NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Psychology Chapter 7: Social Influence and Group Processes (NCERT 2026–27)
These Class 12 Psychology Chapter 7 solutions cover Social Influence and Group Processes from the NCERT Psychology textbook for the 2026–27 session. The chapter explains the nature and types of groups, how groups are formed through Tuckman’s stages, and how groups influence individual behaviour through social facilitation, social loafing and group polarisation. Below you will find clear answers to all five NCERT Review Questions (reproduced verbatim), plus key terms, extra practice, MCQs, Assertion–Reason questions and FAQs written in CBSE exam-ready style.
Class: 12Subject: PsychologyChapter: 7Chapter Name: Social Influence and Group ProcessesExercise: Review QuestionsSession: 2026–27
Chapter 7, Social Influence and Group Processes, examines how we live our lives within groups and how those groups shape who we are. A group is an organised system of two or more interacting, interdependent individuals who share common motives, role relationships and norms — this is what makes a family or a class different from a mere crowd or audience. The chapter explains why people join groups (security, status, self-esteem, satisfaction of social needs, goal achievement, and knowledge), how groups form through proximity, similarity and common goals, and how they develop through Tuckman’s five stages — forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. It describes the elements of group structure (roles, norms, status, cohesiveness) and the major types of groups — primary/secondary, formal/informal, and ingroup/outgroup. Finally it shows how the presence of others affects behaviour through social facilitation, social loafing and group polarisation, while warning about the dangers of groupthink in highly cohesive groups.
Key Terms & Concepts
Group: an organised system of two or more individuals who are interacting and interdependent, who have common motives and goals, a set of role relationships, and norms that regulate the behaviour of members.
Crowd, audience & mob: a crowd is a chance collection of people with no structure or belongingness; an audience assembles for a special purpose and is generally passive; a mob is an audience turned active, marked by a definite purpose, polarised attention, homogeneity of thought and impulsivity.
Team: a special kind of group whose members have complementary skills, a common goal and mutual accountability, producing positive synergy through coordinated effort.
Why people join groups: security, status, self-esteem, satisfaction of psychological and social needs, goal achievement, and the provision of knowledge and information.
Conditions of group formation: proximity (repeated contact), similarity (shared interests, attitudes and values), and common motives and goals.
Tuckman’s stages: forming (uncertainty, getting acquainted), storming (intragroup conflict over goals and leadership), norming (developing norms and group identity), performing (working towards the goal), and adjourning (disbanding after the task).
Elements of group structure:roles (socially defined expectations of behaviour), norms (the group’s ‘unspoken rules’), status (relative social position, ascribed or achieved), and cohesiveness (togetherness, the ‘we feeling’).
Types of groups: primary (pre-existing, face-to-face, e.g. family) and secondary (joined by choice, impersonal, e.g. a political party); formal (explicit rules and roles) and informal (close relationships, no formal rules); ingroup (‘we’) and outgroup (‘they’).
Groupthink: Irving Janis’ term for the tendency of a highly cohesive group to prize unanimity so much that it overrides realistic appraisal of alternatives, leading to irrational and uncritical decisions.
Social facilitation: the enhancement of an individual’s performance, on tasks they are already good at, due to the arousal caused by the presence of others when their efforts are individually evaluated.
Social loafing: a reduction in individual effort when working on a collective task in which outputs are pooled (e.g. tug-of-war), so contributions cannot be individually identified.
Group polarisation: the strengthening of a group’s initial position as a result of group discussion, leading groups to take more extreme decisions than individuals alone.
“Review Questions” — Full Solutions
All questions below are reproduced verbatim from the NCERT textbook’s end-of-chapter Review Questions section. Answers are original, written in exam-ready style.
1. Compare and contrast formal and informal groups, and ingroups and outgroups.
ANSWERFormal vs informal groups: These two types differ in the degree to which the functions of the group are stated explicitly and formally.A formal group is formed on the basis of specific rules or laws. Its functions and the roles to be performed by members are stated explicitly, and there is a definite set of norms that establishes order. Members have clearly defined roles. An office organisation or a university is an example of a formal group.An informal group is not based on rules or laws. The roles are not explicitly stated, and there is a close, warm relationship among the members. A group of friends is an example of an informal group.Ingroup vs outgroup: Just as individuals compare themselves with others, they also compare the group they belong to with groups of which they are not members.The ingroup refers to one’s own group, for which we use the word ‘we’. Members of the ingroup are generally supposed to be similar, are viewed favourably, and are seen as having desirable traits.The outgroup refers to another group, for which we use the word ‘they’. Outgroup members are viewed differently and are often perceived negatively in comparison to ingroup members.Common thread: Both pairs are ways of categorising people. By labelling groups formal/informal we focus on structure and rules, while by labelling them ingroup/outgroup we focus on belongingness and the ‘we–they’ distinction. In both cases the categories help us understand how membership shapes behaviour and perception.
