What is Group Cohesion?

@StarJo – Group psychology is funny like that. When something suddenly comes along to question the talent or authenticity of the group, everyone feels the need to defend what was previously coming unglued.

I also believe that groups of people who go through something traumatic together have a greater cohesion rate than those who don't. Many groups are founded after people in a community go through something tragic, like a tornado or a shooting. These people have something in common, and it is something that has affected them so deeply that they may never get over it.

In this case, the group sticks together for mutual support. They all share an understanding of what happened, and this isn't something that anyone who hasn't lived through the tragedy can say.

I definitely agree that competition leads to group cohesiveness. I know this because the dance group I joined in high school was on the verge of falling apart until a rival group started up and challenged us.

We were suddenly determined to keep our good name, and we started working harder than ever before on our routines. We practiced so much, and we all had a sense of loyalty and belonging to the group.

If a group has good communication when it forms, this usually means it has a better chance of lasting. I have been in several music groups, and the ones that lasted longest were the ones that had a common goal in mind.

The bands in which a few members wanted success at the cost of family, jobs, and friends were the ones that fell apart. It is really difficult for all members to give up everything for something that may not even happen.

The groups that stuck were the ones in which everyone just wanted to play for fun and for a little extra money. We all talked before we formed, and none of us wanted to travel far and be away from family or our jobs.

Groups put together by a boss in a workplace have no choice but to stay together. This doesn't mean that things will go smoothly, but it does mean that every person in the group knows that leaving is not an option, so the cohesion is strong.

It is believed that differences add flavor to social cohesion once the group members are willing to see the greater good out of diversity. This can create different and more creative means of achieving the set goals of the group.

@ShadowGenius

Nevertheless, if a group does not hold to a common goal it will not function. Diversity is good, but when people do not have a common desire or plan, there is really no purpose in being in the same group or working together.

While people with similar appearance, gender, and beliefs, may seem to hold together more easily, these are not the types of groups which foster growth. Growth and new life is attained by a conscious choice to work toward mutuality in the midst of stark difference. This is redemption in action. The most fundamental of such belabored cohesion would be marriage. When a man and women (diverse people) come together, they create new life, and a group of different people who are nevertheless bound together by familial ties. This is group cohesion at its most basic form, and should help us to recognize the vital importance of variety in any group.

There are some unique axioms for group cohesion which tend to transcend diverse cultural and demographic differences. Probably the biggest of these would be a common belief in a central truth, which would override all other topics of debate as a general life goal. This is the gospel, the message of Christ, which brings people together from all backgrounds and walks of life in a beautiful mosaic of unity in diversity.