title: On the group entity.
abstract: The group entity is postulated as a construct that accounts for phenomena, which, in a group, come to be experienced by group members as "the group" and that are referred to in the literature as the group-as-a-whole. This article reviews the literature on whole group phenomena. It describes the group entity as it is formed and maintained. A process is outlined using the ideas of spatialization, objectization, enlivenment, and participation. These concepts will describe the way in which the group entity arises and comes to be a part of the individual's experience in a group. Projective identification is viewed as the main mechanism responsible for the intragroup dynamics involving the group entity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Alberta Hospitals.
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Duncan
mesh_terms: D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D006126:Group Processes; D006801:Humans; D010550:Personal Space; D011582:Psychological Theory; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D012919:Social Behavior; D012932:Social Facilitation