8 - Resistance To Social Influence

Question 1

What is resistance to social influence?

Answer 1

Ability to withstand the social pressure to…

• CONFORM to majority
• OBEY authority

Question 2

Is resistance to social influence caused by situational factors, dispositional factors, or both?

Answer 2

Both

Question 3

What is a situational factor that increases ability to resist social influence?

Answer 3

Social support

Question 4

What is a dispositional factor that increases ability to resist social influence?

Answer 4

Locus of Control (LOC)

Question 5

What are the two factors we look at that help individuals to resist social influence?

Answer 5

• Social support

- Locus of Control (LOC)

Question 6

What is social support?

Answer 6

Presence of people who resist pressures to conform/obey can help others to do the same

Question 7

How does social support increase ability to resist social influence?

Answer 7

• Someone doesn’t conform/obey (acting as a ‘model’ of resistance)
• Others feel more able to act independently + resist social influence

Question 8

What two pieces of research support the concept that social support helps resist conformity?

Answer 8

Asch’s Unanimity Variation (1950s)

• Dissenting confederate added
• This confederate provided social support for ppt to resist conformity
• Conformity fell to 9% (diff incorrect answer) + 5% (correct answer)

Allen + Levine (1971)

• Asch-type line study
• Dissenting confederate added
• The confederate provided social support for ppt to resist conformity
• Conformity levels decreased (even when dissenter wore thick glasses)

Question 9

What two pieces of research support the concept that social support helps resist obedience?

Answer 9

Milgram Shock Variation (later research)

• Disobedient confederate added
• This confederate provided social support for ppt to resist obedience
• Obedience fell from 65% (original study) to 10%

Gamson et al (1982)

• 33 groups of 8-9 ppts
• Ppts asked to do a morally injust task
• Other ppts in the group acted as social support, so each individual felt willing to resist obedience
• Very low obedience levels of 12%

Question 10

What is Locus of Control (LOC)? Who proposed this theory + when?

Answer 10

Sense we each have about what directs/causes events in our lives

• Proposed by Rotter (1966)

Question 11

How does Locus of Control increase ability to resist social influence?

Answer 11

• People with high internal locus of control are more likely to resist social influence
• These people have more resistant personality traits: self-confident (etc) and more personal accountability so more likely to make their own independent decisions

Question 12

What does it mean to have a high internal locus of control?

Answer 12

Believe you are mostly responsible for what happens to you

E.g. fail exam because you didn’t work hard enough

Question 13

What does it mean to have a high external locus of control?

Answer 13

Believe luck/outside factors are mostly responsible for what happens to you
(E.g. fail exam because questions were badly worded)

Question 14

What word may be used to describe the fact that people can sit somewhere in between having a high internal locus of control + high external locus of control?

Answer 14

Continuum

Question 15

Why is it bad to sit right at the end of either side of the continuum of LOC?

Answer 15

• High internal LOC: constantly feel responsible/guilty even when things are beyond your control
• High external LOC: low motivation or self-accountability

Question 16

What is a piece of research support for locus of control as a factor that increases ability to resist social influence (obedience)?

Answer 16

Holland (1967)

• Repeated Milgram’s baseline study
• Measured ppts LOC
• 37% internals continued to highest shock
• 77% externals continued to highest schock
• Internals were able to resist obedience because of their personal strength + accountability

Question 17

What research refutes the idea that internal LOC increases resistance to social influence?

Answer 17

Twenge et al (2004)

• Analysed data from US LOC studies over 40 yrs (1960-2002)
• Over time ppts have become: more resistant + more external
• Disputes whether there is a link between internal LOC + resistance

Question 18

Why may more people have external LOC in modern society?

Answer 18

More things out of our own personal control

Question 19

In what circumstances does Rotter suggest that his LOC theory of helping resist social influence comes into play? Why?

Answer 19

• Novel (unknown) situations
• In familiar situations, past experiences always have greatest influence
• E.g. if conformed/obeyed once, likely to do that again, even if you have a high internal LOC