The Socioprofile method : Group structure explored by the intimacy of relations

ソシオプロフィール ホウ カンケイセイ ノ シンミツサ カラ ミル ショウシュウダン ノ コウゾウ

フジモト, マナブ

Fujimoto, Manabu

オオサカ ダイガク ダイガクイン ニンゲン カガク ケンキュウカ タイジン シャカイ シンリガク ケンキュウシツ

ソシオプロフィール法

親密さ

小集団

集団構造

sociometry

socioprofile method

intimacy

small group

group structure

This article introduced a way to figure out group structure based on mutual ratings of intimacy between every dyadic pairs within a group. The established technique to figure out group structure (i.e., Sociometric test) has been pointed out several problems such as ethical issues and its complexity. The "Socioprofile" method, however, could be an alternative since those problems were relatively reduced by not asking like or dislike" certain group members directly and employing a concise procedure. To investigate the efficiency of this method, a longitudinal case study was conducted. The result showed that peer group members became intimate with each other quickly after they participated in the study and varied the group structure dynamically with their intimate connectedness kept stabilized. Through the study, effectiveness of the Socioprofile method to understand group structure was confirmed. The concrete procedure to apply the Socioprofile method to small groups was explained as well as possibility of practical uses.