Types of Conformity and Explanations for Conformity

What are the three levels of conformity identified by psychologists, and how do they differ broadly?

• Compliance: Shallowest, temporary level.

• Identification: Intermediate level (conforming to a role).

• Internalisation: Deepest, permanent level.

• They differ based on whether the change in behavior is public, private, or both, and how long the change lasts.

Define Compliance as a type of conformity and give its key characteristics.

• The shallowest level of conformity.

• An individual publicly goes along with the group to fit in or avoid conflict, but privately completely disagrees.

• It is temporary—the behavior stops the moment group pressure is removed.

Define Internalisation as a type of conformity and give its key characteristics.

• The deepest level of conformity.

• An individual genuinely accepts the group's norms, leading to a true change in both public behavior and private beliefs.

• It is a permanent ideological shift that persists even when the group is no longer there

Who proposed the primary explanation for conformity, what is it called, and what are its two core pillars?

• Proposed by Deutsch and Gerard (1955).

• Called the Two-Process Model.

• It argues people conform based on two basic human needs: the need to be liked (Normative Social Influence) and the need to be right (Informational Social Influence).

What is Informational Social Influence (ISI)

• A cognitive process based on the human desire to be factually right.

• Occurs in ambiguous (unclear) situations, crises, or when we perceive others as experts; we look to the majority for the "correct" information.

• Typically leads to internalisation (genuinely adopting the group's perspective).