Social Influence

Conformity

The tendency to align attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors with those of a group or social norm, often to gain acceptance or avoid rejection.

Compliance

A type of social influence where an individual changes their behavior in response to a direct request from another person.

Obedience

The act of following direct commands or instructions from an authority figure, often without question.

Priming

When a schema (mental representation) is activated in us, we are more likely to use it

Deutsch and Gerard 1955

Distinguished between two types of social influence: informational and normative influence.

Informational Social Influence

Change in order to be correct

Normative Social Influence

Change in order to be accepted

Operational Definition

A definition in terms of being measurable

Conceptual Definition

The dictionary definition

Correlational Method

Way of determining the degree of association between two variables, does not imply causation

Correlational Method’s Pros

manipulation is impossible, efficient, and predictions can be made

Correlational Method’s Cons

No random assignment, third variable problem, no clear relationship is established in terms of cause and effect

Experimental Method

the investigator varies some factors, keeps others constant, and measures the effects on randomly assigned subjects

Internal Validity

Extent to which Independent Variable manipulates what it's supposed to and the difference between groups on the Dependent Variable are due to the Independent Variable

External Validity

Mundane realism, psychological realism, replication

Mundane Realism

does the experience occur in the real world

Psychological Realism

Similar emotions, thinking occur in the real world

Replication

ability to replicate the experiment

Biases in Research

Demand Characteristics and Experimenter Effects

Demand Characteristics

aspects of research setting provide cues for behavior of the participants

Experimenter Effects

The experimenter influences subjects to act in a way to confirm their belief

What is needed to determine if the test or instrument is good

Reliable, Valid, Standardized

Reliable

Ability of a test to produce consistent results when administered on repeated occasions under similar conditions

Valid

Ability of a test to measure what it is intended to measure

Standardized

Administration of a test under uniform condition for the purpose of establishing norms

Attitudes

a learned evaluative response, directed at specific “object”

Components of the Tripartile Model

Cognitive (Thoughts), Emotional, Behavioral

5 Ways Attitudes Form

1. Classical Conditioning

2. Instrumental Conditioning

3. Observational Learning

4. Direct Experience (Strongest attitudes)

5. Genetics

The LaPiere Study (1934)

200 establishments with a young Asian couple, 98% said through a letter they would not allow them in, only rejected from one

Factors influencing attitude-behavior consistency

1. Strength of attitudes

2. Extremity of attitudes

3. Accessibility of attitudes

Behavioral Intention

the combination of the theory of planned behavior

Theory of Planned Behavior

behavior is influenced primarily by behavioral intention

Influences of Behavioral Inention

• Your Specific Attitudes

• Subjective Social Norms

• Perceived behavioral control (sometimes intentions aren’t enough)

Cognitive Consistency

Fundamental need for consistency of thoughts and behavior

Balance Theory (Heider)

o Relationship among a person (p), another person (o), and an attitude object (x)

o We prefer our attitudes to be consistent with one another and with our behavior; tension when there isn't consistency

o Consistency across people

§ If people like you, usually they will agree with you

§ Ex) Sales, politician, restaurant

Cognitive Dissonance (Festinger)

internal inconsistency (Interpersonal, justification, hypocrisy)

Conditions for dissonance to occur

• free choice (Especially when public)

• counter-intuitive

• irrevocable (cannot be withdrawn)

Ways to reduce Dissonance

• Be comfortable with inconsistency

• trivialize it

• add consonant cognitions

• change a cognition or behavior

Knox and Inkster Horse Betting Study

• Post-decisional dissonance (spreading of alternatives)

• DV: confidence in the bet

• IV: asking before or after bet

Elaboration Likelihood Model

o Sometimes we think, and sometimes we don't think most of the time we are on autopilot

o Two ways of attitude changes: thinking or not thinking

o How likely are you to elaborate (or think) about something

Central Processing (Systematic)

Harder, has to mean something, persuaded by content, regular motivation and ability

Peripheral Processing

Easier, common, vibes-based persuasion persuaded by peripheral cues: humor and attraction

