How to Measure Relationships in the Classroom: The Sociometric Method c. Bityanova M.R.
The socio-psychological test developed by J. Moreno (has many modifications) is used to assess interpersonal emotional ties in a group, that is, mutual sympathy between group members, and to solve the following problems:
a) measuring the degree of cohesion-disunity in the group;
c) discovery of intra-group cohesive formations headed by informal leaders.
Any group of people of any age, from preschool, with some experience of interaction and communication, can be subjected to the survey. Depending on the tasks that the study is designed to solve, and on the characteristics (age and professional) of the studied groups, sociometric choice criteria are formed. A criterion is a type of activity for which an individual needs to select or reject one or more members of the group. It is formulated as a specific question of a sociometric test. According to the content criteria can be formal and informal. With the help of the former, relationships are measured about joint activities, for which the group was created. The latter serve to measure emotional-personal relationships that are not related to joint activities (for example, the choice of comrades for leisure). Depending on the orientation, the criteria are divided into positive (“Who would you like to work with?”) And negative (“Who would you not want to work with?”). After selecting and formulating the criteria, you also draw up a questionnaire containing instructions and a list of criteria.
Before the start of the survey - briefing of the tested group (sociometric warm-up). In the course of it, the purpose of the study should be explained to the group, the importance of its results for the group should be emphasized, how the tasks should be performed, and the secrecy of the answers should be guaranteed.
Sample instruction text. “When forming your group, of course, your wishes could not be taken into account, since you were not familiar with each other enough. Now the relationship in the group has been sufficiently defined, and it is beneficial for you and for your leadership to take into account your wishes when organizing the activities of your team. Try to be sincere in your answers. The researchers guarantee the secrecy of individual responses.”
Efforts should be made to establish an atmosphere of trust with the group. Lack of trust in the experimenter, suspicions that the results of the survey can be used to the detriment of the subject, lead to a refusal to complete the task as a whole or to a refusal to make a negative choice. After that, we proceed directly to the survey. All members of the group are exposed to it. Respondents must write down the names of the group members selected by them according to one or another criterion on the questionnaire and indicate their last name. During the survey, the researcher must ensure that the respondents do not communicate with each other, constantly emphasize and remind them of the obligation to answer all questions. Do not rush, push the subjects with the answers. At the same time, if the subjects do not have a list of group members, visual contacts should not be prevented. The names of those absent should be written on the blackboard.
There are three main choices:
1) The number of choices is limited to 3 - 5;
2) complete freedom of choice is allowed (everyone can write down as many decisions as he wants);
3) the subject ranks all members of the group depending on the proposed criterion.
From the point of view of simplicity and convenience of processing the results, the first method is preferable. From the point of view of the reliability and reliability of the results obtained - the third. In addition, the ranking method can remove the fear of a negative choice. Below is an example of a group survey using the first selection method, that is, each respondent has the right to choose only three people. Questions in direct form are composed according to a positive criterion.
Sample
Data processing and interpretation of results
Based on the results obtained, a matrix is compiled (Table 1). The matrix consists of: vertically - from a list of the group's surnames, arranged in alphabetical order and grouped by gender; horizontally - their numbers, under which the subjects are indicated in the list.
Table 1 (selection criterion: 1)
Matrix of sociometric positive choices
Full Name | |||||||||||
Aleksandrov Pasha | |||||||||||
Ivanov Sergey | |||||||||||
Petrov Dima | |||||||||||
Sarchenko Sergey | |||||||||||
Alferova Ira | |||||||||||
Volodina Galya | |||||||||||
Ladzina Natasha | |||||||||||
Lovshina Nina | |||||||||||
Pokrovskaya Alla | |||||||||||
Samoilova Tanya | |||||||||||
Number of choices (M) | |||||||||||
Number of mutual elections |
Opposite the names of each subject, data on the choices made by him are entered. For example, if Alexandrov P. gave his first choice in the experiment according to the first criterion to Ivanov S., then the number 1 is placed at the intersection of the first row and the second column. Alexandrov gave the second choice to D. Petrov, so the number 2 is written in the square at the intersection of the first row and the third column. If the subjects made mutual choices, then the corresponding numbers of these choices are circled (in our table they are highlighted in dark color). At the bottom of the matrix, the number of choices received by each subject is counted (vertically from top to bottom), including mutual choices.
where C is the student's sociometric status; M is the total number of positive choices received by the subjects (if negative choices are taken into account, then their sum is subtracted from the sum of positive ones); n is the number of subjects.
For example, the sociometric status of Ivanov S. will be equal to 4: 9 = 0.44
Depending on the number of sociometric positive choices received, the subjects can be classified into five status groups (see Table 2).
table 2
Classification of subjects based on the results of a sociometric experiment
status group | Number of elections received |
"Stars" | Twice as many as the average number of choices received by one subject |
"Preferred" | One and a half times more than the average number of choices received by one subject |
"Accepted" | |
"Unaccepted" | One and a half less than the average number of choices received by one subject |
"Forsaken" | Equal to zero or two times less than the number of choices received by one subject |
The average number of choices received by one subject (K) is calculated by the formula:
K=_ Total number the elections made.
Total number of test subjects
For our example, K = 30: 10 = 3.
In accordance with the data of the matrix, the subjects can be classified into the following groups:
"Stars" - Volodina G.;
"Preferred" - Ladzina N.;
"Accepted" - Ivanov S, Petrov D., Sarchenko S, Alferova I., Levshina N., Pokrovskaya A.;
"Unaccepted" - no;
"Rejected" - Alexandrov P., Samoilova T.
One of the indicators of the well-being of emerging relations is the coefficient of reciprocity of elections. It shows how mutual sympathy is in the community. The reciprocity coefficient (KB) is calculated by the formula:
Number of mutual elections
KB = Total number of choices
In our case, KB = (20: 30) x 100% = 66.7%. This indicator indicates a fairly large number of mutual elections.
Based on the completed sociometric matrix, a sociogram is built. It allows you to visualize the results, visually see the picture of the existing relationships in the group. You can build individual and group sociograms. In practice, individual sociograms are rarely used (it makes sense to build it only to compare leaders of different groups of the same level), since a group sociogram fully reflects the whole picture of group relationships.
The most common type of sociogram is the "target". It is a set of concentric circles, the number of which corresponds to the largest number of choices for one member of the group.
The long-term practice of applying the sociometric method allows us to assert that the construction of a sociogram of the “target” type does not cause any particular difficulties (even in a group of 15 people). maximum amount elections rarely exceeds 10). If the group consists of 15–20 people, then to build it, you need to use a Whatman sheet of a suitable format - A3 (420x297), since there will be many lines on the sociogram. It is desirable to display men and women using different icons (for example, a square and a circle). Inside such an icon, the number of the participant is indicated, corresponding to its serial number in the matrix. It is recommended to apply data to the sociogram in the order in which they are recorded in the matrix, and not depending on the number of choices received (in this case, there is less chance of error).
The selections of group members are shown with red arrows, the rejections are shown with blue arrows. Mutual choices and deviations are possible, such cases are displayed by double-sided arrows. In order for them to stand out against the general background, it is advisable to use thicker lines.
» Method of sociometry
Sociometry J. Moreno - methodology, procedure, processing of results. Sociogram
sociometric technique
One of the most popular methods for determining interpersonal relationships in a group is sociometry, proposed by Freud's student Jacob Moreno (1889-1974). According to the theory of J. Moreno, all tensions, conflicts, including social ones, are due to a mismatch between the micro- and macrostructure of the group. This discrepancy, in his opinion, means that the system of sympathies and antipathies, which shows the psychological attitude of the individual to people, often does not fit into the framework of the macrostructure given to the individual: the environment consisting of psychologically unacceptable people may be the closest. The task is to bring the macro- and microstructures into line. It is for this purpose that a sociometric technique should be used, with the help of which one can investigate likes and dislikes in order to carry out certain changes in accordance with the results obtained. The term "sociometry" literally means " social dimension”, a sociometric technique designed to assess interpersonal relationships of an informal type: likes and dislikes, attractiveness. Having the nature of a survey, sociometry differs significantly from a questionnaire survey and interviews in that the questions relate to the emotional sphere of people's relationships.sociometric procedure
The sociometric procedure consists in the fact that the members of the group are asked to list, in order of preference, those group mates with whom they would like to work together, relax, sit at a desk, and the like. Questions about a person's desire to participate in a certain activity together with someone are called selection criteria. For example, "Who would you like to study together for an exam with?" or "Who would you invite to your birthday party?" Etc. The success of the study of relationships depends on the correct selection of these questions. There are weak and strong selection criteria. The more important this or that activity is for a person, the closer and longer communication it provides, the stronger the selection criterion is considered. Most often, sociometric research combines questions of different types. They get in such a way as to reveal the desire of a person to communicate with members of the group in various activities - in work, study, rest, friendship, and the like.- Which member of the group did you invite to your birthday party?
- With which of the members of the group did you perform a common task (production, training)?
- With whom in the group would you share your personal experiences?
Sociometry results
The results obtained using the sociometric procedure can be presented graphically in the form of a sociogram, a matrix and special numerical indices. The tables of sociometric results are filled in first of all, moreover, separately for business and personal relationships. The names of all members of the group are written vertically by numbers, which is being studied; horizontally - only their number. At the corresponding intersections, the numbers 1, +2, +3 indicate those who were chosen by each subject in the first, second, third turn, the numbers 1, 2, -3 - those whom the subject does not choose in the first, second and third turn. Mutual positive or a negative choice is circled in the table (regardless of the order of choice). After the positive and negative choices are entered into the choices received by each member of the group (the sum of the choices), then the sum of points for each member of the group is calculated, taking into account that the choice in the first place is equal to +3 points (-3), in the second - 2 (-2), in the third - 1 (-1). After that, the total algebraic sum is calculated, which determines the status in the group.Group cohesion
Group cohesion is calculated by the formula , where ∑ is the sum of all mutual choices in the group; n - the number of members of the group. The cohesion of the group is the higher, the closer the cohesion coefficient is to one. Based on the data of sociometric analysis, conclusions are drawn about the level of cohesion of the group; the presence of groups; their connections with leaders; about the interaction of leaders among themselves; compliance of the selected asset of the group with the real one; the presence of group members whom the group does not accept, and isolated.sociometric table
№ | Surname | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
1 | Abalkin | +1 | +2 | +3 | -1 | ||||||
2 | Estorian | +1 | +3 | +2 | |||||||
3 | Kammerer | -1 | +1 | +2 | +3 | ||||||
4 | Bromberg | +2 | +1 | +3 | |||||||
5 | Glumova | +2 | +1 | +3 | -3 | -2 | |||||
6 | Sikorsky | ||||||||||
7 | Atos-Sidorov | +1 | +3 | ||||||||
8 | Shchekn-Itrch | +1 | +3 | +2 | |||||||
9 | Horn | +2 | +1 | +3 | -1 | ||||||
10 | Repnin | +2 | +1 | +3 | -1 | ||||||
Number of elections | |||||||||||
Number of points | |||||||||||
total amount |
Sociogram
A sociogram is a graphic representation of the results obtained using a sociometric technique in the study of interpersonal relationships. It gives a visual representation of the intra-group differentiation of members of a small social group according to their status (popularity). With the help of special signs and arrows, they indicate the type of choice (positive, negative, one-sided, two-sided). The sociogram clearly shows the central, most influential members of the group, mutual pairs and groupings of interconnected persons choosing each other. Most often in sociometric results there are positive groupings of 2-4 members.) The method of sociometry, which allows you to study emotional ties in a group of people, has long become a classic tool professional psychologist. In this paper, its adaptation for studying relations in the classroom is given, the procedures for conducting and processing the results are described in detail, and an algorithm for analyzing the data obtained is given.
