation to another is always good enough reason to disengage from a group.
Studies like this caused me early on to interalize the importance of being aware gut feelings and out of this understanding was birthed a very intuituve spirit. Gavin De Becker the author of "The Gift of Fear" stated that "Intuition is a human resource. The root word 'Inter' means to guard and protect." In the book De Becker shares vignettes of how some types of 'fear' are instinctive warning signals informing you that "something is not right" and encouraged people to listen to their gut and not ignore this very primitive and neccessary instinct. What is the antithesis of group think? I'm glad that you asked... Self-acceptance and self-awareness are the double edged sword that can prevent you from being sucked into 'herd mentality' of any kind. If you are comfortable with yourself as a person, then you will not need the approval of others in order to thrive. Also, in order to manuever safely in this world, being aware of your internal compass and trusting your intuition will help you to guide yourself safely. Be mindful that emotions can be 'contagious', and that even though a particular group or crowd may feel that something is 'amazing', if your intution is showing you otherwise... Listen to yourself.
Three key ingridents that should always be considered; 1) It is "ok" to not always agree with the masses... Ask yourself the question "why" you may feel a certain way and explore that feeling. 2) Questions from group leaders should be welcomed and not discouraged in an appropriate setting. 3) Others should respect your boundaries. The word "No." is also a complete sentence. If your "No" is being violated then you may want to consider a group that is a more ideal fit for you. If you struggle with boundary setting and would like to add to your personal library information that would add to your personal insight please check out: "Safe People" or "Boundaries" by Dr. Henry Cloud & Dr. John Townsed and/or "The Gift of Fear" by Gavin De Becker.
"To good health..."
~Fayola