Is group studies really effective for you ?

Some people like group studies for the sake of hanging out with friends or trying to get better grades after most successful people said that they too once did group studies to work smart instead of work hard. Now here's the real deal about the whole concept of group studies whether it helps or not depends on one's own perception. We tend to help a friend with his studies if and only if they asked for help or unless there are some intentions but I'm not saying all of us does that (just some). Unless we teaches others in the group sincerely that only we will feel a sense of accomplishment and enable others to understand the teaching and not doubting us or even question or tease us as we are trying our best to help. But the whole idea isn't for us to be dependent people who just wait for someone to be that sorta helpful and guide us or even going around asking for help. When studying together with friends i tend to boast my knowledge as to prove that I'm the better one which is the whole idea of group studying. Using this whole perception before you study trying to explain what you just read to your friends and your normal one, don't know about you but i prefer the explaining idea. If we study normally by ourselves but with the perception of explaining to someone else later will we have the same effect? That's why the whole idea of group studies is kinda like this or at least that's what it is for me!