Chapter 9: Social Influence

Question 1

define social influence

Answer 1

ways people affect one another through changing attitudes, beliefs, feelings, or behaviors resulting from the real or imagined presence of other

Question 2

define conformity

Answer 2

changing behaviors or beliefs in response to explicit or implicit pressure from others (do as others command)

Question 3

define compliance

Answer 3

responding favorably to an explicit request by another person (do as others ask)

Question 4

define obedience

Answer 4

in an unequal power relationship, submitting to the demands of the person in authority (do as others command)

Question 5

define automatic mimicry

Answer 5

unconsciously imitating the behavior of others (yawning)

Question 6

who is more likely to automatically mimic others

Answer 6

People high in empathy or need to affiliate with others

Question 7

what is the mimicry experiment (Chartrand & Bargh, 1999)?

Answer 7

Participant asked to describe photographs alongside another participant
The second participant was actually a confederate
Confederate made motions like rubbing their face or shaking their foot
Participant mimicked confederate’s movements

Question 8

define ideomotor action

Answer 8

thinking about a behavior makes performing it more likely

Question 9

define informational social influence

Answer 9

using others’ commands or actions as information about what is correct, proper or effective

a. more likely to accept this new beliefs as the truth
b. changes your beliefs

Question 10

define normative social influence

Answer 10

using others’ behaviors as guides for how to fit in and avoid disapproval or social ridicule
a. changes behavior, but doesn’t change inner belief

Question 11

what is the Autokinetic illusion experiment (Sheriff 1936)?

Answer 11

Participants saw a stationary light in the dark in multiple trials
Participants asked to estimate how much the light moved between trials
Multiple participants then put in a room together and called out estimates
Participants’ estimates converged into a group norm
Estimates remained at group norm a year later
a. People internalized their results and BELIEVED IT TO BE TRUTH

Question 12

when is informational social influence is likely to occur?

Answer 12

The situation is difficult or ambiguous

In other words, when we feel low in knowledge or competence about a task or topic, so we need help

Question 13

what is the Asch’s Conformity Experiment (1956) ? what is it an example of?

Answer 13

Participants did the line task
Participants called out the answers
BUT 7 out of 8 participants were confederates
From the third task on, confederates called out wrong answers over 2/3 of the time (11 out of 16 remaining trials)
Participants conformed to majority 1/3 of the time
¾ of participants called out the wrong answer at least once
example of normative social influence

Question 14

what are 3 reasons for conformity?

Answer 14

Social repercussions
Uncertainty
Dispersal of risk

Question 15

how does group size factor into conformity

Answer 15

Conformity increases as group size increases

WITH a ceiling effect at a group size of three of four other

Question 16

define internalization

Answer 16

private acceptance of majority position

Question 17

does informational social influence lead to internalization? does normative social influence?

Answer 17

Informational social influence leads to internalization, normative social influence does not

Question 18

if you are more knowledgeable in a subject than others, are you likely to conform? what if they are more knowledgeable?

Answer 18

no

yes, you are more likely to conform to others when they are more knowledgeable than you

Question 19

define loose cultures

Answer 19

weak norms about behavior and more tolerance for deviation (close to individualistic)

Question 20

define tight cultures

Answer 20

strong norms about behavior and less tolerance for deviation

Question 21

which culture, tight or loose, is more likely to be susceptible to social influence?

Answer 21

Collectivist/eastern cultures

Question 22

what is likely to lead to tightness in cultures?

Answer 22

High population, high threats, and low resources tend to lead to tightness

Question 23

which type of information do minorities rely on?

Answer 23

informational influence

Question 24

can the majority be swayed by normative social influence?

Answer 24

no

Question 25

define norms of reciprocity

Answer 25

you help others who help you

-this is universal

Question 26

what is the painting/coke study

Answer 26

Participant rates paintings alongside confederate
Confederate brings participant coke or does not (control)
Confederate asks participate to buy raffle tickets
If the confederate brought the participant coke, the participant feels more compelled to buy the raffle tickets

Question 27

define door in the face technique

Answer 27

Person A asks for a big favor and when person B declines, Person A asks for a small favor instead which Person B is more likely to grant

Question 28

what is the juvenile zoo study?

