Small Group Performance: Reinterpreting Proximate Evaluations from an Ultimate Perspective

In this article, two scientific approaches are conjoined: Small group research and evolutionary theory. In the past 50 years, small group researchers have identified various deficits in group performance. Presently, how to improve group interaction is a focal point of their work. Meanwhile, social psychologists are paying more attention to evolutionary theory, and process losses in group performance may be evaluated differently from such a perspective. It appears that proximate performance losses could mean ultimate gains for the individual. A reduction in group performance should therefore be anticipated from a proximate perspective, because it represents an individual selection advantage from the ultimate view. As a means of intervention, group facilitation techniques are the key to proximate gains in group processes.