The Intergroup Social Relations Model: ISRM

Group researchers often observe dyadic behaviors or ask group members to make judgments of one another. The resulting round-robin structures can be analyzed using the Social Relations Model (SRM). This model allows researchers to address the extent to which group members share the same perceptions of a common target (e.g., how much each person in the group is a leader), the extent to which perceptions in natural groups predict behavior (e.g., perceptions of aggressiveness in classrooms predict aggressive behavior), and group dynamical processes (e.g., how talk behavior relates to intragroup perceptions). We provide an introduction to the SRM and describe how it has been used to answer several questions in group dynamics. We also describe how the SRM can be modified to become the Intergroup Social Relations Model (ISRM). Next, we illustrate the ISRM using a study of liking of sports fans of 2 rival teams. Using ISRM, in-group favoritism, out-group homogeneity, and reciprocity can be measured and tested. We show how each of these phenomena can be investigated at multiple levels of analysis.