Bpp learning Media is an acca approved Content Provider

Counter-conformity
– rejecting the group and/or its norms 
There are some circumstances which put strong pressure on the individual. 

The issue is not clear-cut. 

The individual lacks support for their own attitude or behaviour. 

The individual is exposed to other members of the group for a length of time. 
Norms may be reinforced in various ways by the group. 
(a) 
Identification
: the use of badges, symbols, perhaps special modes of speech, in-jokes, and so on 
– the marks of belonging, prestige and acceptance. There may even be initiation rites which mark 
the boundaries of membership. 
(b) 
Sanctions
 
of various kinds. Deviant behaviour may be dealt with by ostracising or ignoring the 
member concerned, by ridicule or reprimand, even by physical hostility. The threat of expulsion is 
the final sanction. 
The group's power to induce conformity depends on the degree to which the individual values his 
membership of the group and the rewards it may offer, or wishes to avoid the negative sanctions at its 
disposal. 
1.4.1 The Hawthorne Studies 
The work of the 
human relations school
of management theory sheds light on the importance of groups 
within an organisation. Interesting findings emerged from studies conducted at the Hawthorne plant of 
the
 
Western Electric Company by Professor Elton Mayo of the Harvard Business School (Mayo, 1933). 
One conclusion was that informal
 
groups exercise a powerful influence in the workplace: supervisors and 
managers need to take account of social needs if they wish to secure commitment to organisational 
goals. The studies also showed that people tend to perform better when they believe they are being 
treated well and are valued.
 
2