So, I've been revisiting some of my past experiences with my old coven. I reunited with several coven-mates last year, and discovered that my old tradition -- #Alexandrian -- had split into two factions -- one that accepted transwomen, and one that didn't. If I ever decide to get back into it again, guess which faction I'd choose. And yeah -- unfortunately power dynamics, hierarchy and potential emotional and psychological abuse happens a lot in "religious" groups -- even #Pagan ones.

I've managed to summarize the "Pros" and "Cons" of my joining a coven all those years ago...

Reasons I joined the coven:

1. Earth-centered religion with a political focus (Thomas Morton Alliance)
2. I learned Welsh from my high priestess.
3. My high priestess was a very intelligent, feminist, who espoused matriarchy, egalitarianism, and who was a Marxist anti-capitalist and a role model for me.
4. One of my coven-mates became my gay best friend (we're still BFFs).
5. Another coven-mate taught me traditional plant medicine and herbalism.

Reasons I left the coven:

1. I was pigeon-holed into "feminine" roles in rituals (even though I identified as NB and more masculine than feminine).
2. Over-bearing "acting" high priest (AIM member who was a bit of a bully).
3. Over-bearing coven-mate (AIM member) was distrustful of gay best friend (and was homophobic).
4. "Feminist" high priestess allowed herself to become emotionally and financially dependent on over-bearing coven-mate, refused to accept help from coven-mates (like having a room-mate, or other mutual aid), and when over-bearing coven-mate ran off with a younger, female coven-mate, high priestess fell apart -- eventually taking her own life (despite the support of the coven -- which soon fell apart as well).

And some folks wonder why I'm a solitary (though most of my witchy / Pagan friends understand why).
#PaganPolitics #GroupDynamics #Hierarchy #WhatSomeWitchesDid

Kids (2019) [9 min] by Michael Frei (@playables) | #Switzerland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeG_pKtp83w

Zuckerberg claimed moderation changes on Meta platforms promote “free expression”. But some experts worry he’s bowing to right-wing political pressure, and will effectively allow a deluge of hate speech and lies to spread on Meta platforms.

Research on the group dynamics of social media suggests those experts have a point. https://theconversation.com/the-dynamics-that-polarise-us-on-social-media-are-about-to-get-worse-247027?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=The+Conversation+UK&utm_campaign=publer

Social Identity Theory provides insights into political polarization by explaining how individuals categorize themselves into groups, fostering in-group loyalty and out-group hostility. This categorization leads to stronger identification with political parties and increased disdain for opposing views. As people seek to align with their group’s beliefs and norms, polarization intensifies.

#PoliticalScience #SocialIdentity #Polarization #GroupDynamics #Psychology

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/beyond-school-walls/202408/how-social-identity-theory-explains-political-polarization?utm_source=flipboard&utm_content=HariTulsidas%2Fmagazine%2FMind+and+Matter

There are many in the left, particularly the anarchist and anti-authoritarian tendencies, who believe that because all hierarchy and power are bad, there should be little or no structure to our organizations.

However, no matter how well-organized we are, hidden power structures often remain, and these can result in dynamics where some members are doing most of the talking and decision-making, while others are effectively silenced.

A great read on this topic is: "The Tyranny of Structurelessness," by Jo Freeman, published in 1970, but still relevant today.

Pearson on Conflict Resolution, Burnout, and CZN

https://kolektiva.media/videos/watch/f91008b2-bdf4-48f1-8fdf-35dace6ceb7a

#askfedi

What is your stance with food at the table? I have heard that this is not an appropriate practice for some, but as a food loving American, every table I have been at has almost always had food during the game.

Watch me... I will even eat in character!

comrades, anyone got any resources on doing active listening, or NVC, in a group (as opposed to 1-on-1)?

> Gives a crash course on #Fediverse and #libreSoftware to a group of young adults.

A third of them are more interested in whether we'll be going to visit the sexual partners later, and the other third are asking how they can make money off it and whether its on the #stockMarket.

Do we present that well? Maybe we should be flattered?

Wethinks some #groupDynamics are at play here, because one-on-one #crashCourses are completely different and the young person is far more sensible/thoughtful.

Evaporative Cooling of Group Beliefs

...[I]t’s important to be prejudiced in favor of tolerating dissent. Wait until substantially after it seems to you justified in ejecting a member from the group, before actually ejecting. If you get rid of the old outliers, the group position will shift, and someone else will become the oddball. If you eject them too, you’re well on the way to becoming a Bose-Einstein condensate...

https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/ZQG9cwKbct2LtmL3p/evaporative-cooling-of-group-beliefs

PSA to those interested in self-organization: after spending about 2 days in a library, I've found the most relevant search term to be #groupDynamics'.

'Organizational psychology' is almost entirely related to command hierarchies.