IntroductionOnce colleagues from Tolyatti (by the way, regular readers of the "School Psychologist") I was asked to conduct a seminar for educational psychologists on a topic that seems to me the most interesting and important. I suggested a four-hour seminar on sociometry. Colleagues agreed, although bewilderment was clearly visible behind their unfailing respect. Sociometry? This is in which there are two questions and you need to draw pictures? It is also used to identify leaders. What can you talk about here for four hours? In the process of work, the bewilderment in the eyes disappeared and the understanding arose that when working with sociometry, you are dealing with a method, and not with a psychological astrolabe. And that this method is powerful and deep, if used meaningfully and for its intended purpose. Its possibilities are significant but limited, simplicity is deceptive, and the complexity of processing offered by many manuals is far-fetched. Proper application of sociometry presupposes socio-psychological competence, methodological thoroughness, and significant practical experience. The last one is a living thing. As for the first two points, it is about them that we will discuss in our development.
First of all, we present the full text of the proposed methodology.
Sociometric test Please answer the questions below. Try to be sincere, otherwise the whole work will lose its meaning. We would love to know your own opinion. We promise that sincerity will not turn to your detriment.
Read each question and answer it immediately. For the names that you will write down, special places are left after each question. Surnames in any order. In order not to forget those who are absent today when answering, look at the board: all the names are indicated there.
Before starting work, write your first name, last name and class. Success!
Last name and first name
Test date
1. If you had to transfer to another school, which of your current classmates would you take to new class? Please name five people.
II. And which of your current classmates would you not take to your new class? List five names.
III. Which of your classmates do you think would take you to their new class if they moved to another school? List five names.
IV. Please indicate the names of those classmates who, in your opinion, would not want to take you to their new class. Write down five names.
V. If you were asked to look at the answers to these questions of five of your classmates, whose answers would you like to see? Write their names in order of importance to you. Under the first number - the name of the person whose answers you want to know the most, and so on.
So, before you is a complex socio-psychological test, which includes three important diagnostic procedures: classical sociometry (1st, 2nd questions), autosociometry (3rd, 4th questions) and referentometry (5th question). If we briefly characterize the essence of these procedures, then the first one studies the structure of emotional relations in the group, the second one - the adequacy of the group members' ideas about their position in the emotional structure of the group, the third one reveals reference persons, that is, group members who have value attractiveness and, possibly, psychological influence in group. Each of these procedures is independent in terms of data processing and presentation, which are combined at the stage of qualitative analysis of the results. Therefore, we will discuss the methodological and content aspects of each technique separately, and then give general scheme their socio-psychological analysis.
"Classical" sociometry: The origin and possibilities of the test The creation and development of sociometric methods is associated with the name of a well-known person in practical psychology, J. Moreno. Back in the 1930s, he created sociometry as a practical technique for studying emotional ties in a group. Relations of this kind, built on the sympathy-antipathy of people, ”he considered the most important both for the existence and productive functioning of the smallest group, and for well-being, performance, development prospects individual person in this group.
I must say that the method created at the time by Moreno within a certain theoretical concept and “for the needs” of the practice of that time, gradually, as it were, spun off both from the theory that created it, and from the practice that gave rise to it. What consequences do we have as a result? The loss of theoretical guidelines led to an extremely broad interpretation of the possibilities of sociometry, turning it into the same socio-psychological astrolabe, which was already discussed above. Using this method, they try to explore leadership processes, ways and means of transmitting information in a group, attitudes towards a leader, and much more. The most common use of sociometrics is to study leadership and identify leaders. However, sociometry does not investigate leadership processes and does not identify leaders. Both in design and in its methodological content, it is not adapted to study the processes of psychological influence. (which is essentially leadership).
Sociometry was created by its creator to study the structure of emotional interpersonal preferences, and no matter how sophisticated a particular psychologist finds for it, it will measure only this. But! If you conduct it competently and creatively, it will do its job brilliantly.
This is what concerns the initial theoretical orientation of the test and its real possibilities. Another remark is about its practical application. For many of today's school psychologists, the claim that sociometry is a convenient method of practical use sounds like a mockery. Alas, indeed, after all the painful processing is completed: the sociomatrix, sociograms of positive and negative connections, personal sociograms, sociometric indices, - very often there is a feeling that the information received is not worth the work invested in it. Meanwhile, the method was created by a major practitioner who valued personal and working time and who understood the real place of psychodiagnostics in the system professional activity. The method was initially simple, informative and had a direct corrective meaning. However, in the future it began to acquire various research delights. Especially many of them were invented precisely in domestic social psychology and pedagogy, where theory and research have always been highly valued. And practitioners... well, let them adapt their activities to what has been created for them.
In developing our own practical version of conducting, processing and analyzing sociometric data, we proceeded from two basic principles: to be tactful to the method and not to abuse its capabilities, to be simpler and think about the main thing. The results are presented to your attention.
The test allows you to analyze the features of sociometric (emotional) structures of a small social group. Each person in the group has an emotional status. If we define it qualitatively, then the status is the position, norms and rules of behavior that are prescribed to be observed by a given person in a given group. Through the features of this position, a person in the group evaluates himself and others evaluate him. Quantitatively, status is measured by sociometry through counting the number of positive (first question) and negative (second question) choices that are made in relation to a given person by all members of his group. If now we represent all the statuses of group members in the form of a single hierarchy, we will get the sociometric structure of the group. It is quite stable, very important for the development of the group as a whole, it determines a lot in individual destinies. Its study, formation and correction is an important matter for a psychologist. It is especially important for the psychologist to know about the four parameters of the sociometric structure of the group.
1. The system of sociometric statuses of group members The status of a person in the structure of emotional preferences can be considered as some expression of the degree of attractiveness, sympathy of his personality for others. The higher the status, the more attractive this member of the group is for the rest, the higher the need for communication with him, the attention from his side.
First of all, three categories are distinguished in the group status hierarchy: popular, average and unpopular members of the group. They differ in the number of positive choices and rejections and their combination.
Popular members of the group have a significant number of positive choices and a small number of rejections, that is, they are emotionally attractive people. Among them, one can distinguish actually high-status and sociometric "stars". "Star" with a certain amount of poetry (alas, little inherent in science) can be defined as the "soul" of the group, its emotional center. It is revealed in two cases: when there is a person who scored the most positive choices (at least half of the maximum possible number), or when there is a person who received the most choices from other popular members of the small group.
Unpopular group members are extremely heterogeneous. Among them may be members of the group with the status of neglected, rejected and isolated. The neglected have positive choices, but they are few, much more rejected, so emotionally they are not very attractive. Outcasts, or "outcasts", do not have positive choices, they only have different amount rejections, which determines the conditional value of their social rejection. What all the outcasts have in common is that they are perceived very expressively, but, alas, negatively. Rejection in this case is primarily an emotional phenomenon, a certain rejection of a person, his qualities, properties and habits. The isolated group includes those people who, as it were, do not exist for the group: they lack both choices and rejections. They are not in the emotional register of the group either at the level of feelings or at the level of relationships.
The question of what status categories and in what proportion are present in the group is the number one question for any practitioner conducting sociometry. The totality of statuses characterizes the processes taking place in the group as a whole, but its study is especially important for understanding the behavioral problems of individual members. We get the answer to this question already at the first steps of data processing, when filling out the sociomatrix, but more on that below.
2. Reciprocity of sociometric choices It is interesting, whose position in the group will you, dear reader, be more concerned about: a person who has many rejections, but with all this 1-2 mutual choices (even with outcasts like him), or a person who has many choices from other members of the group, but who gave his preferences just to those who do not notice him or even reject him? The real position of a person in a group is determined not only by status, but also by the reciprocity of the choices and rejections made. The more mutual elections, the more stable and favorable it is. The group structure as a whole also acquires different kind depending on whether there are mini-communities of people mutually preferring each other in it, how many members of the group have decided on their likes / dislikes. If the answer is negative, the group is at a difficult stage of its development, characterized by conflict, low group empathy, and emotional dissatisfaction.
3. The rejection system in the group It is very important to know what the rejection system in the group is. First of all, it is necessary to find out whether people have decided on their antipathies? Or do they choose those who reject them? How is emotional "aggression" distributed in the group? different variants. In some groups, almost everyone, without exception, gets a certain number of rejections, even the most high-status ones are “tarnished” by 3-4 “ill-wishers”. In others, there are "scapegoats" who take on the lion's share of rejections. The nature of the distribution of rejections significantly affects communication in the group, testifies to the methods adopted here for resolving conflicts. For example, a group over a long period of its existence may develop a stable tendency to solve many problems at the expense of a "scapegoat". Members of such a group always know who is to blame (ah, you didn't do anything?! Here's the result!). Let's set up a thought experiment: we conduct sociometry, identify all persons acting in an unsympathetic role, and transfer them to another group. Say, to another class or even school. What is the group most likely to do now in its new situation? That's right, she will choose new "scapegoats" for herself. And special work will be required to restructure the rejection system in the group, to train its members in other ways to relieve tension.
4. The presence of stable microgroups and their relationships Any small group of more than 5-7 people tends to internal division into even smaller communities - microgroups. Each of them has its own emotional structure, sometimes - its own high-status and "stars". Within a class, there can be a very complex social structure: several microgroups that somehow interact with each other, separate pairs and triplets, as well as outcasts, isolated ones. Relationships between stable microgroups determine the "weather" in the emotional climate of the entire team. They can be conflicting or positive, groups can have common members or be isolated from each other, can be oriented towards one “star” or different ones, etc. All this needs to be identified and studied.
Information about all these features of the emotional structure of the relationship between schoolchildren can be provided by sociometry if it is correctly planned, correctly processed and carefully analyzed. We'll talk about this.
Sociometry as a method: planning and conducting This method is based on a hypothetical emotional choice, which, within the framework of a given criterion, is carried out by all members of the group. That is, the group (each member separately) it is proposed to imagine a certain situation that is quite emotionally intense, and on paper, conditionally, to make a choice in favor of or against various members of the group. In this regard, a number of questions arise that should be worked out by a psychologist at the planning stage: can this group make such a choice? What selection criteria should be offered to her? How many choices should each member of the group make, and is the order of his choices important for further analysis of the results? Let's consider these questions in detail.
First of all, sociometry should be carried out in groups with clearly defined boundaries. From this point of view, the school class as a small group is quite suitable for work. Although another requirement of a small group - the existence of common goals and objectives - it does not meet. Schoolchildren do not have joint activities in the true sense of the word. Except when they collect scrap metal or work "on potatoes." Studying is an individual matter, in most schools children just study side by side, they are classmates. For the formation of a true leadership structure, this fact is often an insurmountable obstacle. Having no experience of joint activity, schoolchildren do not have the experience of being promoted from their ranks as a leader. In contrast to the leadership structure, the emotional sociometric structure is nevertheless formed, reaches in a number of cases sufficient complexity and maturity.
Then there is the problem of the criterion underlying the choice. This is the central question of planning: in what hypothetical situation should all members of a given group be placed in order to make a choice if we want to study real, everyday emotional relationships with each other? For example, when studying the relationships that have developed in the classroom, is it legitimate and effective to ask schoolchildren questions like: who would you invite to a birthday party or who would you go on intelligence with? In this case, as a selection criterion, we offer situations that go beyond the limits of typical communication at school, we include many additional psychological factors that we do not take into account in any way.
When formulating the selection criterion, it is very important to rely on two principles. First: the criterion should be associated with especially significant and characteristic situations of communication for the group. That is, if this is a school class - with school life and interaction in and out of the classroom. Secondly, the criterion should be based on some emotionally colored moment of relations that is important for the group - a forced transition of one of its members to another group, a forced change in the group itself, etc. So, in addition to the criterion we have already proposed (See the list of five questions at the start of development), you can successfully use the following: “If next year you yourself made a list of your class, which of your current classmates would you write down first?”
