4-3 Conformity & obedience

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Focus on conformity and obedience, outlining social pressures that influence behavior.

Definition of Conformity: Adjusting behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.

Chameleon Effect: Automatic behavioral mimicry; individuals mimic the behavior of others unconsciously.
Example: People tend to subconsciously adopt the posture, tone of voice, or mannerisms of those around them. The phenomenon enhances social bonding and empathy.
Mood Connection: The emotional state can influence how much we mimic others, with positive moods often leading to increased mimicry.
Visual Example: Reference to an image or representation highlighting automatic mimicry in social situations.

Definition of Social Norms: Understood rules for accepted and expected behavior that prescribe what is appropriate.

Context: Investigated conformity within groups.
Procedure: Participants faced with standard line against three comparison lines. They were asked to identify the line that matched the standard.
Findings:
- Participants often conformed to the majority opinion, despite contradicting evidence.
- Shows the powerful influence of social groups on individual judgment.
Key Numbers: Reference sample size and variations in conformity behavior.

Feeling Incompetent or Insecure: Individuals are more likely to conform when they doubt their own abilities.
Group Size: Groups having at least three members bolster conformity effects.
Unanimity: If all group members agree, conformity rates increase.
Admiration of the Group's Status: Higher conformity when individuals respect or are fond of the group.
Prior Commitment: No prior commitments to any opinion increase conformity likelihood.
Observation: When individuals are aware their behavior is being observed, conformity tends to rise.
Cultural Norms: Cultures which emphasize respect for social standards yield higher conformity rates.

Normative Social Influence: Conforming to gain approval or avoid disapproval from the group.
Informational Social Influence: Conforming based on the belief that the group has accurate information and understanding about reality.

Definition of Obedience: The act of following orders from an authority figure.
Milgram’s Studies on Obedience: Landmark psychological experiments focusing on obedience to authority.
- Procedure: Participants instructed to administer electric shocks to another participant (actor) for incorrect answers on a memory task.
- Findings: A significant percentage of participants continued to administer shocks, even at severe levels, due to authority pressure.
- Follow-up Studies: Modern replications and variations tested the results, reinforcing the original findings while examining ethics.

Percentage of participants obedience varies with shock intensity:
- Slight Shock (15-60 volts): Higher percentage compliance.
- Moderate Shock (75-120 volts): Still high compliance, but with increased awareness of the discomfort of the subject.
- Strong Shock (135-180 volts): Obedience begins to taper off as ethical concerns rise.
- Very Intense Shock (255-300 volts): Major drops in compliance begin as participants express discomfort and reluctance.
- Extreme Danger Shock (315-360 volts): Severe ethical violation reported; continued drops in obedience.

Key Insights:
- Ordinary people, under authority pressure, can commit harmful acts.
- Reflection on the moral implications of obedience and situational influences on behavior.

Implications:
- Strong social influences can lead individuals to conform to false beliefs or conduct harmful actions.
- Discussion on the Foot-in-the-Door Phenomenon, where small requests can lead to larger ones.
- Emphasizes the power of commitment in resisting negative social influences.

Social Psychology: The scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another.
Attribution Theory: Explaining behavior by attributing it to either situational factors or personal dispositions.
Fundamental Attribution Error: Underestimating situational factors and overestimating personal dispositions when analyzing others' behaviors.

Attitude: A predisposition toward a particular response regarding objects or people.
Peripheral Route Persuasion: Persuasion influenced by incidental cues rather than the argument itself, e.g., speaker attractiveness.
Central Route Persuasion: Focus on arguments leads to favorable outcomes based on thoughtful consideration.

Social Facilitation: Enhanced performance on simple tasks in the presence of others.
Social Loafing: Individuals exert less effort when pooling efforts in groups compared to individual accountability.
Deindividuation: Loss of self-awareness in groups leads to diminished restraint and enhanced impulsivity.

Group Polarization: Strengthening of a group’s prevalent opinions through discussion.
Groupthink: Harmony-seeking in decision-making leads to poor alternative evaluation and risk factors.

Culture: Shared behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and values transmitted across generations.
Norm: Understood rules for expected behavior in social contexts.

Prejudice: Negative attitudes toward a group and its members, encompassing feelings and predispositions to act.
Stereotype: Generalized beliefs about a specific group, which can lead to oversimplifications.
Discrimination: Negative behaviors directed at individuals due to their group membership.

Just-World Phenomenon: Belief that individuals receive what they deserve in life, contributing to victim-blaming.
Ingroup vs. Outgroup: Definitions distinguishing between people who identify with your group versus others seen as different.
Scapegoat Theory: Using outgroups as a target for frustration and anger.

Social Scripts: Culturally modeled behaviors for various situations.
Mere Exposure Effect: Increased liking due to repeated exposure to stimuli.
Altruism: Unselfish regard for others' welfare.
Bystander Effect: Less likelihood of helping behavior as number of bystanders increases.
Conflict: Perceived incompatibility in actions or goals leading to discord.
Social Trap: Mutual destructive behavior arising from individual self-interest pursuits.
Superordinate Goals: Shared objectives that necessitate cooperation, transcending individual differences.

Integration of conformity and obedience studies highlights significant behavioral influences shaped by social contexts and authority pressures.
Understanding these psychological phenomena can aid in comprehension of human behavior in various societal frameworks.