2. Are you a member of a certain group? Discuss what motivated you to join that group.
ANSWERThis is a reflective question, so answers will vary; write honestly about a group you actually belong to. A model answer: I am a member of the science club in my school, which I joined out of choice (making it a secondary group).Several of the reasons identified in the chapter motivated me to join. The club gives me a sense of security and comfort, because I am no longer working alone on projects. It gives me status and recognition, since the club is respected in the school and being a member makes me feel proud. It raises my self-esteem by giving me a positive social identity as someone interested in science.The club also satisfies my psychological and social needs — a sense of belongingness, friendship and shared attention. It allows goal achievement, because together we organise exhibitions and experiments that I could never complete alone. Finally, it provides knowledge and information, broadening my understanding through discussion with members who know things I do not. (Your own group and reasons are equally acceptable.)
3. How does Tuckman’s stage model help you to understand the formation of groups?
ANSWERTuckman suggested that groups, like everything else in life, develop over time and pass through five developmental sequences. His model helps us understand that we do not become a group the moment we come together; group formation is a process.1. Forming: When members first meet, there is great uncertainty about the group, its goal and how it is to be achieved. People try to know each other and assess whether they will fit in. There is excitement as well as apprehension.2. Storming: This is a stage of intragroup conflict. Members disagree about how the group’s target is to be achieved, who is to control the group and its resources, and who is to perform which task. When the conflict is resolved, a hierarchy of leadership and a clear vision emerge.3. Norming: Members develop norms related to group behaviour. This leads to the development of a positive group identity.4. Performing: By this stage the structure of the group has evolved and is accepted by members, and the group moves towards achieving its goal. For some groups, this is the last stage.5. Adjourning: For groups formed for a specific purpose (such as organising a school function), once the task is over the group may be disbanded.Usefulness: The model helps us anticipate the conflict and uncertainty that are natural early in a group’s life, and to see them as stages that can be worked through towards effective performance. However, Tuckman also reminds us that not all groups proceed neatly from one stage to the next — sometimes several stages occur at once, groups may move back and forth, or they may skip stages altogether.
4. How do groups influence our behaviour?
ANSWERGroups are powerful because they are able to influence the behaviour of individuals. The chapter discusses three important ways in which the presence of a group changes how a person behaves.Social facilitation: The mere presence of others creates arousal, which can enhance performance on tasks a person is already good at, provided their efforts are individually evaluated. For example, a trained athlete often performs better before a watching crowd.Social loafing: When individual efforts are pooled into a collective task and cannot be separately identified (as in tug-of-war), people tend to work less hard than when performing alone. This happens because members feel less responsible, expect their contribution not to be evaluated, and may become free riders.Group polarisation: When a group discusses an issue, its initial position tends to become stronger, so groups often take more extreme decisions than individuals would alone. This happens because members hear new supporting arguments, experience a bandwagon effect, and identify more strongly with the ingroup.Other influences: Through norms and roles, groups also tell us how we ought to behave, and through cohesiveness they make us think, feel and act as a social unit. In extremely cohesive groups this influence can produce groupthink, where the desire for unanimity overrides realistic judgement. Thus groups influence us in both positive and negative ways.
5. How can you reduce social loafing in groups? Think of any two incidents of social loafing in school. How did you overcome it?
ANSWERWays to reduce social loafing: Social loafing can be reduced by — (i) making the efforts of each person identifiable; (ii) increasing the pressure to work hard by making members committed to successful task performance; (iii) increasing the apparent importance or value of the task; (iv) making people feel that their individual contribution is important; and (v) strengthening group cohesiveness, which increases the motivation for a successful group outcome.Two incidents in school (model answer; your own examples are accepted):Incident 1 — Group science project: In a group of six assigned to make a working model, two members did almost no work because no one could tell who had done what. We overcame this by making each person’s effort identifiable — we divided the project into clearly named parts (circuit, chart, write-up, presentation), and the teacher evaluated each part separately. Once contributions could be seen, everyone worked harder.Incident 2 — Classroom cleanliness drive: During a whole-class cleaning task, many students relaxed and let a few do the work. We overcame this by raising the importance of the task (it was linked to a school competition) and strengthening cohesiveness — small teams were given specific areas and a shared reward, so each member felt their contribution mattered to the group’s success.
