Psychology Social influence

define conformity

occurs when a person changes their behaviour due to social pressure

what are the two types of conformity

Compliance and internalisation

what is Compliance

• when a person adopts a behaviour to gain approval or to avoid embarrassment.

• Person will stop conforming when not in group setting.

• It is a result of normative social influence

what is internalisation

• deepest level of conformity 

• when an individual fully accepts the groups views of behaviour as a part of their own 

• it usually results from informational social influence

what are strengths to types of conformity

• supportive evidence (Asch) 

• Has practical applications (explain heavy drinking and smoking)

what are some weaknesses to conformity

• the quality of this evidence may not have real world applications (lab based/ mundane realism)

• other things can influence conformity 

• cultural differences

what was Asch’s original study into conformity

Aim: to investigate whether participants will conform to an obviously wrong answer

Method: Participants were asked to match on standard line to three possibilities. the participants were 50 male, American undergraduates in groups of 7-9 with one being a real participant.12 of the 18 trials were critical and the real participant always answered last or second to last

Findings: 26% did not conform in critical trials 
5% conformed on every trial 
74% conformed at least once 
32% of trials ended in conformity 

Conclusion: demonstrates normative social influence 

what are the strengths to Asch’s research into conformity

• highly controlled (standardised)

• useful applications (normative social influence)

• can help explain historical events

what are weaknesses to Asch’s research into conformity

• can have a cultural bias (bond and Smith)

• Mundane realsim (ecological validity)

• temporal validity (took place in 1950s)

• ethical concerns (deception)

• generalisability (Early and Carli women conformity research)

Outline Aschs variation into group size

Aim: to investigate whether having more confederates giving the same answer

Method: Asch made the majority to record the effect it had on the participant. The original method was used but the numbers of confederates varied from 1,2,3,4,8,10 or 15 

Findings: conformity was only 3% when there was 1 confederate 
conformity rose to 13% when there were two confederates 

conformity rose to 32% when there were 3 confederates

conclusion:group size increases conformity until majority of 3 

outline Aschs variation into unanimity 

Aim: Asch wanted to see if one person dissenting from the majority would affect the likelihood of the participant conforming 

Method: one confederate acts as an ally breaking the unanimity of the rest of the confederates
findings: when the confederate ally who gave the right answer conformity dropped to 5.5%

when the confederate ally gave the other incorrect answer conformity dropped to 9%

conclusion: social support was the factor affecting

outline Asch’s variation into task difficulty

Aim: to investigate whether conformity increases when the task becomes more difficult 
Method: lines were made more similar
Findings: conformed because of informational social influence 
conclusion: conformity is more likely when the task is more difficuly

strengths of the research into Aschs variations

• demonstrates importance of situational variables 

• has useful application that the majority needs to be unanimous

• variations corroborate the original findings due to standardised design it has been possible to replicate findings across the world

weaknesses of the research into Aschs variations

• temporal validity (Perrin and Spencer conducted the research 30 years later and only 1 person conformed in 396)

• the setting and task has poor mundane realism meaning poor ecological validity

• ethical issues

what is informational social influence

it is an explanation to internalisation meaning that a person takes the values behind the behaviour as their own likely changing personal behaviour

what is normative social influence

an explanation to compliance where behaviour is changed in public but maintain own beliefs in private 

positives for explanations for conformity

• Asch gives evidence

• the research base is empirical (lab studies/standardised)

• useful applications

criticisms for explanations for conformity

• explanations for normative social influence and informational social influence may not have real world applications (ecological validity)

• their are individual differences differences to how susceptible people are to NSI (McGhee and Teevan found that students with a stronger desire to be liked are more likely to conform)

• its not always clear whether it was NSI or ISI

outline milligrams research into obedience 

Aim: to see how far people would obey if it was involving harming another person

Method: volunteers were recruited and told it was a study on learning and punishment. Participants were 40 males ages 20 to 50. There were 2 confederates one being the researcher and one being the teacher. The learner would be taken into a different room and the teacher would be instructed to ask questions then shock if they got the question wrong (which they did)the learner increasing from 15 volts to 450 and the a pre-recorded standardised response would play to each shock the researcher would tell the teacher to do it

results:65% gave shocks to 450 and 35% stopped before 450 volts

strengths for milligrams research into obedience 

• high internal validity 

• other studies support findings (Hoflings study astroten double dosage 21/22 nurses complied)

• Sheridan and king did the study on dogs and 54% of males and 100% of women gave shock

weaknesses to milgrams study into obedience

• has ethical issues (psychologically and physically)

