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sociometry

sociometry

1 9.9
A study of how people in a group choose or prefer others using numbers
  • noun
  • /ˌsoʊsiˈɑːmətri/
  • Specialized
: sociometría
  • The team decided to apply sociometry to better understand the dynamics within their project group.

Examples

  • The sociometry study revealed surprising patterns of friendship among students in the class.

  • However, according to Rogers (2003), self-determination was discovered to be much less reliable when compared with sociometry, because it is dependent upon the precision and reliability with which participants could distinguish and report their own self-images.

    Academic text (2015)
  • Our skill base, such as sociometry work, could be developed through technology.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Sociometry could be used for better inclusion and empowerment.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Self-description (also known as self-determination) and sociometry were noted as the most widely used techniques for discovering the identities of opinion leaders.

    Academic text (2015)
  • A survey was mailed to 200 randomly selected individuals from the Directory of the American Board of Examiners in Psychodrama, Sociometry, and Group Psychotherapy.

    Academic text (1999)
  • It has been demonstrated that teachers can, at best, only moderately predict the social status of individual students in their classrooms; therefore, sociometry should be used to organize small-group instruction.

    Academic text (1991)
  • In order to ascertain the opinions of psychodramatists about issues facing their profession for the next millennium, a survey was mailed to 200 individuals selected at random from the directory of the American Board of Examiners in Psychodrama, Sociometry, and Group Psychotherapy.

    Academic text (1999)
  • By using sociometry, researchers were able to quantify how participants interacted during group activities.

Synonyms

group dynamics
vssociometry
  • Specialized
3 5.4

The way people in a group behave and interact

uses numbers to measure interaction patterns and member preferences within groups

Surface Forms

sociometry singular
sociometries plural

Morphology

sociometry = social + metry (semi-transparent) = socio + metry

While 'socio' and 'metry' are clear, the specific application to social relationships requires specialized knowledge.

Etymology

Sociometry comes from socio- meaning 'companion' or 'group', seen in words like social and society, and -metry meaning 'measure', as in meter. So sociometry means 'measuring' social ties and helps map who likes or works with whom in a group.