Extra Practice Questions
Short Answer Type Questions
Q1. Define a group and state any two of its salient characteristics.
ANSWERA group is an organised system of two or more individuals who are interacting and interdependent, have common motives and goals, a set of role relationships, and norms that regulate members’ behaviour. Two salient characteristics are: (i) the members perceive themselves as belonging to the group, giving it a unique identity; and (ii) the members are interdependent, so what one does has consequences for the others.
Q2. How is a crowd different from a group?
ANSWERA crowd is a chance collection of people present at a place by coincidence, such as those who gather at the site of an accident. It has no structure, no defined roles and no feeling of belongingness, and the behaviour of its members is irrational with no interdependence. A group, by contrast, has interdependence, defined roles, status differences, shared norms and a sense of belonging.
Q3. What is groupthink?
ANSWERGroupthink, identified by Irving Janis, is a process in which a cohesive group’s concern for unanimity overrides the motivation to realistically appraise courses of action. Members do not voice dissent for fear of disturbing group harmony, so the group makes irrational and uncritical decisions and grows out of touch with reality. It is likely in homogeneous, isolated, highly cohesive groups facing high-cost decisions.
Q4. Distinguish between social facilitation and social loafing.
ANSWERIn social facilitation, the presence of others arouses an individual and enhances performance on tasks they are good at, when their efforts are individually evaluated. In social loafing, individual efforts are pooled in a collective task and cannot be separately identified, so each person reduces their effort. The key difference is whether performance is evaluated individually (facilitation) or collectively (loafing).
Q5. What did Tajfel’s minimal group paradigm experiment demonstrate?
ANSWERTajfel and colleagues wanted to know the minimal conditions for intergroup behaviour. British schoolboys were divided into groups merely on the basis of their preference for paintings by two artists (Kandinsky and Klee) — a flimsy criterion with no past history or future. When asked to distribute money to anonymous recipients, the children still favoured their own group, showing that even meaningless categorisation can produce ingroup favouritism.
Long Answer Type Questions
Q1. Describe the conditions that facilitate group formation.
ANSWERBasic to group formation is some contact and interaction between people, which is facilitated by three main conditions. Proximity: repeated interaction with the same set of individuals — because they live in the same colony, attend the same school or play in the same ground — gives us a chance to know their interests and attitudes; common interests and background then increase our liking for them. Similarity: being exposed to someone over time lets us assess our similarities, and we tend to like similar people. Psychologists explain this in two ways: people prefer consistency and like consistent relationships, so similarity produces liking; and similar people reinforce and validate our opinions and values, making us feel we are right, so we like those who validate us. Common motives and goals: when people share motives or goals that they cannot achieve alone — such as forming a group of friends to teach slum children — they come together and form a group that helps them attain those goals. Together, proximity, similarity and common goals turn a collection of individuals into a group.
Q2. Explain the four important elements of group structure.
ANSWERAs members interact, a group develops a structure with four important elements. Roles are socially defined expectations that individuals in a given situation are expected to fulfil; they refer to the typical behaviour that depicts a person in a social context. As a daughter or son, for instance, one is expected to respect elders and be responsible towards studies. Norms are expected standards of behaviour and beliefs that are established, agreed upon and enforced by group members — the group’s ‘unspoken rules’ that represent shared ways of viewing the world, such as the norms guiding behaviour within a family. Status is the relative social position given to members by others; it may be ascribed (given because of seniority) or achieved (earned through expertise or hard work) — a cricket captain, for example, has higher status than other players though all are important. Cohesiveness is the togetherness, binding or mutual attraction among members — the ‘we feeling’ or team spirit. As cohesiveness grows, members act as a social unit and want to remain in the group, but extreme cohesiveness can lead to groupthink.
Q3. What is group polarisation, and why does it occur?
