Conformity: Types and explanations (2)

What are the 3 types of conformity?

1. Internalisation

2. Identification

3. Compliance

What is internalisation?

• When a person genuinely accepts group norms.

• Results in a private and public change of opinions/behaviour

• Permanent change because attitudes have been internalised

What is identification?

• Conforming to the opinions/behaviour of a group because we value and identify with them

• Publicly conforming to be accepted by the group but privately disagreeing

What is compliance?

• Going along with others in public but privately disagreeing

• Only a superficial + temporary change

• Conformity stops when group pressure stops

What is the explanation for conformity?

Two-process theory

Who created the two-process theory?

Deutsch and Gerard

What are the 2 reasons people conform according to the 2-process theory?

• They need to be right (INFORMATIONAL SOCIAL INFLUENCE)

• They need to be liked (NORMATIVE SOCIAL INFLUENCE)

What is ISI?

• Following the behaviour of the group because we believe it is correct and we want to be right

• Cognitive process

• Leads to internalisation

• Occurs in situations that are new to a person or where there is some ambiguity

What is NSI?

• Emotional process

• Agree with the majority opinion because we want to gain social approval and be liked

• Leads to compliance

• Occurs in situations with strangers where you may feel concerned about rejection

• May also occur with people you know because we are most concerned about social approval of our friends

What is a strength of the types and explanations of conformity?

Research support for NSI

When Asch interviewed his participants, some said they conformed because they felt self-conscious giving the correct answer and were afraid of disapproval.

When PPs wrote their answers down, conformity fell to 12.5% → giving answers privately meant no normative group pressure

This shows that some conformity is due to a desire to not be rejected by the group for disagreeing with them (NSI)

What is another strength for the types and explanations of conformity?

Research support for ISI
Lucas et al found that PPs conformed more often to (incorrect) answers they were given when the maths problems were difficult.

This is because when the problems were easy, the PPs ‘knew their own minds’ but when they were hard, the situation became ambiguous.

The PPs didn’t want to be wrong so they relied on the answers they were given.

This shows that ISI is a valid explanation of conformity because the results are what ISI would predict.

COUNTERPOINT

It is unclear whether it is NSI or ISI at work in studies.

E.g. Asch found that conformity reduced when there is 1 dissenting participant.

The dissenter may reduce the power of NSI (by providing social support) OR the power of ISI (providing information)

Therefore, it is hard to separate NSI and ISI and they probably operate together in real-world situations.

What is a limitation of research into the types and explanations of conformity?

NSI does not predict conformity in every case

nAffiliators are people who are concerned with being liked by others.

McGhee and Teevan found that students who were nAffiliators were more likely to conform!

This shows that NSI underlies conformity for some people more than it does for others.