The next important planning question is the number of elections: to limit or not to limit the respondents? Traditionally, there are two answers to this question and, accordingly, two variants of sociometry. The non-parametric option assumes that each member of the group ranks all the others in terms of their attractiveness within the proposed criterion. This makes it possible to get deep material, to subtly analyze the relations in the group. However, this option has many disadvantages, both substantive and organizational. There is a rather high probability that, along with significant, random choices will occur. (no joke - rank 25-28 people!). In addition, if there are more than 12-14 people in a group, it is extremely difficult to carry out the processing procedure manually, without the use of computer programs.
The parametric variant of sociometry assumes a fixed number of choices. Such a limitation does not allow revealing the whole variety of relationships; only the most significant connections can be identified. However, practical convenience, the "visibility" of the technical work on processing the dough, made this option the most common. At the same time, it is considered that in a group of 22-25 people, the minimum number of elections should be 5-6.
The last question is the question of planning. Here is one member of the group, let's say Ivanov, chose Petrov in his new class. Does it matter what number Petrov's name is in the list of classmates chosen by Ivanov: first or fifth? Here we will again talk about two variants of the sociometric test. In the first one, the answer will be negative: no, it doesn't, all Ivanov's choices are equally important. In the second - the order will be fundamentally important. The instructions for the survey participants specifically stipulate this fact: write down the names of the classmates you have chosen in order of their importance to you. This procedure seems to be successful for many reasons. However, ranked selections make the processing much more difficult. To determine the qualitative status of each member of the group (popular, unpopular, average) one has to resort to very intricate statistical procedures, which is completely unrealistic in practical work. For practical purposes, we propose to use the parametric variant of sociometry without ranking the elections.
From the point of view of the procedure for conducting sociometry is very simple. It consists of two main components: instructions and substantive questions. Most often, the psychologist himself gives all members of the group an oral instruction and reads out the questions, offering to answer them in writing in special forms. (they leave a place for the last name, there are question numbers, under each question there are numbers from 1 to 5 in a column) or just on a piece of paper. In another version, the psychologist gives verbal instructions, and then distributes forms on which there is a brief written instruction, a place is left for the name and class, all questions are formulated, and a place for answers is left under each. The advantage of the second option is that students see instructions in front of them all the time, and this reduces (minor) number of clarifying questions.
In both cases, the verbal instruction serves two very important functions: to motivate the participants and to provide technical explanations.
The motivational part is fundamentally important, it is it that largely determines the openness of the survey participants, their desire to respond. Sociometric procedure in itself is quite a serious emotional test. Especially for those who occupy extreme status positions: high-status and unpopular. It is necessary to honestly write about who you like and who is unpleasant, knowing that at this moment everyone else is judging you too. Moreover, your statements must be signed!
It is possible and necessary to reduce the overall effectiveness of the situation. From this point of view, the following points are important.
Group contact. If the research is conducted by a school psychologist who has sufficient authority over children, problems usually do not arise.
Instructional style: friendly, informal, calm.
Soft formulation of testing goals. It can be explained that it is very important for the psychological service of the school to know how friendly and cohesive the class is, that work with the class as a whole will be based on these results, etc.
Since the work must be signed, it is important to specify the reasons for such a requirement. For example, a psychologist may notice that otherwise the study loses its meaning, because it will not be possible to find out whether the class is friendly or not. Psychologists, however, have come up with one “cunning” procedure that removes the problem of signing / not signing the questionnaire: coding blank questionnaires. From our point of view, this is unacceptable. We believe that students should be given the right not to answer questions. (but only as a last resort, otherwise the work of everyone again loses its meaning). It is essential to ensure that personal responses are not disclosed. It must be honestly said that the results will be reported to the whole class, presented at the psychological and pedagogical council, but only in a generalized form, as information on the class as a whole.
In the technical part of the instruction, the following points should be emphasized: each fills out his own sheet, without consulting a neighbor and without thinking aloud about his choices; when filling out, it is necessary to take into account all members of the group, and not just those present at the moment (to make it easier, you can write on the board or give the guys complete lists class); when answering, it is strongly recommended to avoid options such as "all", "any", "no one"; it is desirable in all questions to limit yourself to the number of choices proposed by the psychologist.
In general, in the mouth of a psychologist who constantly works at the school and is familiar to the children, the text of the preliminary conversation (aka verbal instruction) might look something like this:
“We have repeatedly discussed issues related to relations in your class, trying to figure out whether he is friendly or not, and if not, then why. In order for our further work was interesting and useful, it is important for me to understand what your class is like. To do this, I want to use a technique with the tricky name "sociometry". It consists of five questions. Now you will receive the test forms and read them. The questions are simple and complex at the same time. They concern your class, the relationship between the guys and each of you personally. In order for the work not to be in vain, it is very important to take it seriously and be as sincere as possible when answering. Of course, you can choose not to answer questions, but in this case it will be difficult to work further on the formation of friendly, friendly relations in the class. And further. The work must be signed. When you read the questions, you will understand that without a signature, it loses all meaning. Of course, I can mark the sheets handed out to you or conduct a handwriting examination, but these are unworthy methods.
For my part, I guarantee that your answer sheets will not fall into the hands of anyone: neither your classmates, nor teachers, nor parents. Only I will see them. At a general class meeting, at a council of teachers, we will discuss only general data. If you are interested in my opinion about your personal answers, come to me, we will talk in a calm atmosphere.
Now take the sheets, read each question and answer immediately. It is indecent to consult, discuss aloud, look into the sheet of a neighbor on your desk: this is not an algebra test, but a personal point of view of each of you, which, by the way, you are not obliged to share with classmates.
So, sign the sheet and start answering. For everything about everything you have ten minutes. Whoever manages to do it earlier, give me the sheet and immediately leave the class.
Again, this is what oral text might look like. Written instructions and an answer sheet are given at the beginning of the article.
The guarantees of non-disclosure that the psychologist gives to schoolchildren are mandatory. In principle, it is not advisable to store primary sociometric forms, and the summary table and sociograms must be carefully protected from prying eyes. Experience shows that in the event of an “information leak”, trust is almost irrecoverable, and the consequences for the class as a whole, and especially for some children and adolescents, can be simply catastrophic. The obligation to discuss the results in the class meeting must also be kept. Of course, if, referring to objective circumstances, such a meeting is delayed for 2-3 months, the enthusiasm of schoolchildren will sharply decrease. But the second time to come to this class with this kind of diagnosis will be useless.
As the survey itself progresses, care should be taken to ensure that group members have sufficient time to think about their answers. At this time, the presence of teachers or strangers in the room is undesirable. When collecting questionnaires, once again pay attention to the presence of surnames.
Sociometric data processingThis is a complex, highly professional job that requires a lot of time (even in the best, simplest versions). Processing consists of several main stages: primary analysis of the data presented on the questionnaire; filling in the sociometric matrix; counting statuses and constructing a sociogram.
Primary data analysisCollected test material must first be looked at carefully. Psychologist's interest should be caused by unsigned works (their authorship should be tried to be restored indirectly, but it is also necessary to reflect on whether the author’s inattention was accidental). In addition, it is important to select the work of those members of the group who avoided answering the questions posed. For example, someone could answer “I would take everyone” or “I would not take anyone”, another participant could simply write one last name five times, sometimes his own. It is necessary to show a special psychological interest in these persons in order to identify the reasons for their refusal, the nature of the refusal itself. (most often, of course, it has a protective nature). However, in order to conduct a full-fledged sociometric testing, it is necessary to turn to these students again. (preferably individually) and ask them to complete the questionnaire again. At the same time, it is necessary to find psychological approach to each participant in the survey, to establish a trusting relationship with him. It is possible that someone will repeatedly refuse and do it in a more open, harsh form. In this case, it is necessary to recognize the right of this person not to answer. It would be completely unproductive in this situation to find out why a person refuses to participate in such a simple procedure. However, for a psychologist who constantly works with a group, such a persistent refusal is a serious reason to assume that the student has internal problems.
During the initial survey, it is also important to analyze all additional verbal or graphic information available on the questionnaires (in passing comments made by members of the group, drawings, etc.). It can be interesting from the point of view of the reaction of the group to the psychologist, the situation of the survey, or the content of the questions themselves.
Filling in the sociometric matrixThe sociometric matrix is a table in which primary sociometric data is entered (see table, p. 14). In this table, the full payroll of the group is located horizontally and vertically, preferably in alphabetical order. Processing at this stage consists in entering data into the table about who was chosen and rejected by each specific member of the group. (elections are conventionally denoted by a plus sign, rejections by a minus sign). After completing the table (if not all members of the group were present at the time of testing, they must be interviewed later, since data processing is possible only after collecting all the information), two more lines are filled in the table (they are denoted C+ and C-), in which the sum of the elections and the sum of the rejections received by each member of the group from the others are calculated. Thus, each participant in the survey becomes the owner of two sums of points. From the point of view of theoretical sociometry, these scores can be considered as numerical expressions of the status of an individual in a group, more precisely, in a system of interpersonal emotional preferences. In this table, you can also calculate whether and in what quantity each member of the group has mutual choices and rejections. (lines B+ and B-). To do this, mutual choices and rejections can be noted (e.g. circle).
Already at this stage of processing, some general conclusions can be drawn regarding the status structure of group members. Based on the amounts received, it is possible to judge which members of the group are most preferred. (if there are “stars” among them, it will be possible to understand only after constructing a sociogram), whether there are many people with an average status in the group, whether there are unpopular members of the group and what specific categories they belong to. Such an analysis cannot be considered final, but it is important for a more correct construction of the bociogram.
In cases where sociometry is used for research purposes, cumbersome mathematical tools are used to calculate the status of a particular group member and assign him to a certain qualitative category. In practice, this is impractical.
The fact is that in practice a sociometric test is rarely carried out in order to build a strict sociometric hierarchy of a group. Much more often there is a need to diagnose the emotional well-being of the intra-group positions of specific people. Undoubtedly, the practicing psychologist is also interested in the group status system itself, but only from the point of view of the possibilities of organizing an educational, developmental impact on the group and the need to intervene in the group's unfavorable development.
Therefore, for practical purposes, a qualitative assessment of the data obtained is used. (it can even be said that in this case the sociometric procedure, by the nature of processing, acquires some features projective technique, as the focus shifts from the area of statistics and numerical value in the field of qualitative, meaningful analysis). So, for example, all those who received the election of about half of the group can be considered as high-status, and those members of the group who barely get 2-3 positive choices with a different number of rejections are classified as unpopular. (isolated, outcast, neglected, or simply low status). The middle category can be conditionally designated as average status members of the group. At the same time, for the practitioner, the position of the student who scored 1 positive will be equally alarming. (non-reciprocal) and 9 negative choices, and the position of his classmate who has 2 positive (non-reciprocal) and 19 negative choices. Both children should be classified as status disadvantaged children, in relation to them a system of in-depth diagnostics and possible corrective actions should be thought out. It is necessary to carefully analyze the number of mutual elections. So, a group member who has, for example, 12 negative and 2 mutually positive choices cannot be classified as an outcast, since he has a clear support group in the social environment and his position in the subjective-psychological plan is more stable than the position of a group member, having 5-7 positive but non-reciprocal choices.
A thorough conduct of this kind of qualitative analysis of statuses is difficult at the stage of constructing a sociomatrix. The main task is to compile a neatly and accurately filled table in which the sums of positive, negative and mutual choices / rejections for each member of the group will be calculated and some preliminary conclusions regarding the status hierarchy of the group will be made.
Construction of a sociogram A sociogram can be defined as a schematic planar representation of a system of sociometric relations in a group. The sociogram technique makes it possible to visualize the essence of intra-group sociometric relationships, to conduct a deeper qualitative description of them. With its help, it is possible to identify existing microgroups, establish the nature of the relationship between them, and single out a sociometric “star” from a group of popular ones. It is the sociogram that makes it possible to judge the cohesion of the group, organization, and partly about its psychological climate.
