Group Psychology

In the wake of the recent horrors of the riots and looting in Gujarat, this article is written to give an insight into the mob psychology.

Characteristics of an Individual in a Mob

It is a very surprising fact that under the mob condition, an individual whom you had come to understand, thought, felt and acted in quite a different way from what would have been expected. The mob, however differing in the individuals who compose it, however like or unlike their modes of life, their occupations, their character, or their intelligence, they are in the possession of a collective mind which makes them feel, think, and act in a manner quite different from that in which each individual of them would feel, think, and act were he in a state of isolation.

1. Sentiment of Invincible Power
   A sentiment of invincible power allows an individual to yield to aggression, which, had he been alone, he would perforce have kept under restraint. He will be less disposed to check himself, from the considerations that a mob is anonymous.
2. Sentiment of Irresponsibility
   This sense of irresponsibility causes the control of the individual to disappear entirely.
3. Contagion
   Actions are so contagious that an individual readily sacrifices personal interest to the collective interest. He indulges in actions that he is scarcely capable of except when part of a mob. Under the magnetic influence of the group and in a state of fascination, he may commit acts in utter contradiction with his character and habits. He is no longer conscious of his acts.

Effects of Mob Psychology

• Destructive Acts:
  The individual undertakes destructive acts with irresistible impetuosity, which gains strength by reciprocity. He becomes an automaton who has ceased to be guided by his will.
• Loss of Intellectual Abilities:
  Isolated, he may be a cultivated individual; in a crowd, he is a barbarian. He possesses the spontaneity, the violence, and the ferocity of the primitive.
• Exaggerated Emotions and No Critical Thinking:
  A group is impulsive, changeable, and irritable. It has no personal interest, not even that of self-preservation. Though it may desire violence passionately, it is incapable of perseverance and intolerant to authority. Feelings are exaggerated, with no logical adjustment or critical faculty.
• Susceptibility to Leaders:
  Groups place themselves under the authority of a master and demand violence from their heroes. Under benevolent leadership, groups can exhibit ethics far beyond the reach of an individual.

What to Do?

Collective activity is always going to be better than individuals. In order to have successful group interactions and not unruly mobs which do not respect the individuals the following can be done:

1. Continuity and Consistency:
   There should be some degree of continuity and consistency in the group.
2. Constructive Purpose:
   Assign a purpose to the group, ensuring it is constructive rather than aggressive.
3. Inter-Group Interactions:
   Promote interactions between different groups.
4. Traditions and Customs:
   Groups should have certain traditions and customs that do not violate societal norms and withdraw intellectual activities from members.

You, as an individual, possess your own continuity, self-consciousness, and position, your own traditions and customs. You may have lost your distinctiveness momentarily as being a part of the unorganized mob, but all is not lost as you can still rely on your conscience to guide you home.