Reactance Theory

A. We jealously guard our freedom—especially against unjustified reduction

o A prohibited action may seem more appealing

o Ex. When a product is not available, it seems better

o The more you know someone is trying to influence you, the more you will push back

Inoculation

Knowing other side of argument increases resistance to it

Two types of Social norms

• Descriptive

• Injunctive

Descriptive Norms

What most people do

Injunctive Norms

What people should do

Triplett (1898)

Bicyclists pedal faster when in groups

Allport (1920’s)

Participants generated worse refutations when in a group verse on their own

Landmark Experiment

Kids wind fishing reels faster when others are around

Drive Theory Steps

1. Presence of Others

2. Heightened Arousal

3. Enhanced Tendency to perform dominant responses

4. Correct dominant response/ incorrect dominant response

5. performance enhanced/ performance impaired

Drive Theory

Presence of others leads to arousal, and arousal facilitates dominant response

Distraction Conflict Theory

Conflict between paying attention to task or to something else, this conflict leads to narrowing your focus: helps for simple, hurts complex

Social Loafing

In a group we decrease our performance especially for additive tasks

Ringleman “Rope Pulling” Study

People would pull less weight the more people involved

Latane “Yelling” Study

does loafing occur because of less effort or less concentration

Ways to reduce social loafing

Identify individual performance, group cohesiveness, reward group output, interesting complete tasks

Why join a group

common identity, facilitate survival, reduce uncertainty, boost self esteem/feeling of belonging, entitativity

Identity Fusion

sense of oneness, extreme pro-group behavior for the group (dying), feelings of familial ties to group, rituals to increase fusion

Social Identity Theory

Predicts that we sometimes are prejudiced against another group to gen a self-esteem boost regarding our own (outgroup derogation)

How to reduce self sacrifice

bonding activites

Social trap

immediate benefits, long term cost

Examples of social trap

drinking, eating too much, unsafe sex

Collective Traps examples

drive your own car, using too much a/c, bottled water

Tragedy of the Commons

Resource that is normally replenishing can be destroyed if everyone pursues self interest

Public Goods dilemma

“Free Riding”

Mood Effects

we evaluate things more positively when we're in a positive mood, and vice versa

Hindsight Bias

After the facts are in, you think you knew it all along or would have predicted it

Rosenthal’s Bloomer Study

Students labeled as "bloomers" did better in classes

Maze-bright versus Maze-Dull Rats

Smart versus dull rats, the rats are always the same, but the "bright" rats were quicker to go through the maze than those with "dull" rats

insufficient justification effect (Festinger and Carlsmith's "peg-turning" study)

o Ps performed boring tasks for 1 hr.

o The experimenter asked Ps to help by telling the next P that the experiment was fun (a lie)

o Ps paid $1 or $20

o DV: real (private) liking of the experiment

o $1 had "more fun," it wasn't so bad to lie if you "had fun"

justificiation of effort (Aronson and Mills "psychology of sex" study)

o Women were to join the discussion on the psychology of sex

o IV: Initiation (none vs. mild vs. severe)

o None: just listen

o Mild: read phrases or words that are related to sex to the professor/ experimenter

o Severe: Read whole explicit passages to the professor/ experimenter

§ Liked it more, the more you suffer the more you like it

o Told the group had started, so listen with headphones

Petty and Cacioppo Exam Study

o 2x2x2

o IVs:

o Elaboration likelihood

§ Comprehensive exams in 1 year (centrally processed)

§ Comprehensive exams in 10 years. (peripherally processed)

o Strength of arguments

§ People in 1-year condition, this will be most important

o Number of arguments (3 or 9)

Asch Line study

A. A lot of conformity, but big individual differences

o ¾ conformed at least once

o 1/3 people went along with what the crowd said

o Independent Ps

o Confidence certain they were right and were passionate about it

o Withdrawn knew they were right, logical, not going to go along

o Prioritized the task above the need to go along with the group

o Yielding Ps

o Distortion of reality, different perceptions of which line was correct

o Distortion of judgment, lack of self-confidence, doubted

o Distortion of action, knew they were right, didn't want not to fit in, knew better, and went along anyways