To construct a sociogram, a system of conventional notation is used.
1. To indicate the sex of a member of the group, the following are used:
In a circle (square) the surname or initials of a member of the group are entered, above the surname the number of positive choices received by this person is indicated, under the surname - the number of negative choices. Such a symbol, in combination with a color, which will be discussed below, provides information about the participant necessary in the process of working with a sociogram.
In general, the symbol for a group member who participated in the survey on the sociogram looks like this:
2. To indicate the status of the mug (squares) better to draw different colors. We accept the following notation:
Red is a popular member of the group (if a "star" exists, its sign is encircled by a double red line and shaded);
Yellow - the average member of the group;
Green is unpopular, with a single blue line around the isolated sign, a black line around the outcast sign, and a brown line around the neglected sign.
3. Lines are used to indicate elections: solid red - mutual positive choice; dotted red with an arrow - positive choice; solid blue - mutual rejection;
Dotted blue with an arrow - rejection.
Stages of building a coroutine
In this case, we are again talking about the difference in constructing a sociogram for research purposes and for practical work. Moreover, on this stage working with sociometric data, these differences are especially noticeable. The "research" sociogram in its final form is a schematic representation of the entire system of positive and negative connections. It can only be successfully built for a small group (8-12 people) and with a small number of fixed choices. For a larger group, as a rule, several sociograms are compiled. For example, sociograms of mutual choices, mutual deviations, the first five (three) elections and others, depending on the objectives of the study. As a result, the problem of synthesizing data to obtain a single sociometric picture arises.
For practical work, a general sociogram is used, the main steps for constructing which are described below.
Step one. Building a sociogram of positive choices It is best to start working with a general sociogram by depicting a system of positive choices. If the class is large, you can simplify your task by building separate sociograms of positive choices for boys and girls at the first, most difficult steps of work. Of course, this technique is productive only in cases where the sociometric structures of girls and boys are relatively unrelated to each other. For example, such a structure most often develops among schoolchildren in grades 3-9. Pupils of i-2-x and 10-11th grades more often have a common sociometric structure (which can be quite convincingly justified by knowledge of developmental psychology).
So, when working with children in grades 3-9, you can often resort to this technique. In this case, on a large sheet, in its left part, a sociogram of the positive choices of boys is depicted, on the right - a sociogram of the positive choices of girls, then - the positive connections existing between them.
When constructing this sociogram, work begins with the image in the center of the sheet of the conventional sign of the highest status member of the group (that is, having the largest number of positive choices). Then the signs of those members of the group to whom he gave his preference are depicted around him. (Fig. 1.1).
In every circle (square) the surname is entered, the number of positive and negative choices is indicated (color not used yet). Then, among the indicated members of the group, excluding the central figure, the highest-status one is selected and the choices made by him are indicated. (see fig. 1.2).
At this moment, the first mutual connection may appear on sociograms, new conventional signs may appear. (they are all labeled immediately). Further, the procedure is repeated for the next highest-status member of the group already indicated on the sheet.
When choosing a place for the image on a sheet of newly appearing characters, it is necessary to proceed from the status of each individual member of the group. It is clear that with a large number of positive choices, the sign of a group member should be located closer to the center, and the fewer positive choices, the closer to the periphery.
It is known that a “good” sociogram is one that contains the minimum number of intersecting lines on the sheet. As a rule, this cannot be achieved the first time. In the process of redrawing, the position of the characters on the sheet changes, while the following technical tasks are solved:
First, it is necessary to spread the signs in space in such a way that the groups of mutual preferences that exist within the class become visible. For this, the signs of the outcast and isolated are placed along the edges of the sheet, closer to those individuals or groups to which they themselves gravitate, and the existing microgroups, triads and dyads are located at some distance from each other;
Secondly, it is necessary to arrange the signs of various persons and various microgroups relative to each other in such a way that the lines connecting them intersect as rarely as possible. In any case, the connecting line must not pass through the mark of any third person, cutting it or breaking off near it. It is also necessary to avoid those lines that, connecting the signs of persons from various microgroups, cross on their way multiple connections within some microgroup. (see fig. 2.1 and 2.2);
Thirdly, it is necessary to distinguish between more significant and less significant for qualitative analysis positive connections between group members on the coroutine. To do this, some of the lines in the finished version of the sociogram are circled in red (solid or dashed), and a part is left in pencil or depicted in a shortened form. In the pencil version, these lines still connect the signs, but they attract less attention and do not distract when establishing the most significant characteristics of interpersonal relations for this class. However, they can be activated at any time. Shortened lines can be used to represent unilateral elections for the isolated and the outcast. (rogue) aimed at high-status members of the group. The designation of such links on the sheet in color adds a few dotted red lines to the “star”, complicating the already color-saturated picture around its sign, and at the same time does not carry significant information. In this case, you can use a shortened line: it will indicate the direction of the choice of a low-status person, the initials of those high-status members of the group to whom the elections are addressed can be written along it.
Bityanova M. How to measure relationships in the classroom: Sociometric methodThe method of sociometry, which allows you to study emotional connections in a group of people, has long become a classic tool for a professional psychologist. In this paper, its adaptation for studying relations in the classroom is given, the procedures for conducting and processing the results are described in detail, and an algorithm for analyzing the data obtained is given.
Introduction
Once colleagues from Tolyatti (by the way, regular readers of the "School Psychologist") asked me to conduct a seminar for educational psychologists on a topic that seems to me the most interesting and important. I suggested a four-hour seminar on sociometry. Colleagues agreed, although bewilderment was clearly visible behind their unfailing respect Sociometry? Is it in which there are two questions and you need to draw pictures? It is also used to identify leaders. What can we talk about here for four hours? with the method, and not with the psychological astrolabe. And that this method is powerful and deep, if used meaningfully and for its intended purpose. Its possibilities are significant, but limited, simplicity is deceptive, and the complexity of processing offered by many manuals is far-fetched. The competent application of sociometry also implies social -psychological competence, and methodical thoroughness, and significant practical an experience. The last one is a living thing. As for the first two points, it is about them that we will discuss in our development.
First of all, we present the full text of the proposed methodology.
sociometric test
Please answer the questions below. Try to be sincere, otherwise the whole work will lose its meaning. We would love to know your own opinion. We promise that sincerity will not turn to your detriment.
Read each question and answer it immediately. For the names that you will write down, special places are left after each question. Surnames in any order. In order not to forget those who are absent today when answering, look at the board: all the names are indicated there.
Before starting work, write your first name, last name and class. Success!
Last name and first name
Test date
1. If you had to transfer to another school, which of your current classmates would you take to the new class? Please name five people.
II. And which of your current classmates would you not take to your new class? List five names.
III. Which of your classmates do you think would take you to their new class if they moved to another school? List five names.
IV. Please indicate the names of those classmates who, in your opinion, would not want to take you to their new class. Write down five names.
V. If you were asked to look at the answers to these questions of five of your classmates, whose answers would you like to see? Write their names in order of importance to you. Under the first number - the name of the person whose answers you want to know the most, and so on.
So, before you is a complex socio-psychological test, which includes three important diagnostic procedures: classical sociometry (1st and 2nd questions), autosociometry (3rd, 4th questions) and referentometry (5th question) . If we briefly characterize the essence of these procedures, then the first one studies the structure of emotional relations in the group, the second one - the adequacy of the group members' ideas about their position in the emotional structure of the group, the third one reveals reference persons, that is, group members who have value attractiveness and, possibly, psychological influence in group. Each of these procedures is independent in terms of data processing and presentation, which are combined at the stage of qualitative analysis of the results. Therefore, we will discuss the methodological and content aspects of each technique separately, and then give a general scheme for their socio-psychological analysis.
"Classic" Sociometry: The Origin and Possibilities of the Test
The creation and development of sociometric methods is associated with the name of a well-known person in practical psychology, J. Moreno. Back in the 1930s, he created sociometry as a practical technique for studying emotional ties in a group. Connections of this kind, built on the sympathy-antipathy of people, ”he considered the most important both for the existence and productive functioning of the smallest group, and for well-being, performance, and development prospects for an individual in this group.
It must be said that the method, created at one time by Moreno within the framework of a certain theoretical concept and "on demand" of the practice of that time, gradually, as it were, spun off both from the theory that created it and from the practice that gave rise to it. What consequences do we have as a result? The loss of theoretical guidelines led to an extremely broad interpretation of the possibilities of sociometry, turning it into the same socio-psychological astrolabe, which was already discussed above. Using this method, they try to explore leadership processes, ways and means of transmitting information in a group, attitudes towards a leader, and much more. The most common use of sociometrics is to study leadership and identify leaders. However, sociometry does not investigate leadership processes and does not identify leaders. Both by design and by its methodological content, it is not adapted to study the processes of psychological influence (which is essentially what leadership is).
Sociometry was created by its creator to study the structure of emotional interpersonal preferences, and no matter how sophisticated a particular psychologist finds for it, it will measure only this. But! If you conduct it competently and creatively, it will do its job brilliantly.
This is what concerns the initial theoretical orientation of the test and its real possibilities. Another remark is about its practical application. For many of today's school psychologists, the claim that sociometry is a convenient method of practical use sounds like a mockery. Alas, indeed, after all the painful processing is completed: the sociomatrix, sociograms of positive and negative connections, personal sociograms, sociometric indices, - very often there is a feeling that the information received is not worth the work invested in it. Meanwhile, the method was created by a major practitioner who valued personal and working time and understood the real place of psychodiagnostics in the system of professional activity. The method was initially simple, informative and had a direct corrective meaning. However, in the future it began to acquire various research delights. Especially many of them were invented precisely in domestic social psychology and pedagogy, where theory and research have always been highly valued. And practitioners... well, let them adapt their activities to what has been created for them.
In developing our own practical version of conducting, processing and analyzing sociometric data, we proceeded from two basic principles: to be tactful to the method and not to abuse its capabilities, to be simpler and think about the main thing. The results are presented to your attention.
The test allows you to analyze the features of the sociometric (emotional) structure of a small social group. Each person in the group has an emotional status. If we define it qualitatively, then the status is the position, norms and rules of behavior that are prescribed to be observed by a given person in a given group. Through the features of this position, a person in the group evaluates himself and others evaluate him. Quantitatively, status is measured by sociometry by counting the number of positive (first question) and negative (second question) choices that are made in relation to a given person by all members of his group. If now we represent all the statuses of group members in the form of a single hierarchy, we will get the sociometric structure of the group. It is quite stable, very important for the development of the group as a whole, it determines a lot in individual destinies. Its study, formation and correction is an important matter for a psychologist. It is especially important for the psychologist to know about the four parameters of the sociometric structure of the group.
1. The system of sociometric statuses of group members
The status of a person in the structure of emotional preferences can be considered as some expression of the degree of attractiveness, sympathy of his personality for others. The higher the status, the more attractive this member of the group is for the rest, the higher the need for communication with him, the attention from his side.
First of all, three categories are distinguished in the group status hierarchy: popular, average and unpopular members of the group. They differ in the number of positive choices and rejections and their combination.
Popular members of the group have a significant number of positive choices and a small number of rejections, that is, they are emotionally attractive people. Among them, one can distinguish actually high-status and sociometric "stars". "Star" with a certain degree of poetry (alas, little inherent in science) can be defined as the "soul" of the group, its emotional center. It is revealed in two cases: when there is a person who has received the most positive choices (at least half of the maximum possible number of them), or when there is a person who has received the most choices from other popular members of the small group.
Unpopular group members are extremely heterogeneous. Among them may be members of the group with the status of neglected, rejected and isolated. The neglected have positive choices, but they are few, much more rejected, so emotionally they are not very attractive. Outcasts, or "outcasts", do not have positive choices, they only have a different number of rejections, which determines the conditional value of their social exclusion. What all the outcasts have in common is that they are perceived very expressively, but, alas, negatively. Rejection in this case is primarily an emotional phenomenon, a certain rejection of a person, his qualities, properties and habits. The isolated group includes those people who, as it were, do not exist for the group: they lack both choices and rejections. They are not in the emotional register of the group either at the level of feelings or at the level of relationships.
