Group+Dynamics

Kurt Lewin first suggested his theory in 1936, when he published //Principles of Topological Psychology. Later, in 1947, he in//troduced the term "group dynamics."

In the 1947 article, countering critics who said that a group did not exist as a separate entity and that the behavior of any collection of people was simply an amalgamation of the individual members, he theorized that "behavior is a function of the person and his environment," and that "the whole is greater than the sum of all parts." (Sansone, C.; C. C. Morf, A. T. Panter (2003). [|The Sage Handbook of Methods in Social Psychology]. Sage. [|ISBN] [|0-7619-2535-X]. ).

He described the process by which one is "changed" or morphed into this new entity (the group) in three stages: 1st: "Unfreezing" of personal behavioral filters. It is during this time when one becomes aware that his mindset is changing. He attributes this to survival skills and overriding of defense mechanisms against it. 2nd: A period of time in which the person is "aware that things are changing," but it´s not yet clear what the final result will be. 3rd: "Freezing" where the new mindset is accepted and cognitive dissonance goes away.

For further information, refer to: @http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurt_Lewin