ABSTRACT
This chapter offers a framework for analyzing the temporal dimensions of group-environment relations. It introduces a set of temporal concepts that refer not to the independent attributes of persons and environments, but rather to various forms of interdependence that arise among people and their sociophysical milieu. Much social psychological research reflects a restricted temporal scope and neglects the symbolic significance of the physical environment for individuals and groups. The chapter emphasizes the symbolic aspects of physical objects and places and the role of environmental symbolism in facilitating group cohesion and continuity. Generally, temporal concepts and measures have been used in psychological studies to describe dispositional attributes of persons or objective features of environments. A more complete analysis would address the dynamic nature of temporal orientations in groups and give explicit attention to the evolution and change of these orientations as a result of factors internal and external to the group.