The question of what status categories and in what proportion are present in the group is the number one question for any practitioner conducting sociometry. The totality of statuses characterizes the processes taking place in the group as a whole, but its study is especially important for understanding the behavioral problems of individual members. We get the answer to this question already at the first steps of data processing, when filling out the sociomatrix, but more on that below.
2. Reciprocity of sociometric choices
I wonder whose position in the group you, dear reader, will be more concerned about: a person who has many rejections, but with all this 1-2 mutual choices (even with the same rejects as him), or a person who has many choices from others members of the group, but gave his preferences just to those who do not notice him or even reject him? The real position of a person in a group is determined not only by status, but also by the reciprocity of the choices and rejections made. The more mutual elections, the more stable and favorable it is. The group structure as a whole also takes on a different form depending on whether there are mini-communities of people mutually preferring each other, whether many members of the group have decided on their likes/dislikes. If the answer is negative, the group is at a difficult stage of its development, characterized by conflict, low group empathy, and emotional dissatisfaction.
3. The rejection system in the group
It is very important to know what the rejection system in a group is. First of all, it is necessary to find out whether people have decided on their antipathies? Or do they choose those who reject them? How is emotional “aggression” distributed in the group? There are different options. In some groups, almost everyone, without exception, gets a certain number of rejections, even the most high-status ones are “tarnished” by 3-4 “ill-wishers”. In others, there are "scapegoats" who take on the lion's share of rejections. The nature of the distribution of rejections significantly affects communication in the group, testifies to the methods adopted here for resolving conflicts. For example, a group over a long period of its existence may develop a stable tendency to solve many problems at the expense of a "scapegoat". Members of such a group always know who is to blame (oh, you didn't do anything?! That's the result!). Let's set up a thought experiment: we conduct sociometry, identify all persons acting in an unsympathetic role, and transfer them to another group. Say, to another class or even school. What is the group most likely to do now in its new situation? That's right, she will choose new "scapegoats" for herself. And special work will be required to restructure the rejection system in the group, to train its members in other ways to relieve tension.
4. The presence of stable microgroups and their relationships
Any small group of more than 5-7 people tends to internal division into even smaller communities - microgroups. Each of them has its own emotional structure, sometimes - its own high-status and "stars". Within a class, there can be a very complex social structure: several microgroups that somehow interact with each other, separate couples and trios, as well as outcasts, isolated ones. Relationships between stable microgroups determine the "weather" in the emotional climate of the entire team. They can be conflicting or positive, groups can have common members or be isolated from each other, can be oriented towards one “star” or different ones, etc. All this needs to be identified and studied.
Information about all these features of the emotional structure of the relationship between schoolchildren can be provided by sociometry if it is correctly planned, correctly processed and carefully analyzed. We'll talk about this.
Sociometry as a Method: Planning and Conducting
This method is based on a hypothetical emotional choice, which, within the framework of a given criterion, is carried out by all members of the group. That is, the group (each of its members separately) is invited to imagine some situation that is quite emotionally intense, and on paper, conditionally, make a choice in favor or against the various members of the group. In this regard, a number of questions arise that should be worked out by a psychologist at the planning stage: can this group make such a choice? What selection criteria should be offered to her? How many choices should each member of the group make, and is the order of his choices important for further analysis of the results? Let's consider these questions in detail.
First of all, sociometry should be carried out in groups with clearly defined boundaries. From this point of view, the school class as a small group is quite suitable for work. Although another requirement of a small group - the existence of common goals and objectives - it does not meet. Schoolchildren do not have joint activities in the true sense of the word. Except when they collect scrap metal or work "on potatoes." Studying is an individual matter, in most schools children just study side by side, they are classmates. For the formation of a true leadership structure, this fact is often an insurmountable obstacle. Having no experience of joint activity, schoolchildren do not have the experience of being promoted from their ranks as a leader. Unlike the leadership structure, the emotional sociometric structure is still being formed, and in some cases it reaches sufficient complexity and maturity.
Then there is the problem of the criterion underlying the choice. This is the central question of planning: in what hypothetical situation should all members of a given group be placed in order to make a choice if we want to study real, everyday emotional relationships with each other? For example, when studying the relationships that have developed in the classroom, is it legitimate and effective to ask schoolchildren questions like: who would you invite to a birthday party or who would you go on intelligence with? In this case, as a selection criterion, we offer situations that go beyond the limits of typical communication at school, we include many additional psychological factors that we do not take into account in any way.
When formulating the selection criterion, it is very important to rely on two principles. First: the criterion should be associated with especially significant and characteristic situations of communication for the group. That is, if this is a school class - with school life, interaction in the classroom and outside it. Secondly, the criterion should be based on some emotionally charged moment of relations that is important for the group - the forced transition of one of its members to another group, the forced change of the group itself, etc. So, in addition to the criterion we have already proposed (see the list of the five questions at the beginning of development), the following one can also be successfully used: “If you were to list your own class next year, which of your current classmates would you list first?”
The next important planning question is the number of elections: to limit or not to limit the respondents? Traditionally, there are two answers to this question and, accordingly, two variants of sociometry. The non-parametric option assumes that each member of the group ranks all the others in terms of their attractiveness within the proposed criterion. This makes it possible to get deep material, to subtly analyze the relations in the group. However, this option has many disadvantages, both substantive and organizational. The probability is quite high that, along with significant ones, random elections will occur (it's no joke - to rank 25-28 people!). In addition, if there are more than 12-14 people in a group, it is extremely difficult to carry out the processing procedure manually, without the use of computer programs.
The parametric variant of sociometry assumes a fixed number of choices. Such a limitation does not allow revealing the whole variety of relationships; only the most significant connections can be identified. However, practical convenience, the "visibility" of the technical work on processing the dough, made this option the most common. At the same time, it is considered that in a group of 22-25 people, the minimum number of elections should be 5-6.
The last question is the question of planning. Here is one member of the group, let's say Ivanov, chose Petrov in his new class. Does it matter what number Petrov's name is in the list of classmates chosen by Ivanov: first or fifth? Here we will again talk about two variants of the sociometric test. In the first one, the answer will be negative: no, it doesn't, all Ivanov's choices are equally important. In the second - the order will be fundamentally important. The instructions for the survey participants specifically stipulate this fact: write down the names of the classmates you have chosen in order of their importance to you. This procedure seems to be successful for many reasons. However, ranked selections make the processing much more difficult. To determine the qualitative status of each member of the group (popular, unpopular, average), one has to resort to very intricate statistical procedures, which is completely unrealistic in practical work. For practical purposes, we propose to use the parametric variant of sociometry without ranking the elections.
From the point of view of the procedure for conducting sociometry is very simple. It consists of two main components: instructions and substantive questions. Most often, the psychologist himself gives all members of the group an oral instruction and reads out the questions, offering to answer them in writing in special forms (they leave a place for the surname, there are question numbers, under each question there are numbers from 1 to 5 in a column) or simply on a sheet paper. In another version, the psychologist gives verbal instructions, and then distributes forms on which there is a brief written instruction, a place is left for the name and class, all questions are formulated, and a place for answers is left under each. The advantage of the second option is that students see the instruction in front of them all the time, and this reduces (slightly) the number of clarifying questions.
In both cases, the verbal instruction serves two very important functions: to motivate the participants and to provide technical explanations.
The motivational part is fundamentally important, it is it that largely determines the openness of the survey participants, their desire to respond. Sociometric procedure in itself is quite a serious emotional test. Especially for those who occupy extreme status positions: high-status and unpopular. It is necessary to honestly write about who you like and who is unpleasant, knowing that at this moment everyone else is judging you too. Moreover, your statements must be signed!
It is possible and necessary to reduce the overall effectiveness of the situation. From this point of view, the following points are important.
Group contact. If the research is conducted by a school psychologist who has sufficient authority over children, problems usually do not arise.
Instructional style: friendly, informal, calm.
Soft formulation of testing goals. It can be explained that it is very important for the psychological service of the school to know how friendly and cohesive the class is, that work with the class as a whole will be based on these results, etc.
Since the work must be signed, it is important to specify the reasons for such a requirement. For example, a psychologist may notice that otherwise the study loses its meaning, because it will not be possible to find out whether the class is friendly or not. Psychologists, however, have come up with one “cunning” procedure that removes the problem of signing / not signing the questionnaire: coding blank questionnaires. From our point of view, this is unacceptable. We believe that schoolchildren should definitely be given the right not to answer questions (but only as a last resort, otherwise the work of everyone again loses its meaning). It is essential to ensure that personal responses are not disclosed. It must be honestly said that the results will be reported to the whole class, presented at the psychological and pedagogical council, but only in a generalized form, as information on the class as a whole.
In the technical part of the instruction, the following points should be emphasized: each fills out his own sheet, without consulting a neighbor and without thinking aloud about his choices; when filling out, it is necessary to take into account all members of the group, and not just those present at the moment (for ease, you can write on the board or give the guys full lists of the class); when answering, it is strongly recommended to avoid options like “everyone”, “any”, “no one”; it is desirable in all questions to be limited to the number of choices proposed by the psychologist.
In general, in the mouth of a psychologist who constantly works at the school and is familiar to the children, the text of the preliminary conversation (aka oral instruction) can look something like this:
“We have repeatedly discussed issues related to relations in your class, trying to figure out whether he is friendly or not, and if not, then why. In order for our further work to be interesting and useful, it is important for me to understand what your class is like. To do this, I want to use a technique with the tricky name "sociometry". It consists of five questions. Now you will receive the test forms and read them. The questions are simple and complex at the same time. They concern your class, the relationship between the guys and each of you personally. In order for the work not to be in vain, it is very important to take it seriously and be as sincere as possible when answering. Of course, you can choose not to answer questions, but in this case it will be difficult to work further on the formation of friendly, friendly relations in the class. And further. The work must be signed. When you read the questions, you will understand that without a signature, it loses all meaning. Of course, I can mark the sheets handed out to you or conduct a handwriting examination, but these are unworthy methods.
For my part, I guarantee that your answer sheets will not fall into the hands of anyone: neither your classmates, nor teachers, nor parents. Only I will see them. At a general class meeting, at a council of teachers, we will discuss only general data. If you are interested in my opinion about your personal answers, come to me, we will talk in a calm atmosphere.
Now take the sheets, read each question and answer immediately. It is indecent to consult, discuss aloud, look into the sheet of a neighbor on your desk: this is not an algebra test, but a personal point of view of each of you, which, by the way, you are not obliged to share with classmates.
So, sign the sheet and start answering. For everything about everything you have ten minutes. Whoever manages to do it earlier, give me the sheet and immediately leave the class.
Again, this is what oral text might look like. Written instructions and an answer sheet are given at the beginning of the article.
The guarantees of non-disclosure that the psychologist gives to schoolchildren are mandatory. In principle, it is not advisable to store primary sociometric forms, and the summary table and sociograms must be carefully protected from prying eyes. Experience shows that in the event of an “information leak”, trust is almost irrecoverable, and the consequences for the class as a whole, and especially for some children and adolescents, can be simply catastrophic. The obligation to discuss the results in the class meeting must also be kept. Of course, if, referring to objective circumstances, such a meeting is delayed for 2-3 months, the enthusiasm of schoolchildren will sharply decrease. But the second time to come to this class with this kind of diagnosis will be useless.
As the survey itself progresses, care should be taken to ensure that group members have sufficient time to think about their answers. At this time, the presence of teachers or strangers in the room is undesirable. When collecting questionnaires, once again pay attention to the presence of surnames.
