Editing Group dynamics (section)

==History==
The history of group dynamics (or group processes)<ref name=HoggW>{{Cite journal | last1 = Hogg | first1 = M. A. | last2 = Williams | first2 = K. D. | doi = 10.1037/1089-2699.4.1.81 | title = From I to we: Social identity and the collective self | journal = Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice | volume = 4 | pages = 81–97 | year = 2000 }}</ref> has a consistent, underlying premise: "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts." A [[social group]] is an entity that has qualities which cannot be understood just by studying the individuals that make up the group. In 1924, [[Gestalt psychology|Gestalt]] psychologist [[Max Wertheimer]] proposed "There are entities where the behaviour of the whole cannot be derived from its individual elements nor from the way these elements fit together; rather the opposite is true: the properties of any of the parts are determined by the intrinsic structural laws of the whole".<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Westheimer | first1 = G. | title = Gestalt theory reconfigured: Max Wertheimer's anticipation of recent developments in visual neuroscience | doi = 10.1068/p2883 | journal = Perception | volume = 28 | issue = 1 | pages = 5–15 | year = 1999 | pmid =  10627849| s2cid = 9800976 }}</ref>

As a field of study, group dynamics has roots in both psychology and sociology. [[Wilhelm Wundt]] (1832–1920), credited as the founder of experimental psychology, had a particular interest in the psychology of communities, which he believed possessed phenomena (human language, customs, and religion) that could not be described through a study of the individual.<ref name=HoggW/> On the sociological side, [[Émile Durkheim]] (1858–1917), who was influenced by Wundt, also recognized collective phenomena, such as public knowledge. Other key theorists include [[Gustave Le Bon]] (1841–1931) who believed that crowds possessed a 'racial unconscious' with primitive, aggressive, and antisocial instincts, and [[William McDougall (psychologist)]], who believed in a 'group mind,' which had a distinct existence born from the interaction of individuals.<ref name=HoggW/>

Eventually, the [[social psychology|social psychologist]] [[Kurt Lewin]] (1890–1947) coined the term ''group dynamics'' to describe the positive and negative forces within groups of people.<ref name=Dion>{{Cite journal | last1 = Dion | first1 = K. L. | doi = 10.1037/1089-2699.4.1.7 | title = Group cohesion: From "field of forces" to multidimensional construct | journal = Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice | volume = 4 | pages = 7–26| year = 2000 }}</ref> In 1945, he established ''The Group Dynamics Research Center'' at the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]], the first institute devoted explicitly to the study of group dynamics.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Lewin | first1 = Kurt| title = The Research Center for Group Dynamics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology | journal = Sociometry | volume = 8 | issue = 2 | pages = 126–136 | doi = 10.2307/2785233 | year = 1945 | jstor = 2785233}}</ref> Throughout his career, Lewin was focused on how the study of group dynamics could be applied to real-world, social issues.

Increasingly, research has applied [[evolutionary psychology]] principles to group dynamics. As human's social environments became more complex, they acquired [[adaptation]]s by way of group dynamics that enhance survival. Examples include mechanisms for dealing with status, reciprocity, identifying cheaters, ostracism, altruism, group decision, leadership, and [[intergroup relations]].<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Van Vugt | first1 = M. | last2 = Schaller | first2 = M. | doi = 10.1037/1089-2699.12.1.1 | title = Evolutionary approaches to group dynamics: An introduction | journal = Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice | volume = 12 | pages = 1–6 | year = 2008 | s2cid = 15306280 }}</ref>