True Partner (Asch Line Study)

Correct answer said before your turn by a confederate, dropped to 10% conformity

Compromise Partner (Asch Line Study)

o Conformity reduced a little, though most errors were in the moderate direction

o The compromise partner moves closer to correct but is not completely correct

Sherif's Point of Light Study

A. A light appears to move; the individual makes guesses over several trials

o The average guess was 4 inches

o Confederate said it moves 15 inches

o Participants move to match others

o In ambiguous situations, conformity rises

Pendry and Carrick (2001)

Oral queue, presented with different sounds, had to count certain sounds

Primed with punks, primed with accountants, or not primed at all

Accountants prime more conformity than the punk prime, HOWEVER! Those with no prime were like accountant prime, so punk doesn't mean less conformity, but accountant does mean more conformity

Chameleon Effect

Match the posture, facial expressions, mannerisms, and vocal characteristics of the person we are talking with

What is a group?

o 3 or more people

o Facilitate survival and other goals (create a functioning society)

o Reduce uncertainty - shared norms

Characteristics of groups

Shared identity, entitativity ("we are one"), interdependence

Benefits of being in a group

o Acquire knowledge of oneself

o Increase one's status

o Accomplish social change

o Accomplish goals that may not be attainable otherwise

costs of being in a group

o Membership often limits personal freedom

o Groups make demands on members that must be met

o Members may disapprove of the group's policies

identity fusion

§ Sense of oneness with the group

§ Motivation through challenge or struggle

§ Predicts extreme pro-group behavior such as fighting/ dying/ sacrificing for the group

§ Feelings of familial ties, even in large groups

§ Rituals to increase fusion such as boot camps, gang initiation, pledge week

Social Identity Theory

Predicts that we sometimes are prejudiced against another group to get a self-esteem boost regarding our own group (outgroup derogation)

Social Trap

Immediate benefits, long-term costs

Individual traps: drinking/ eating too much, no safe sex

Collective traps (driving (pollution)), A/C (global warming), etc.

Public Goods Dilemma

§ Free riding bringing nothing to a party, tax evasion

§ Be a part of something but not contribute anything

Drive Theory (Zajonc)

§ The presence of others leads to arousal

§ Arousal facilitates dominant responses

§ Ex. Pool players

· Experts improved when people were watching

· Rookies performed worse when people were watching

§ Cockroach Bleachers study

· Same thing for cockroaches

· Simple tasks Cockroaches were able to perform better with spectators

Complex tasks Cockroaches performed worse with spectators

Distraction Conflict Theory

o The conflict between paying attention to the task and paying attention to others' presence

o Conflict leads to narrowing your focus: this helps you on simple tasks but hurts you on complex tasks

§ Ex. Music during the simple task

Deindividulation

o Increases the tendency to follow the norms of the group, which can result in negative OR positive behaviors

o More impulsive

o Behaviors often flow from "emotional contagion"

Gustave Le Bon (1985) The Crowd

o Arousal and Anonymity

o Halloween study; military garb

o Takes evaluation off of yourself with anonymity

§ Like a hypnotized state

§ Relevant to politics and religion

o Ex: lynch mobs, warriors, internet, crowds after championship game, suicide attempts

Steiner's Classification of Group Tasks

A. Additive - tug-of-war

B. Compensatory - estimating numbers

C. Disjunctive - trivia team game

D. Conjunctive - relay race

Social Facilitation

Impact of others on performance, Zajonc's Drive Theory: the presence of others increases arousal & performance of dominant responses

Risky shift

movement to extreme views in groups

group polarization

strengthening initial or dominant tendency through group discussion

Discontinuity Effect

two groups interacting is different than two individuals interacting!

Prisoner's Dilemma

o Not talking to the police vs. squealing on your partner

o Motivation to cooperate with your partner but also temptations to tell on your partner

Group think (janis)

o High group cohesiveness

o Believe a group is infallible and morally superior

o Rejection of opposing views made by outside sources

o Groupthink can be very dangerous