Processing of sociometric data
This is a complex, highly professional job that requires a lot of time (even in its best, simplest versions). Processing consists of several main stages: primary analysis of the data presented on the questionnaire; filling in the sociometric matrix; counting statuses and constructing a sociogram.
Primary data analysis
The collected test material must first be carefully reviewed. Unsigned works should arouse the psychologist's interest (their authorship should be tried to be restored indirectly, but it is also necessary to reflect on whether the author's inattention was accidental). In addition, it is important to select the work of those members of the group who avoided answering the questions posed. For example, someone could answer “I would take everyone” or “I would not take anyone”, another participant could simply write one last name five times, sometimes his own. It is necessary to show a special psychological interest in these persons in order to identify the reasons for their refusal, the nature of the refusal itself (most often, of course, it has a protective nature). However, in order to conduct a full-fledged sociometric testing, it is necessary to contact these students again (preferably on an individual basis) and ask them to fill out the questionnaire again. At the same time, it is necessary to find a psychological approach to each participant in the survey, to establish a trusting relationship with him. It is possible that someone will repeatedly refuse and do it in a more open, harsh form. In this case, it is necessary to recognize the right of this person not to answer. It would be completely unproductive in this situation to find out why a person refuses to participate in such a simple procedure. However, for a psychologist who constantly works with a group, such a persistent refusal is a serious reason to assume that the student has internal problems.
During the initial interview, it is also important to analyze all additional verbal or graphic information available on the questionnaires (side comments made by group members, drawings, etc.). It can be interesting from the point of view of the reaction of the group to the psychologist, the situation of the survey, or the content of the questions themselves.
Filling in the sociometric matrix
The sociometric matrix is a table in which primary sociometric data are entered (see table, p. 14). In this table, the full payroll of the group is located horizontally and vertically, preferably in alphabetical order. Processing at this stage consists in entering data into the table about who was chosen and who was rejected by each specific member of the group (elections are conventionally denoted by a plus sign, rejections by a minus sign). After filling in the table (if there were no all members of the group, they must be interviewed later, since data processing is possible only after collecting all the information), two more lines are filled in the table (they are denoted C + and C-), in which the sum of the elections and the sum of the rejections received by each member are calculated groups from others.Thus, each participant in the survey becomes the owner of two sums of points.From the point of view of theoretical sociometry, these points can be considered as numerical expressions of the status of an individual in a group, more precisely, in the system of interpersonal emotional preferences.In this table, you can also calculate whether there are and how many mutual choices and rejections each member of the group has (lines B+ and B-). The expressions can be marked (for example, circled).
Already at this stage of processing, some general conclusions can be drawn regarding the status structure of group members. Based on the amounts received, it is possible to judge which members of the group are the most preferred (whether there are “stars” among them, it will be possible to understand only after constructing a sociogram), whether there are many people with an average status in the group, whether there are unpopular members of the group, and to which specific categories they belong to. Such an analysis cannot be considered final, but it is important for a more correct construction of the bociogram.
In cases where sociometry is used for research purposes, cumbersome mathematical tools are used to calculate the status of a particular group member and assign him to a certain qualitative category. In practice, this is impractical.
The fact is that in practice a sociometric test is rarely carried out in order to build a strict sociometric hierarchy of a group. Much more often there is a need to diagnose the emotional well-being of the intra-group positions of specific people. Undoubtedly, the practicing psychologist is also interested in the group status system itself, but only from the point of view of the possibilities of organizing an educational, developmental impact on the group and the need to intervene in the group's unfavorable development.
Therefore, for practical purposes, a qualitative assessment of the data obtained is used (one can even say that in this case, the sociometric procedure, by the nature of processing, acquires some features of a projective methodology, since the focus is shifted from the field of statistics and numerical value to the field of qualitative, meaningful analysis). So, for example, everyone who receives about half of the group's choices can be considered high-status, and those members of the group who barely get 2-3 positive choices with a different number of rejections are classified as unpopular (isolated, outcast, neglected, or simply low-status). The middle category can be conditionally designated as average status members of the group. At the same time, for the practitioner, the situation of a schoolchild who scored 1 positive (non-reciprocal) and 9 negative choices, and the situation of his classmate, who has 2 positive (non-reciprocal) and 19 negative choices, will be equally alarming. Both children should be classified as status disadvantaged children, in relation to them a system of in-depth diagnostics and possible corrective actions should be thought out. It is necessary to carefully analyze the number of mutual elections. So, a group member who has, for example, 12 negative and 2 mutually positive choices cannot be classified as an outcast, since he has a clear support group in the social environment and his position in the subjective-psychological plan is more stable than the position of a group member, having 5-7 positive but non-reciprocal choices.
A thorough conduct of this kind of qualitative analysis of statuses is difficult at the stage of constructing a sociomatrix. The main task is to compile a neatly and accurately filled table in which the sums of positive, negative and mutual choices / rejections for each member of the group will be calculated and some preliminary conclusions regarding the status hierarchy of the group will be made.
Building a sociogram
A sociogram can be defined as a schematic planar representation of a system of sociometric relations in a group. The sociogram technique makes it possible to visualize the essence of intra-group sociometric relationships, to conduct a deeper qualitative description of them. It can be used to identify existing
groups, to establish the nature of the relationship between them, to single out the sociometric "star" from the popular group. It is the sociogram that makes it possible to judge the cohesion of the group, organization, and partly about its psychological climate.
To construct a sociogram, a system of conventional notation is used.
1. To indicate the sex of a member of the group, the following are used:
The surname or initials of a member of the group are entered in a circle (square), the number of positive choices received by this person is indicated above the surname, and the number of negative choices received under the surname. Such a symbol, in combination with a color, which will be discussed below, provides information about the participant necessary in the process of working with a sociogram.
In general, the symbol for a group member who participated in the survey on the sociogram looks like this:
2. To indicate the status of circles (squares) it is better to draw in different colors. We accept the following notation:
Red - a popular member of the group (if there is a "star", its sign is surrounded by a double red line and shaded);
Yellow - the average member of the group;
Green is unpopular, with a single blue line around the isolated sign, a black line around the outcast sign, and a brown line around the neglected sign.
3. Lines are used to indicate elections: solid red - mutual positive choice; dotted red with an arrow - positive choice; solid blue - mutual rejection;
Dotted blue with an arrow - rejection.
Stages of building a coroutine
In this case, we are again talking about the difference in constructing a sociogram for research purposes and for practical work. Moreover, at this stage of work with sociometric data, these differences are especially noticeable. The "research" sociogram in its final form is a schematic representation of the entire system of positive and negative connections. It can be successfully built only for a small group (8-12 people) and with a small number of fixed choices. For a larger group, as a rule, several sociograms are compiled. For example, sociograms of mutual choices, mutual deviations, the first five (three) choices, and others, depending on the objectives of the study. As a result, the problem of synthesizing data to obtain a single sociometric picture arises.
For practical work, a general sociogram is used, the main steps for constructing which are described below.
Step one. Building a sociogram of positive choices It is best to start working with a general sociogram by depicting a system of positive choices. If the class is large, you can simplify your task by building separate sociograms of positive choices for boys and girls at the first, most difficult steps of work. Of course, this technique is productive only in cases where the sociometric structures of girls and boys are relatively unrelated to each other. For example, such a structure most often develops among schoolchildren in grades 3-9. Pupils of grades 1-2 and 10-11 more often have a common sociometric structure (which can be quite convincingly substantiated by knowledge of developmental psychology).
So, when working with children in grades 3-9, you can often resort to this technique. In this case, on a large sheet, in its left part, a sociogram of the positive choices of boys is depicted, on the right - a sociogram of the positive choices of girls, then - the positive connections existing between them.
When constructing this sociogram, the work begins with the image in the center of the sheet of the conventional sign of the highest status member of the group (that is, having the largest number of positive choices). Then around him are depicted the signs of those members of the group to whom he gave his preference (Fig. 1.1).
A surname is entered in each circle (square), the number of positive and negative choices is indicated (the color is not used yet). Then, among the indicated members of the group, excluding the central figure, the highest-status one is selected and the choices made by him are indicated (see Fig. 1.2).
At this moment, the first mutual connection may appear on the sociograms, new conventional signs may appear (all of them are immediately indicated). Further, the procedure is repeated for the next highest-status member of the group already indicated on the sheet.
When choosing a place for the image on a sheet of newly appearing characters, it is necessary to proceed from the status of each individual member of the group. It is clear that with a large number of positive choices, the sign of a group member should be located closer to the center, and the fewer positive choices, the closer to the periphery.
It is known that a “good” sociogram is one that contains the minimum number of intersecting lines on the sheet. As a rule, this cannot be achieved the first time. In the process of redrawing, the position of the characters on the sheet changes, while the following technical tasks are solved:
First, it is necessary to spread the signs in space in such a way that the groups of mutual preferences that exist within the class become visible. For this, the signs of the outcast and isolated are placed along the edges of the sheet, closer to those individuals or groups to which they themselves gravitate, and the existing microgroups, triads and dyads are located at some distance from each other;
Secondly, it is necessary to arrange the signs of various persons and various microgroups relative to each other in such a way that the lines connecting them intersect as rarely as possible. In any case, the connecting line must not pass through the mark of any third person, cutting it or breaking off near it. It is also necessary to avoid those lines that, connecting the signs of persons from different microgroups, cross on their way multiple connections within a microgroup (see Fig. 2.1 and 2.2);
Thirdly, it is necessary to distinguish between more significant and less significant for qualitative analysis positive connections between group members on the coroutine. To do this, some of the lines in the finished version of the sociogram are outlined in red (solid or dotted), and some are left in pencil or depicted in a shortened form. In the pencil version, these lines still connect the signs, but they attract less attention and do not distract when establishing the most significant characteristics of interpersonal relations for this class. However, they can be activated at any time. Shortened lines can be used to indicate unilateral elections of the isolated and outcasts (outcasts), aimed at high-status members of the group. The designation of such links on the sheet in color adds a few dotted red lines to the “star”, complicating the already color-saturated picture around its sign, and at the same time does not carry significant information. In this case, you can use a shortened line: it will indicate the direction of the choice of a low-status person, the initials of those high-status members of the group to whom the election is addressed can be written along it (Fig. 3).
Which lines are needed for analysis and should be displayed in color? First, all reciprocal connections. Secondly, positive connections between microgroups and within stable microgroups. Thirdly, these are connections that go from high-status to low-status members of the group. Other connections can be distinguished at the discretion of the psychologist.
Step two. Selection and depiction of significant negative connections In the traditional approach, a separate sociogram is usually made for negative choices, in the center of which are the outcasts and neglected (“stars” and high-status ones are located on the periphery of the picture). Then the analysis of two sociograms is carried out and their joint meaningful discussion. A simpler and more rational technique is as follows: the most important negative connections are superimposed on the sociogram of positive choices, which, at a minimum, should include the following:
1. Mutual rejections.
2. "Contradictory" choices - in the forward direction there is a positive choice, and in the opposite direction - a negative one.
3. Negative elections addressed to high-status and "stars".
4. Negative choices within stable microgroups.
5. Negative connections between the central figures of various microgroups.
6. Negative links between boys and girls.
As a result, the sociogram will not contain negative links addressed to “outcasts”, but they do not carry a significant load and can be taken into account in the analysis either by the fact that there are people in the group who have a large number of rejections (it is important to note who the “authors” of most of them are boys or girls), or based on the results of constructing an individual sociogram.
Step three. Construction of individual sociograms
Sociograms of this kind are built for individual members of the group in the event that it is necessary to conduct a more “subtle” analysis of their position in the system of intragroup preferences. The sign of the person whose connections are being analyzed is located in the center, and lines are drawn to him from those who chose him or rejected him. An individual sociogram can be built for a low-status member of the group in order to clarify his status (neglected, isolated, rejected), as well as for a high-status member in order to clarify whether he is a sociometric "star".
