Becoming a Group Member

By Karen Sternheimer

I have recently become a member of a group, joining my local trail running community. The process of joining a new group got me thinking about the sociological processes involved in becoming a member of a group, a long tradition in sociology. Understanding that we are more than just individuals navigating the world around us is a core component of the sociological imagination.

Sociologists spend a lot of time thinking about social groups; it is the foundation of the discipline, and some of the most seminal work in sociology is all about the significance of the groups to which we belong. Emile Durkheim was interested in social cohesion and how connected we are to the society around us, as well as how we divide up tasks among social groups—his focus in The Division of Labor in Society. Most introduction to sociology books will have a chapter on groups, sometimes small or large if the book focuses on organizations. Max Weber’s focus on bureaucracy highlights the way that power and authority is transmitted through large-scale organizations.

How many groups are you a part of? Do you remember what it was like to become a member?

If you are now or have been a college student, you might remember what it was like to acclimate to your classes, to your college or university, and maybe make new friends. Did you feel nervous about fitting in? About learning the policies and unwritten rules of being a student at that institution?

I regularly observe new transfer students sometimes struggle with this process, perhaps more than first-year students, who are struggling along with most of their first-year peers. Joining a club—such as a fraternity or sorority—is one way people might ease their way into group membership.

No matter what kind of group you are joining—a new club, university, or a new religious community—there is a process that we go through as we learn what being a member of a group entails.

1. Learning written rules: whether it is a code of conduct or religious text, groups often have rules to follow. Failure to follow these rules might lead to expulsion from the group, such as plagiarizing a paper. One of the organizations that conducts trail races I compete in has a list of written rules for participants, which include not littering on trails, showing up to the race on time, and my favorite, “be kind or be cut.”

2. Learning unwritten rules: these can take more time to learn, but unwritten rules are typically part of any group. How people dress at your school—whether they are in casual clothes bordering on pajamas or fancier attire—might vary from class to class or major to major but dressing differently might make you stand out. Most of my students dress very casually, and someone dressed in business attire is sure to get questions about whether they have a job interview. Likewise, there are unwritten rules for trail runners, who are often very supportive during races—especially when the race is over—and often say things like “nice work” or “good job” when encountering each other. At a recent event where massages were included with the entry fee, people shared their aches and pains, creating social cohesion after a competition.

3. Learning common language: ask a trail runner if they got their PB or DNFd on their last race and they’ll instantly know what you meant (did you finish in your “personal best” time or at the other end of the spectrum, “did not finish”). Runners might ask if others are planning to run at specific upcoming events, assuming that others will have heard of said event. Exclusive events require entering a lottery after qualifying by finishing well at a comparable event often yield reverence, much like religious pilgrimages. Religious terms, phrases, and other lingo that might not be fully understood by nonmembers is part of becoming a member of a group.

4. Online connections: group membership doesn’t have to be an in-person experience. My students regularly connect on specific social media platforms that seem to change from year to year. Social media sites have created opportunities for all sorts of virtual groups to form and create their own shared experiences, often with written and unwritten rules and language as noted above. Political blogs are one example of a more diffuse type of membership, where commenters often “know” each other through regular participation in the comment section. Vloggers with large followings and regular commenters often create “communities,” occasionally interacting view commenters and inviting viewers to become paying members with special badges identifying them as part of a more exclusive group.

5. Visible status as group members: like virtual badges, we often use visible signs that signal that we are members of a group. My students regularly wear university-branded sweatshirts to class, and it is very common to see people in many social settings wearing college gear or putting a license plate frame proclaiming their connection to a university on their car. Trail race finishers get medals, which are a bit tacky to wear to far from the finish line, but race-day t-shirts are included as standard with entry fees to many races. Wearing religious or political symbols are other ways to identify one’s group membership.

How do these five steps apply to groups to which you belong? Are there any other processes that you have gone through to be a member of a group (such as the selection process)?

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