Group Size, Commitment, Trust, and Mutual Awareness in Task Groups

Abstract

The development of social commitments has interested classical and contemporary theorists. Propositions build on earlier theory to explain how the number of members in a group may alter their commitment to the group as well as their trust and mutual awareness. A laboratory study varied group size to test hypotheses derived from the propositions. Commitment, trust, and mutual awareness were greater in groups of three or four members than in groups of seven or eight members. Mutual awareness also affected trust and commitment after controlling for group size. Members preferred working in groups smaller than seven members.