In the group of equally preferred "star" can be considered the one who is given the advantage in the elections by other popular members of this group (see Fig. 4, 5).
On this, the construction of the sociogram can be considered complete. We repeat once again that building a high-quality, easy-to-analyze picture is a “subtle” and lengthy task that requires patience, skill and a clear understanding of the goals of the work being done. As a rule, the sociogram is redrawn three to five times, and the speed of its execution depends on the skill.
Practice shows that this can complete the processing of sociometric test data and make the transition to the data analysis stage. Such a method of processing as the calculation of sociometric indices does not seem informative to us and is considered as a research method of socio-psychological work. Therefore, it is not presented here. You can get detailed information about the types of sociometric indices and the procedure for calculating them in the recommended literature.
Fig.5. In the popular group, a “star” stands out.
Autosociometric test
Autosociometry is not an independent diagnostic procedure. It naturally complements and deepens the data of classical sociometry and is carried out simultaneously with it. During this procedure, group members verbalize their ideas about how the group as a whole and its individual representatives relate to them personally. Thus, the psychologist can assess how correctly each student imagines his place in the team. In social psychology, the ability to adequately assess the attitude of other people towards oneself is called social-reflexive skills. The level of social-reflexive development is an important indicator of personal maturity, emotional well-being of a person. Of course, younger teenagers have this skill to a much lesser extent than schoolchildren aged 12-14, and even more so adults. But still, it is advisable to carry out autosociometry in these educational groups.
The adequacy of ideas about one's place in the group is a positive sign, even if we are talking about the outcasts or the isolated. Socially reflexive inadequacy is fraught with various problems that a student may have in the process of communication. They may be associated with the demonstration by the child of such behavior that does not meet the expectations of the group and, accordingly, is not encouraged or punished by it. Such a child may expect a different attitude from his peers. Moreover, he reacts equally painfully both to the absence of aggression expected from others in the event of an unreasonable subjective underestimation of his status, and to the lack of benevolence and support in the reassessment of his own role in the team.
Data processing is carried out in two stages.
At the stage of initial analysis, close attention should be paid to all cases of direct or hidden failure. Refusal can be expressed in various ways: banal omission of questions and (or) their crossing out, verbal and written remarks like “I don’t want to answer these questions” or (much more common) “How do I know what’s in their head?” . The student can get off with a joke or write "Everyone", "Nobody". Any of these options is informative. Autosociometry is an emotionally painful procedure for any person, especially for those who know or experience certain difficulties in relationships. All cases of withdrawal, refusal to answer should be considered as a possible symptom of the socio-psychological distress of the individual.
As already mentioned, in the answers of schoolchildren one can often come across phrases like “You need to ask them about this”, “How do I know”, etc. The diagnostic value of such answers depends on the age of the children. Say, in grades 3-4 (the most early age for conducting sociometry in the proposed version) it is unusual for many psychologically well-off children to be interested in the opinion of the people around them about themselves. On the contrary, increased attention to one's status speaks of internal conflicts and emotional and personal problems of the child. In adolescence, such interest is natural and natural. Responses of the above type can most likely be considered as protection, avoidance of traumatic impact.
At the second stage, a quantitative analysis of the data is carried out. It can be carried out using the same sociometric matrix (see the table on p. 14). To do this, autosociometry data must be entered in a vertical column under the name of a particular student. For example, cells with proposed choices should be colored red, and cells with proposed rejections should be colored blue.
By comparing this data with the person's real choices/rejections, which are also presented in this column, the number of matches can be counted and recorded in the P+ and P– rows (correctly predicted choices and rejections).
Reference test
Referentometry - the measurement of the value of others - exists in various methodological forms. In this case, a variant is used that is meaningfully and in form related to sociometry (the fifth question of the proposed comprehensive test). It is assumed that when choosing people whose answers one would like to know, a person is guided not so much by emotional attractiveness, but by the value significance, for him, of the personality of this person.
Indeed, experience shows that the members of the group who score the most on the fifth question very often do not coincide] with either the "stars" or the high-status ones. Among them may be potential leaders (people who have a real influence on the thoughts and actions of group members), people who are authoritative for the group (they may not be followed, but their opinion is respected, taken into account). Sometimes outcasts fall into the number of referentometric leaders. There are cases when, in critical situations, the class transferred leadership positions to such people. This is an interesting and important material for analysis. However, it should be remembered that a high referentometric position does not necessarily indicate the leadership authority of this person. This is due to the specifics of the procedure itself. It, like all sociometry, is built on a conditional choice in a hypothetical situation. It is possible that in reality the elections would have been distributed quite differently. Such a procedure allows us to speak about emotional and value preferences, but does not say anything about the real subordination of group members to any one person who has leadership power. That is why modern social psychology does not use either sociometry or referentometry to identify real leaders and study the leadership structure (we plan to talk about what is used separately).
Referentometry data are also entered into the sociometric matrix. In the horizontal lines, in the form of a conventional sign that is different from those already used in the table (for example, a tick), information is entered about who and, possibly, in what order a particular child named when answering a question. As a result of counting the number of points scored (each choice is one point or a ranked system), the last line is filled in - the sum of the points scored (P +).
So, as a result of data processing on all five questions, we have a complex table (sociomatrix) with an abundance of information, a synthesized sociogram, and the results of the primary analysis. The next crucial step is a qualitative, meaningful analysis of the available material.
Comprehensive data analysis
We want to propose a general algorithm that can be used to carry out a comprehensive analysis of the data of a socio-psychological test. This algorithm highlights the areas of analysis and the main questions that need to be answered. Items 1-4 are analyzed mainly on the basis of sociometry data, item 5 - autosociometry data, item 6 - sociometric referent data.
1. The system of sociometric statuses of this group
What status are the students in the group?
What statuses prevail?
Are there any "stars" among the high-status ones?
What specific types of unpopular statuses are present in the group and what is their relationship with each other and with other status groups?
How can the data obtained be explained? It is especially important to note the reasons for the isolation or rejection of individual members of the group.
The predominance or simply a large number of students with unpopular status, primarily neglected and outcasts, indicates a low level psychological development group or about its breakup. The situation of the existence of several outcasts against the background of a rather favorable emotional structure of relations between other members of the group has already been discussed above (the type of group with “scapegoats”). The popularity of some and the emotional rejection of others is still being formed, slowly realized.
Popularity, rejection, isolation are complex socio-psychological phenomena in which the personal qualities of a person are intertwined, the features of his position in relation to other people, the value orientations of himself and others, the forms and methods of punishment adopted by the group for those who do not want or cannot be as everybody. Studies have shown that the popularity of a student is somewhat influenced by his intelligence and external attractiveness; Adequate self-esteem, low anxiety, social attractiveness and the ability to empathy and empathy are of greater importance. Most importantly, however, social values life goals, communication style. A high status in a group may be the result of success in the main activity (study, if the class is focused on education; a specific sport, if it is a specialized sports class, etc.). Sometimes it is supported and reinforced by the student's external successes. For example, about a young ninth-grader, who often misses classes, has not proven himself in anything, and is practically unpopular in his group, it became known that he has been practicing ballroom dancing for many years and became a prize-winner in international competitions. This information provided him with a high emotional status in the classroom until the end of schooling.
About the outcast, you can say that he has the opposite. True, there are outcasts by misfortune and by conviction. The former simply do not have any intellectual, personal, physical or, perhaps, material resources to win the favor of their classmates. The latter consciously choose this position, wanting either to defend their beliefs and principles, or simply not to be like everyone else. Differentiating the origin of rejection is very important, since this determines the nature of the work, and sometimes its very necessity. Conscious rejection sometimes evokes respect, and the student who chooses it undoubtedly has the right to choose.
The situation is more complicated with isolated ones. Social isolation can be a personality trait, part of a family relationship style, a conscious mature position. All these forms are normal, they are based on the choice of a person. What can not be said about the forced isolation, which may be the result of a chronic boycott, a low level cultural development other members of the group, lack of skills social interaction the person himself, etc.
2. Sociometric group structure
Are there stable microgroups in the class?
What are the relationships within each microgroup? Are they conflicting or positive?
Are there any relationships between microgroups?
On what principles are microgroups formed (what unites its members)?
How are relations organized between those who are not included in the microgroups?
What is the relationship between boys and girls in the group?
What is the relationship between members of various microgroups and those who are not included in them?
The presence of internally cohesive, rather well-defined mini-communities in a group is a sign of its social maturity. Practice shows that if a class has stably existed for several years, the process of internal group formation in it is practically inevitable, and any stable microgroup, having arisen, tends to separate and internal cohesion. Most often, people with similar statuses unite. Large microgroups - 6-7 or even more people - arise around the "stars" and other high-status, unpopular gravitate towards triads and dyads. The presence of conflicting connections within the mini-team and a large number rejection testifies to the trouble of emotional relations, possible disintegration or close restructuring of relations. Such processes, and this is very important, rarely remain local; they affect not only a given microgroup, but the entire class. The members of the disintegrated community begin to look for an opportunity to join other blocks, as a result of which the entire group structure may be mixed up for a while. It is not serious to count on high educational activity of children during such a period: they will be deeply immersed in their emotional relationships.
Often, mutual or one-sided hostility arises between the most significant members of each of the microgroups, which indicates their competition. In a number of cases, it even makes sense to single out not general "stars" of the class, but micro-group "stars", since the members of various mini-associations are oriented towards their popular faces.
The way the relationship develops between the most influential microgroups and those who keep to themselves, forming pairs and triplets, speaks volumes. Singles and couples can be focused on high-status, or they can live their separate lives. The second option, as a rule, makes it difficult to manage the group both on the part of the leader and on the part of adults.
3. System of mutual elections and rejections
Are there many mutual choices and rejections in the group?
What does the rejection system look like? Does it have scapegoats?
Are there, and how many, conflicting choices?
The situation of conflicting elections is usually painful and fraught with negative consequences. Especially for that person who addresses a positive choice. In most cases, this means that he expects a positive reaction from the other as well. The discrepancy between the expectations and the actual behavioral response of the chosen person is always painful. This applies primarily to those situations where controversial choices are made by members of a group with approximately equal statuses: popular-popular, popular-average, average-average, etc. For the popular-outcast couple, the controversial choice is less diagnostic, as outcasts often prefer high-status ones, and this is not associated with expectations of a positive response. The situation will also be indicative when the student did not make a single rejection at all, pointing only to persons attractive to him. In these circumstances, the rejection by the one he chose to choose may be known to him, but he chose not to mention it in the poll, or even give false information.
4. Relationships between different status categories
What is the relationship in the popular group?
What is the relationship between the popular and the unpopular?
What is the relationship between the unpopular members of the group? Which of the high-status people are they mostly focused on?
When presenting the methods of processing sociometric data, we somehow touched on all the issues identified above. What is the main diagnostic value of the data of "classical" sociometry? Those psychologists who think about the possibilities of predicting the behavior of a group in a given situation on the basis of sociometric data distort its possibilities. Sociometry provides private, intimate information about the life of the group, its deep emotional relationships and processes. They may not be directly manifested in the activities, specific actions and open reactions of people. However, at the same time, they largely determine the state of group members: their well-being, creative activity, satisfaction with group membership, self-esteem and the level of personal anxiety. The list goes on. Most of us intuitively feel the attitude towards him in the group: he worries when the group is not friendly enough; is revealed, filled with forces in the conditions of group encouragement and acceptance. Adolescents, boys and girls are especially sensitive, especially dependent on group relationships.
Many features of the group structure and group relations are important and diagnostic in terms of the behavior and style of communication with schoolchildren of their class teacher. They are important, because, having understood the group characteristics, you can build relationships with the guys more wisely. They are diagnostic, because many features are a reflection of the style of communication and leadership of the teacher. So, conflict relations between the "stars" of various groups within the class are often the result of a certain policy of the leader, who consciously or unconsciously pushes them into conflict. different situations. Children of what gender fall into the "stars" and high-status - also often depends on the actions of an adult, his own preferences: with whom it is easier for him to communicate and to whom to delegate authority. This is especially important in early adolescence. The cohesion of the group, the relationship between high-status and the rest, the presence of "scapegoats" - .all this is somehow connected with the "leading line" of the adult working with the class.
