Chapter 6:Conformity Flashcards
What is conformity?
- a change in behaviour or belief to accord with others.
- *In Japan going along with others is a sign not of weakness but of tolerance, self control and maturity (Markus and Kitayama, 1994)
What is the insincere, outward conformity?
- compliance
- conformity that involves publicly acting in accord with social pressure while privately disagreeing
- we comply primarily to reap a reward or avoid a punishment. If our compliance is to an explicit command we call it obedience!
What is the sincere, inward conformity?
- acceptance
- conformity that involves both acting and believing in accord with social pressure
Can compliance lead to acceptance conformity?
YEPPPPP
- behaviour —> attitude
Norm formation:
Autokinetic efect?
- self(auto) motion (kinetic). The apparent movement of a stationary point of light in the dark. Perhaps you have experienced this when thinking you have spotted a moving satellite in the sky, only to realize later that it was merely an isolated star.
- *in a study that included confederates and participants…..participants estimated how far the light over. The study’s aim was to see if you could get people to agree on a distance. Once you all know each others distances will you converge answers? The study went for four days. By the fourth day= same answer = norm developed.
- follow up study by Sherif…found that when participants were tested a year later their response still was in accordance to the norm of the original study.
- **social norms may lead us to coverage with others when estimating the amount of movement
Norm formation:
-Campbell and Jacobs (1961), explain their study??
- used auto kinetic phenomenon
- confederate gave an inflated estimate of how far the light moved. ….who was replaced by another real subject who was in turn replaced by a still newer member. The inflated illusion persisted (although less strongly each time) for five generations of participants.
Social contagion:
Mood linkage described by Totterdell et al (1988)?
- just being around happy people can make us feel happier
Social contagion:
- The chameleon effect described by Chartrand and Bargh (1998)?
-in their studies when a confederate occasionally rubbed their face or shook their foot the participants via automatic behaviour would rub and shake with them.
Social contagion:
- chameleon effect
L> Baaren et al(2004)?
- mimicry would also incline others to like and be helpful to you and to others. Being mimicked seems to enhance social bonds which can even lead to donating more money to charity.
Copy cat succeed phenomenon?
L> weather effect -> Phillips et al (1985, 1989)?
- suicides as well as fatal auto accidents and private airplane crashes ( which sometimes disguise suicides) increase after well publicized suicides.
In both Germany and the US, suicide rates rise slightly following what?
fictional suicides on soap operas and ironically in after serious dramas that focus more on the suicide problem.
The chameleon effect study in March, 1954?
- reported wind shields were getting damaged
- april –> similar damage was reported
L> later that day reported = damage 70% done
L> go out: check your windshield –> no damage to it but people believed it was
Explain Asch’s classic study of group pressure!
- he asked people to judge the length of a line in the presence of others. Which of the three lines matches the standard line.
- two run throughs were everyone gets it right (they were very obvious)
- third run….the answer is very obvious but someone gives a wrong answer…the next person gives the wrong answer again…this repeated until it arrived to the true participant.
- this causes a dilemma (are they right or am I?)
L> 3/4 did conform at least once. 37% responses totally were conformed
Describe Milgram’s obedience study!
- participants were asked to apply voltages to another person by a confederate (the person receiving the shock was one too)
-40 men, (20-50yrs old) - 26 of them (65%) went all the way to 450 volts
- repeated study but had confederate say they had a heart problem
L> 40 new men, 25 (63%) fully complied…ten later studies which included women found that they complied at similar rates vs men
What are the four factors that determined the level of obedience ?
- victim’s emotional distance
- authority’s closeness and legitimacy
- whether or not the authority was a part of a respected institution
- the liberating effects of a disobedient fellow participant
Breeding obedience:
Milgram’s participants acted with greatest obedience and least compassion when?
- the learners could not be seen ( and could not see them)
* same room = 40% obeyed to 450 volts
Breeding obedience:
The physical presence of the experimenter also affected obedience. Explain wrt Milgram.
- he gave the commands by telephone, full obedience dropped to 21% ( although many lied and said they were obeying). Other studies confirmed that when the one making the request is physically close, compliance increased.
Breeding obedience:
- Kleinke, Smith etal and Willis and Hamm) studies?
- giving a light touch on the arm, ppl are more likely to comply by lending a dime, signing a petition or sampling a new pizza.
- *the authority however must be presides legitimate
Breeding obedience:
-Experimenter disagreement reduces/increases the extent of obedience
- reduces
- distance depersonalizes … 90% quit if experimenter quits.
Breeding obedience:
-Institutional authority?
- if the prestige of the authority is important, then perhaps the insertional prestige of Yale University (for ex) where the Milgram studies were conducted, legitimizes the commands.
Is conformity always a little prick?
L>Friske et al (2004)
- nope
- it can be constructive
L> people rushing into the burning trade towers in NY to save people were very heroic and brave but they were in part obeying their superiors , partly confirming to extraordinary group loyalty
Is conformity always a little prick?
L> Milgram?
- placed the teacher with two confederates to help conduct the procedure. During the study, both defied the experimenter who ordered the real subject to continue alone. Did he? No. 90% liberated themselves by conforming to the defiant confederates
Situations can / or cannot induce ordinary people to capitulate cruelty
CAN
The drift toward evil usually comes in large/small increments, with/without any conscious intent to doe vil.
- small
- without