Resistance to social influence

What is social support?

the presence of people who resist pressures to conform or obey can also help others to do the same. They act as models to show that you can resist social influence (Situational)

What are the two main factors that influence resistance?

conformity and obedience

How does conformity influence resistance?

• pressure to conform is reduced if other people aren’t conforming

• in Asch’s study, the dissenter doesn’t have to give the ‘right’ answer but simply seeing someone else not give in to the majority is enough for others not to conform

• it allows a person to be free to follow their own conscience

How does obedience influence resistance?

• pressure to obey reduces when another person disobeys

• in one of Milgram’s variations, obedience dropped from 65% to 10% when the genuine ppt was joined by a disobedient confederate

• they may not follow their behaviour but acted as a ‘model’ for the ppt to copy that frees him to act from his own conscience

What is locus of control?

the extent to how much control we believe we have on our lives. Internals believe they have large amounts of control whereas externals believe things happen beyond their control (Dispositional)

What are the characteristics of people who have an internal locus of control?

• they tend to be more self-confident, more achievement oriented, have higher intelligence and have less need for social approval, leading to greater resistance to social influence

• they take personal responsibility for their actions (both good and bad) so are more likely to base their decisions on their own beliefs

What are the characteristics of people who have an external locus of control?

• tend to be less self-confident, less achievement oriented, have lower intelligence and have more need for social approval, leading to no resistance to social influence

• they take very little responsibility for their actions (both good and bad) so are more likely to base their decisions on their social pressures

How is the fact that there is research support showing that social support reduces conformity a strength? (+counter/development)

as it demonstrates that the presence of an ally gives individuals confidence to resist majority pressure

C: however Asch’s study is artificial as it was conducted in a lab, so the findings may lack ecological validity and may not generalise to real-world resistance

Give an example of this strength

for example, Asch replicated his original line study but with a dissenter that gave the correct answer. He found that conformity dropped from 32% to 5%

How is the fact that social support can be seen in everyday situations and not just experiments a strength?

as it highlights how social support can give people the confidence to stand together against majority influence

Give an example of this strength

for instance, in school settings, students are often more likely to resist peer pressure (e.g skipping class) when they have even one friends supporting their decision

How is the fact that there is evidence that challenges the link between locus of control and resistance a weakness?

as it contradicts the expectation that people with an internal locus of control are more likely to resist social influence, suggesting that locus of control is not a valid explanation of how people resist social influence

Give an example of this weakness

for example, Twenge et al conducted a meta-analysis and found that over a 40-year period, people have become more resistant to obedience but also more external

How is the fact that locus of control offers a clear account of why some people resist social influence a strength?

as it links personality differences to resistance which situational explanations can’t acount for

Give an example of this strength

for instance, Rotter proposed that individuals with an internal locus of control are more likely to resist pressures to conform or obey because they see themselves as responsible for their actions and less reliant on others