Social Influence

What is Conformity?

What is Conformity?

When you choose to go along with the majority (majority influence) We can yield (give in) publicly or privatley

Give an example of Conformity

Fashion trends

What are the 3 types of conformity?

• Compliance

• Identification

• Internalisation

What is compliance?

When you publicly go along with the majority as you want to gain approval, privately you do not change your attitude

Give an example of Compliance

following a social norm such as leaving a tip for a waiter even if you have had bad service and don't want to.

What is identification?

When you identify with a group and want to be apart of it. This could e a group of friends or new work colleagues, you act in the same way as the group but don't necessarily believe everything the group believes.

What is internalisation?

When we take on the majority view because we think the group is right, this leads to public and private acceptance of the groups beliefs.

Give an example of Internalisation.

Becoming a vegetarian because you believe that eating animals in wrong

What are the 2 explanations of conformity?

• informational social influence

• normative social influence

What is informational social influence?

If we are uncertain we follow the group or an individual we think is right, This leads to permanent change in opinion and behavior.

Give an example is ISI

Putting your hand up as the 'clever kid' has

What is normative social influence?

What is normal for a social group, we don't want to appear foolish and we like to be liked, this can be more pronounced in stressful situations but doesn't leas to change in your private opinion.

Give an example of NSI

Liking a post even if you don't really like it

What is a nAfilliator?

Someone who has a strong need for affiliation and need to be liked and is more likely to conform

What research support is there for ISI?

Lucas et asked students to give answers to maths problems that were easy and more difficult, He found there was greater conformity to the difficult answers. This is because when the problem were easy the participants 'knew their own minds' but when the problems were hard the situation became unclear and the participants did not want to be wrong so they relied on other people and assumed they new better.

What research support is there for NSI?

Asch (1951) interviewed his participants, some said they conformed because they felt self-conscience giving the correct answer and they were afraid of disapproval.

What were Asch's findings?

• 37% conformed

• 25% did not conform

• 77% conformed at least once

In Asches study did group size effect conformity?

increased conformity

In Asches study did unanimity effect conformity?

decreased conformity

In Asches study did task difficulty effect conformity?

Increased conformity

limitations of Asches experiment

participants knew they were in a study artificial task (not true to life) only men tested

Strengths of Asches experiment

supported be research by Lucas et al

What is 'individualistic culture?

Importance of independence and individualism (USA and UK)

What is a 'collective culture'?

Importance of the group (Japan and China)

What was the Stanford Prison Experiment?

24 students volunteered and we're divided into 2 groups: prisoners and prison guards. Discovered that a person's behavior in a role is pet determined by the expectations and definitions of that role. Student paying the role of the guard was harsh and unrelenting in some instances.

What were the problems with the Stanford Prison experiment?

lack of realism control ethical issues exaggerates the power of roles

What are the main ethical issues?

Deception Right to withdraw Informed Consent Protection From harm Confidentiality

What ethical issues were wrong with Zimbardos study?

Deception Right to Withdraw Protection from harm

What was Zimbardos response to being told he violated ethical issues?

study was approved by the office of naval research the only desperation was in the arrest they signed consent forms debriefings held

What were the results of Milgams experiment?

65% went to 450V 100% went to 300V

What are the problems with the Milgram Shock experiment?

Low internal validity

What were the strengths with the Milgram shock experiment?

• Good external validity

• supporting replication

What were the Ethical issues with Milgrams study?

• Deception

• Right to Withdraw

• Protection from harm

How did the variation of Location effect the findings on Milgram? (when the study was conducted in a rundown building rather than a university)

Obedience fell to 47.5%

How did the variation of Uniform effect the findings on Milgram? (when the experimenter was not wearing a lab coat)

obedience fell to 20%

What is the agentic state?

A mental state where we feel no personal responsibility for our behaviour because we believe ourselves to be acting for an authority figure

What is the Autonomous state?

They are free to behave to their own principles and therefore feel a sense of responsibility for their own actions

What is the legitimacy of Authority?

It explains that we are more likely to obey people who we perceive to have an authority over us. This is justified by the individuals position of power within a social hierarchy.

What is a consequence of legitimate authority?

becomes destructive and grants the power to punish others

What is destructive authority?

When a Legitimate Authority becomes destructive. like Hitler

What happened at My Lai?

204 innocent civilians were killed by US troops who where only 'following orders'

What is the authoritarian personality?

A state of complete obedience and submission to those of higher status and submissive of inferiors

What are the origins of the authoritarian personality?

• forms in childhood from harsh parenting

• conditional love

Who's search backed up the authoritarian personality?

Adorno Et al

What did Adorno et al do?

Studied more than 200 middle class white Americans and their unconscious attitudes towards ethnic groups and developed the F-scale

Give an example of a statement on the F-scale

"homosexuals are hardly better than criminals and ought to be severely punished"

What is the locus of Control?

refers to extent to which people think they have control over their life

What are the two sides of the LOC?

• Internal

• External

How does someone with an internal LOC think?

they control their own destiny

How does someone with an external LOC think?

Others control their destiny

What are the limitations of the LOC?

too simplistic

What did Hollands repetition of Milgrams experiment show?

He measured if participants were high internals or externals. 37% of internals didn't go to 450V 23% of externals didn't go to 450V