Answer 28

Condition 1: chaperone a group of juvenile delinquents on a zoo day trip

Condition 2: counsel juvenile delinquents 2 hours/week for 2 years? FOLLOWED by chaperone a group of juvenile delinquents on a zoo day trip.
Condition 1 compliance = 17%, condition 2 compliance = 50%

Question 29

what is the foot in the door technique?

Answer 29

making an initial small request to which people comply and following up with a larger request

Question 30

what is the drive carefully study?

Answer 30

Homeowners asked to put up large “drive carefully” billboard (17% agree)
Other homeowners asked tp put up small sign “be a safe driver” in window
Two weeks later, homeowners who put up small sign asked to put up the billboard (76% agree)

Question 31

what does emotion-based compliance say about positive moods and negative moods?

Answer 31

positive mood: people who are feeling positive are more likely to comply to request

Negative mood: some types of bad moods can also increase compliance
-If people feel guilty, they’re more likely to comply

Question 32

what is the gift and phone call study?

Answer 32

One group of participants given a free sample of stationary, the other (control) is not
Participants receive a call saying they dialed a wrong number and please dial a specific number and relay the message
Participants who did not receive a gift complied much less (10%) than participants who did (80+%)

Question 33

define mood maintenance:

Answer 33

it feels good to feel good and we want to keep feeling good. Helping others feel good

Question 34

what is the cookie study

Answer 34

Participants asked to serve as a confederate
Receive a cookie
Participants asked to either help the “true” participant or hinder them
Compliance increased for the helping condition but not the hindering

Question 35

what is the catholic confession study

Answer 35

Catholics asked to donate to charity either right before going to confessional or directly after
Catholics right before confessional donated more

Question 36

define negative state relief hypothesis

Answer 36

people jump at the chance to relieve negative emotions and feel better about themselves

Question 37

what is the lab rat shock study?

Answer 37

Participants watch lab rat getting “accidentally” shocked

Participants who’d seen the poor lab donated more money to charity than those who hadn’t

Question 38

what is the israel parole study (Danzinger et al 2011)?

Answer 38

If judges have just finished a meal, prisoners have ⅔ chance of parole
If judges are hungry and waiting for lunch, prisoners have 0 chance of parole

Question 39

define norm based compliance

Answer 39

Using conformity to get people to comply

The power of social norms

Question 40

what is the homeowner energy study?

Answer 40

Homeowners told (through a hang-tag on their doors) how much energy they used and how much energy their neighbors used on average
Homeowners who used more than average decreased energy use
Homeowners who used less than average increased energy use
BUT not when a signal of approval/disapproval was added (smiley face vs frowny face)

Question 41

what is the binge-drinking study?

Answer 41

Students answered anonymously how much they drank and how much they thought other drank
Answers were aggregated and shown on screen
Students’ belief of how much the average student drank was much more than how much they actually drank
Follow-up survey showed students drank less than controlled group

Question 42

define descriptive norms

Answer 42

behavior exhibited by most people in a given context

-what is

Question 43

define prescriptive norms

Answer 43

way a person is supposed to behave in a given context

What ought to be

Question 44

what is the Petrified Forest National Park Theft Rate Study?

Answer 44

Descriptive Norm: Signs placed saying “Many past visitors have removed petrified wood from park, changing the state of Petrified Forest”
Prescriptive Norm: Sign replaced with one saying “The vast majority of past visitors have left the petrified wood in the park, preserving the natural state of the Petrified Forest”
Theft was four times lower with second sign than first

Question 45

in the Milgram variations, which factors INCREASED obedience? which factors DECREASED obedience?

Answer 45

INCREASED
-making participant feel less responsible
-participants reading out the questions but not pressing button
-increasing authority
DECREASED
-experimenter gave instructions over telephone
-reduced authority
-conflict between two experimenters that were giving orders
-they see the pain of the learner