THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE GROUP 199
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individual differentiation on the one hand and to a greater
similarity in sociological form to other groups on the other
hand. The quantitative increase in the size of the group
leads to a qualitative differentiation on the part of the in-
dividuals. The small existing differences in disposition and
occupation between individuals become larger because in-
creased competition necessitates individual specialization.
On the other hand, the new group as a whole will resemble
existing groups more closely than the groups out of which
it was formed. There is only a relatively small number of
sociological forms available, and this number can be only
slowly increased. The greater the number of sociological
forms within a group, that is, the more complex its so-
ciological structure, the more will it therefore resemble
other complex sociological structures. In the amalgamated
group, the sociological counterpart of the individual differ-
entiation will create a set of sociological structures which
are already found in other groups. The more fully the proc-
ess of individual and social differentiation reshapes the
new group, the more fully will it therefore come to resem-
ble existing groups.
But not only is an extension of the social circle followed
by an increased individual specialization. An increased
individual differentiation is also followed by the creation
of wider social circles. The differentiation of the individ-
ual from his fellow-group members seems accompanied
by a tendency to make social contacts with individuals in
other groups. It seems to create a need for transgressing
the spatial, economic, political, or spiritual boundaries of
the former group. In so far as this tendency leads to the
formation of superordinated circles out of smaller groups,
it has been treated in the preceding chapter. Here the tend-
ency is of interest in the light of the full correlation between
individual differentiation and the extension of the group.