• argue of demand characteristics 

• low population validity due to sample being all men

• cultural bias

outline milgrams situational variation on proximity to victim

Aim: to see whether proximity affects obedience

method: milgram varied the distance between mr Wallace and the participant by having him put his hand on the shock plate

results: when in the same room it was 40% when forcing hand on the plate it was 30%

conclusion: the more a person is able to avoid consequence the more obedient 

outline milgrams situational variation on proximity to experimenter

aim: to see whether proximity to the experimenter affects obedience

method: milgram varied the distance between experimenter and participant to on the phone
results: it went to 21%

conclusion: if the experimenter isn’t giving orders in person obedience decreases

outline milgrams situational variation on location

aim: to investigate whether location has an effect on the obedience level

method: it was held in a run down office building

results: 48%

conclusion: people are more obedient to a prestigious place due to legitimate authority 

outline milgrams situational variation on uniform

aim: to investigate effect on uniform on obedience

method: milgram had the experimenter take off his lab coat

results: 20%

conclusion: obedience is due to legitimate authority 

outline bickmans study on uniform

aim: to see how people in real life responds to uniform

method: it was a field experiment in New York where a confederate gave a simple command in three conditions wearing a guards uniform, milk deliverers uniform and civilian clothes

results: guard uniform 76% milk deliver 47% civilians clothes 30%

conclusion: uniforms increase obedience 

strengths of the situational variations of milgrams study into obedience

• high internal validity

• practical applications

• high external validity

weaknesses of the situational variations of milgrams study into obedience

• ecological validity

• cultural bias (same study done in germany and obedience was 85% and in Australia 16%)

• it oversimplifies complex social behaviour such as obedience

• ignores personality 

what is an agent state

when individuals feels able to pass responsibility to pass their actions on to an authority figure

what is an autonomous state

where people are able to take full responsibility of their actions

what are the strengths of agentic state and legitimacy of authority 

• strong evidence

• can explain real world relevance

what are weaknesses to legitimacy of authority and agent state

• it doesn’t explain why some individuals resist authority 

outline the dispositional authoritarian personality

• parents are strict and distant growing up

• the individual then displaces anger to weaker targets

• displacement allows anger to be directed minimised groups

• people with an authoritarian personality respect authority and tend to be obedient 

outline adornos f-scale research

aim: investigate anti-semitism and other prejudice by exploring whether a specific personality type is associated with higher levels of predjudice

method: participants around 2000 middle class white men, American were asked questions to measure authoritarian personalities

conclusion: authoritarian personalitites are more prone to predjucice

what are positives for dispositional explanation for obedience - authoritarian personality

• research supporting (zillmer 16 nazi war criminals, elms and milgram)

• systematic way to meseaure authoritarian personality traits

weaknesses for dispositional explanation for obedience - authoritarian personality

• difficulty establishing a cause and effect link

• researcher bias (only using right wing)

• overemphasises childhood upbringing and underemphasises childhood upbringing and underestimates situational and social influence

• limits generalisability

what is social support

social support is a situational explanation to resistance to social influence involving having an ally supporting their point of view allowing no fear of being ridiculed allowing them to avoid NSI 

what is an internal locus of control 

an internal locus of control is a dispositional explanation to social influence which is a way of thinking where an individual believes that events result primarily from their own behaviour and actions

strengths of explanations of resistance to social influence 

• research supporting social support (milgram disobidieient confederates dropped to 10% and with obedient rose to 92.5)(Aschs ally when the confederate gave the right answer conformity dropped to 5.5%)

• findings are replicable

• real world application to explain resistance

weaknesses of explanations of resistance to social influence

• there’s no supporting evidence to resisting social influence (no evidence in Oliner and Oliner finding Jewish rescuers were more likely to have ILOC)

• lab studies ignore the fact that there is a lot more context to social and social supporter are strangers

what are the three qualities involved in minority influence

consistency 

commitment 

flexibility 

what is consistency

sticking to their view over a period of time
diachronic - consistency over time

synchronic - consistency between group members

what is commitment 

supporters taking more serious measures and willing to suffer for their view

what is flexibility 

not being rigid thinking and dogmatic

what are some examples of minority influence

• suffragettes

• LGBTQ activists 

• climate activists 

outline moscovicis blue green study on minority influence 

aim: to investigate the effect of a consistent minority on a majority 

method: hes participants were 172 females told they were taking part in a colour perception test. Groups of 6 with two confederates and 4 participants where they were told to read colours aloud. There were 36 shades of blue on slides. In the ‘consistent group’ the confederates read ‘green’ for all slides. in the inconsistent group they read green ‘24’ times 

results: consistent group 8%

inconsistent group 1.25%

conclusion: minorities are more influential when consistent

outline nemeths ski lift compensation study on minority influence

Aim: to investigate the effect of flexibility on minority influence

method: participants were put into groups of four and told to discuss an appropriate compensation for someone injured on a ski lift one of the four confederates was inflexible and argued a very low amount in the flexible condition the confederate argued for very low but increased it.

results: in the flexible condition the minority affected the overall sum agreed. the inflexible there was no effect on the minority

conclusion: a flexible minority is more influential 

strengths to minority influence

• there is research supporting consistent and flexibility

weaknesses to minority influence

• lab studies only look at short term change 

• ethical issues with the use of deception in the studies 

• it is not applicable to real world situations