INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOR IN A COLLECTIVITY A THEORETICAL MODEL FOR THE STUDY OF COLLECTIVE REHAVIOR.

This paper attempts to devise a parsimonious explanation of human behavior in collectivities. For this purpose three main variables have been identified, which, when combined in a specific manner, serve to incorporate the major determinants of behavior. These variables, which will be put into technical jargon in this paper, include (I) a pre-existing attitude, (2) an emotional context, and (3) a situational effect. An individual's need for social approval (NSA), developed in previous interactional situations, is the preexisting attitude with which the paper is concerned. Need-for-social-approval may be simply defined as the degree to which one attempts to impress others in order to gain their approval. The emotional context of a situation may be accounted for by the intensity of the situation. In this sense, intensity may be viewed as density. That is, intensity may be defined as the quantity of interaction per time period or the quantity of interaction per geographical space. The situational effects upon behavior are the most important since they can eradicate the effects of the other two variables.