ANSWERGroup polarisation is the strengthening of a group’s initial position as a result of group interaction and discussion, which makes groups more likely than individuals to take extreme decisions. For example, colleagues asked to decide the punishment for an employee caught taking a bribe may, after discussion, move from a moderate position to a very extreme one — either letting the person go scot-free or terminating their services — rather than a punishment commensurate with the act. This can have dangerous repercussions. Group polarisation occurs for three reasons. First, in the company of like-minded people one hears newer arguments favouring one’s viewpoint, which makes the view stronger. Second, finding that others share the view makes a person feel it is validated by the public — a bandwagon effect. Third, perceiving like-minded people as the ingroup leads one to identify with the group and show conformity, so the initial view becomes strengthened. Through these processes, whatever the group’s starting position, it hardens after discussion.
MCQs & Assertion–Reason
1. A group is best defined as an organised system of:
(a) any people in the same place (b) two or more interacting, interdependent individuals with common motives and norms (c) strangers watching an event (d) people with no shared goals
2. People gathered by chance at the site of an accident, with no structure or belongingness, form a:
(a) team (b) primary group (c) crowd (d) formal group
3. Which of the following is not a reason why people join groups?
(a) Security (b) Status (c) Self-esteem (d) Increasing social loafing
4. The correct order of Tuckman’s stages of group formation is:
For each Assertion–Reason question, choose: (A) Both true and the Reason correctly explains the Assertion; (B) Both true but the Reason is not the correct explanation; (C) Assertion true, Reason false; (D) Assertion false, Reason true.
A-R 1. Assertion: Social loafing occurs in tasks where individual efforts are pooled.
Reason: When outputs are combined, it is not possible to identify how much each member contributes.
A-R 2. Assertion: A crowd is a type of group.
Reason: A crowd has defined roles, shared norms and a strong feeling of belongingness among members.
A-R 3. Assertion: Extreme cohesiveness can sometimes harm a group’s interest.
Reason: Extreme cohesiveness can lead to groupthink, in which the concern for unanimity overrides realistic appraisal.
A-R 4. Assertion: Members of the ingroup are generally viewed more favourably than those of the outgroup.
Reason: People use the words ‘we’ and ‘they’ to categorise others as similar or different.
A-R 5. Assertion: Group polarisation makes groups take more extreme decisions than individuals.
Reason: Discussion exposes members to newer supporting arguments, a bandwagon effect, and stronger identification with the ingroup.
Answer key: 1-(A), 2-(D), 3-(A), 4-(B), 5-(A).
Exam Tips & Common Mistakes
How to score full marks in this chapter
Memorise the definition of a group and its salient characteristics — examiners often ask you to distinguish a group from a crowd, audience, mob or team. Learn the five reasons people join groups and the three conditions of group formation as crisp lists. For Tuckman’s model, recall all five stages in order with a one-line description each, and add the point that groups do not always follow them neatly. Keep the three group influences — social facilitation, social loafing, group polarisation — clearly separated, and link social loafing to the ways of reducing it. Mention the named studies (Janis on groupthink, Tajfel’s minimal group paradigm, Latane on social loafing) to show depth.
Common mistakes to avoid
Treating a crowd, audience or mob as a group — they lack interdependence, roles and belongingness.
Reversing the order of Tuckman’s stages (the order is forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning).
Confusing social facilitation (performance improves, individual evaluation) with social loafing (effort drops, pooled output).
Mixing up primary (pre-existing, given) and secondary (joined by choice) groups.
Calling group polarisation the same as groupthink — polarisation is extreme decisions; groupthink is suppressed dissent.
Leaving reflective questions (Q2, Q5) blank — give your own honest examples linked to the chapter’s concepts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Chapter 7 of Class 12 Psychology about?
Chapter 7, Social Influence and Group Processes, explains the nature and types of groups, why people join groups, how groups form through Tuckman’s five stages, the elements of group structure (roles, norms, status, cohesiveness), and how groups influence individual behaviour through social facilitation, social loafing and group polarisation, while warning about groupthink.
What is the difference between social loafing and social facilitation?
In social facilitation, the presence of others arouses an individual and improves performance on tasks they are good at when their efforts are individually evaluated. In social loafing, efforts are pooled in a collective task so contributions cannot be identified, and each person works less hard than when alone.
How many questions are in the Chapter 7 exercise, and what is it called?
The end-of-chapter exercise in Class 12 Psychology Chapter 7 is headed Review Questions and contains 5 numbered questions, all answered step by step on this page.