5. Social and psychological well-being of group members
How can one generally characterize the social-reflexive abilities of group members?
Are there students in the group with a very low level of social reflection? What status categories do they belong to?
Do these children (each individually) overestimate or underestimate their real status in the group? Are there any trends of overstating/understating the status of the class as a whole?
Is it possible to put forward assumptions about the existing distortions in the perception of the status of individual children and the group as a whole?
It is known that socially reflexive inadequacy most often manifests itself in those who occupy extreme status positions: among "stars", outcasts, and isolated people. Therefore, it is necessary to pay close attention to these children. It is important to establish the reason for their low reflexivity. What's this? Defense reaction, low level mental development, infantilism, personality disorders? The answer will determine the paths and the very need for corrective socio-psychological work.
The socio-psychological adequacy of the student, his real understanding of his place in the team can be evidenced by the fact that he correctly predicts more than three choices and the same number of rejections. Cases are very informative when a child predicts choices and rejections with varying degrees of accuracy. Let's say he clearly knows who in the group accepts him, but he makes a big mistake or avoids answering the fourth question (forecast of rejections). Often this phenomenon has a protective character, masks the child's insecurity, social anxiety.
6. Value influence in the group
Are there students with a pronounced value influence?
What qualities and skills are valuable for the group?
Is it possible to assume that in a certain situation a student with asocial values will become the real leader of the class?
How do the sociometric and referentometric statuses of individual schoolchildren correlate with each other?
A few more words about why outcasts sometimes have a lot of value influence in the classroom. A child or teenager can fall into the group of outcasts because they are the bearer of qualities or values of asocial or non-trivial content. These qualities are included in the emotional structure with a minus sign. But in terms of values, his actions, interests, features may turn out to be attractive (I would like to try the way he does), although unacceptable. So, sometimes a conventional, well-bred child prefers socially acceptable and traditional forms of behavior, although his secret value aspirations lie on a different plane. He chooses a classmate as a value orientation, whom he rejects on a conscious level.
Private recommendations
If the psychologist manages to analyze the relationships in the class in all of the above parameters, he will receive invaluable information, which can then be used when working with the class as a whole, class teacher and subject teachers, as well as in individual correctional, advisory work with schoolchildren. The main difficulty is how to extract all this information from the survey results. On this occasion, a few personal remarks.
Sociometry is not one of the methods to which "all ages are submissive." It makes sense to include it in routine diagnostic examinations and generally apply it starting from the fourth grade, in extreme cases - from the third. The reason for this is the instability of the emotional ties of young children, the complexity of the procedure itself, which implies a certain level of intellectual maturity. AT primary school the psychologist's time spent on sociometry does not pay off. Sometimes it’s enough just to ask the teacher who they like in the class and who they don’t. He knows this well, since he himself, with his conscious and unconscious attitude, forms emotional ties in the group. The data of a comprehensive socio-psychological examination acquire the greatest diagnostic value in secondary school.
In order to “extract” as much information from sociometry as possible, one must “feel” it, one must “live” with it. Any computer inclusions in the processing destroy it. And the computerization of the sociogram stage makes a qualitative interpretation almost impossible. “Manual” processing, it, and only it, makes you involved in the internal, intimate processes that take place in the group. And this gives invaluable knowledge for the practitioner. You can rely on it in your training, corrective work. Isn't this the main purpose of diagnostics at school? Yes, a sociogram can never be drawn the first time. Sometimes it also happens that all the lines seem to lie correctly, but the overall picture does not arise. So, we need to look for another picture. A good sociogram, like a projective pictorial test, carries basic information in harmony or disharmony as a whole.
Finally, the last. How to apply new knowledge about the class and specific children in a way that does not harm and at the same time makes the most of it? This is a big topic, to which we will definitely return. Let's start with one important question.
Psychologists are compassionate people, habitually responding to any signals of a person's psychological distress, especially a child. A kind of newly acquired conditioned reflex of a professional is triggered: problem - correction, anxiety - psychotherapy, low social status- help to improve it. But is low social status, isolation, rejection always an indication for corrective action? Is it always a psychological problem of a person? Not always. Isolation in some team can be a conscious choice, a style of social behavior, a family scenario. Rejection is the only way to keep at the moment their values and ideals that are not shared by the group. Before a decision is made on psychological impact for a student with an unpopular status, it is necessary to supplement the sociometric data with other information: about the level of anxiety and emotional well-being in general, the productivity of educational and non-educational activities, family, social circle, interests. In the end, you can just ask a teenager how he is in class (sometimes this is absolutely justified). It is quite possible that you will eventually agree that he has the right and reason to be who he is.
In this development, we examined a comprehensive socio-psychological methodology, the core of which is the good old sociometry. Let's hope that the reader has a fairly clear idea of the real possibilities of this method, its advantages and limitations. I really want him to replenish the golden piggy bank of your professional experience. Spend some time communicating with him, mutual adaptation - you will not regret it. It will serve you faithfully, make you more "subtle" and far-sighted social psychologists and. more skilled diagnosticians. And at the same time, we will all together restore its former good name and well-deserved respect .;
sociometric method
sociometric method is a method of collecting primary social information about interpersonal relationships in small social groups Oh.
The term "sociometry" is derived from two Latin roots: socius - comrade, companion, accomplice and metrim - measurement. This term was first used at the end of the 19th century.
The sociometric method allows us to solve two important problems: firstly, it is used to study interpersonal and intergroup relations in order to improve and improve them. Secondly, it allows the sociologist to study the structure of small social groups. This is especially true for the study of informal relations.
Since the sociometric method is used to study interpersonal relationships in small social groups, it is necessary to clarify this concept. Under"small social group"is understood as a real-life formation in which people are gathered together, united by some common feature, a type of joint activity, or placed in some identical conditions, circumstances, and in a certain way are aware of their belonging to this formation.
Based on practical research, the numerical composition of a small social group of 12-15 people is considered optimal.
To analyze and interpret the results of sociometry great importance has a kind of group where research is being done.
In this case, distinguishmembership group" and " referential» group. The first of them unites people formally included in it; the second - those who together create a "significant social circle." In addition, there are so-calleddiffuse"group (relationships between members of the group are built on the principle of sympathy and antipathy),"association"(the basis of relations is the pursuit of purely personal goals),"corporation" (pursuit of anti-social goals) and "team» (a combination of achieving both personal and social goals of activity.
The procedure of the considered method is based onsociometric survey. And the essence of the procedure itself is the calculation of personal and group sociometric indices.
Years of practice sociological research allowed to develop a system of requirements for conducting a sociometric survey:
1. A sociometric survey can be conducted in groups whose members have experience of joint activities for at least 6 months.
2. The selected criterion, according to which the survey is conducted, must be unambiguously perceived and understood by all members of the group.
3. The survey must be conducted by an outside person.
4. The number of sociometric criteria should not exceed 8-10.
The sociometric survey procedure itself consists of several phases.
1. Preparatory phase:
a) definition of the problem, research objectives;
b) the choice of the object of study;
c) obtaining information about the members of the group, about the group itself.
2. Sociometric warm-up phase.
a) establishing contact with the group;
b) psychological preparation for the survey of group members;
c) determination of the content of the sociometric criterion.
3. Phase of the actual survey.
a) briefing of respondents;
b) replication and distribution of sociometric maps;
c) filling in the cards by the respondent;
d) collection of sociometric maps.
4. Processing phase.
a) processing the information received;
b) checking data for reliability and validity.
5. Final phase.
a) formulation of conclusions;
The basis of the content of the sociometric map is a set of criteria, which are questions, the answers to which serve as the basis for establishing informal structure in a group. The choice of criteria should be determined by the objectives of the study. Like the questions of the questionnaire, the criteria in their structure, form must meet general requirements. At the same time, they must meet specific requirements, namely:
1. The content of the sociometric criterion should reflect the relationship between members of the group.
2. The criteria should reproduce the situation of choosing a partner.
3. The criterion should not limit the choice.
4. The applied criteria must be meaningful for the research team.
5. The criterion should describe a specific situation.
In the study of small social groups in the field physical culture questions may be asked such as: “Which of the team would you prefer to free time?”, “With whom would you like to live in the same room during your stay at the training camp?”, “Who would you like to practice technical actions with in training?”, “Who in your opinion could replace the coach in the classroom in his absence” and etc. The above examples of criteria can be formulated in negative form. For example, "Who would you like to spend your free time with?"
A sociometric procedure in which the respondent chooses as many persons as he sees fit in accordance with a given criterion is callednonparametric. This option allows you to identify the emotional component of the relationship, to show the diversity of interpersonal relationships in the group.
A parametric procedure involves selection with a predetermined number of constraints.
During a sociometric survey, each respondent is given a questionnaire and a list of group members, whose names are coded for convenience by a number in the group list.
The map view may look like this:
The results of the survey are entered into the sociomatrix, where "+" - means a positive choice, "-" - negative, "O" - no choice.
Table 2 shows the results of a sociometric survey of 8 members of the group.
table 2
Results of the sociometric survey
Who chooses |
Who is chosen |
Total |
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Total: |
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Through transformation, logical and numerical analysis, relationships in the team are clarified.
One of the most common methods for analyzing sociometric information is graphic method. The graphic display of the results is called a sociogram.
Sociogram- this is a schematic representation of the reactions of the subjects, expressed by them to each other in response to a sociometric criterion.
When constructing a sociogram, the following symbols are used:
A ¾¾¾ B - positive choice
A- - - - B - negative choice
A ¾¾¾ B - positive mutual choice
BUT - - - - B - negative mutual choice
Quantitative characteristics of interpersonal relations that meet the criteria are sociometric indices (coefficients), subdivided into individual and group ones.
We give examples of the calculus of some of them.
1. sociometric status, which reflects the attitude of the members of the group to each of its representatives.
With i = number of elections received
N-1
Sociometric status has positive and negative variants. In this case, the numerator indicates the number of positive and negative choices (C i + ; C i –), respectively.
2. Index of emotional expansiveness, which characterizes the relationship of a person to members of the group.
E i = number of votes cast
N-1
Similarly to the first index, positive and negative expansiveness indices (E i – ; E i +) are introduced.
3. Group index of sociometric coherence, which characterizes the degree of connectedness of the group according to the selected criterion, without taking into account the direction sign.
K = number of votes given (received)
N(N-1)
4. Group reciprocity index
G= the number of mutual positive connections
N(N-1)
An analysis of the magnitude of various sociometric indices gives an idea of the structure of a small social group.
Regarding, for example, the practice of sports, it is extremely important for the coach to know the group status of the individual or the position in the team of each of its members. What determines this importance? Firstly, the place that an athlete occupies in the structure of the group in terms of interpersonal preference, sympathy - antipathy, leadership. In addition, the subjective factor is of no small importance - the internal position, largely due to the self-esteem of the individual.
Self-esteem reflects what an athlete sees in himself versus what is of value to him and the team. Its value is very great. Too high or too low self-esteem can become a source of internal conflict.
Among other things, knowledge of the degree of organization of the team will allow the coach to correctly place forces in achieving sports goals, you can decide or instruct the athletes to independently perform this or that task, identify their organizational skills, establish mutual assistance, mutual understanding.
The use of the sociometric method allows you to gain knowledge about intra-collective relations, which will help the coach in the organization educational process, solving training and competitive problems. The presence of microgroups, their structure and leaders, ways of establishing positive relationship in a team.
As a result, the coach receives information on several positions:
a) an athlete about himself b) partners about the athlete c) the coach about the athlete |
d) athlete about the coach; e) athlete about partners. |