Conformity

Question 1

Compliance

Answer 1

When someone changes their public behaviour but not private beliefs in order to be liked (fit in and avoid social rejection) - temporary, non-ambiguous and NSI

Question 2

Identification

Answer 2

When an individual changes their public behaviour and private beliefs in the presence of a group in order to be liked - temporary, non-ambiguous and NSI

Question 3

Internalisation

Answer 3

When an individual changed their public behaviour and private beliefs because they think the belief is right - ambiguous, permanent and ISI

Question 4

Normative social influence

Answer 4

When a person conforms in order to be liked and fit in with a group
-based on a need to be liked
-short term
-leads to identification and compliance
-non-ambiguous situation

Question 5

Informational social influence

Answer 5

When a person conforms because they want to gain knowledge ornthey believe someone is right
-based on the need to be right
-long term
-leads to internalisation
-ambigous

Question 6

Evaluation of the types of conformity

Answer 6

Strengths:
Empirical evidence supports that people conform to be right and liked
Limitations:
Deutsch and Gerard: two process model as an explanation for conformity may not be a complete explanation for why people conform

Question 7

Evaluation of Asch

Answer 7

Strengths:
-Lab study so highly controlled and standardised procedure carried out
-supportive evidence from Lucas et al (2006)
Limitations:
-Lacks temporal validity (Perrins and Spencer 1980) done during cold war
-demand characteristics
-lacks population validity
-artificial there was no reason not to conform

Question 8

Variables affecting conformity

Answer 8

• group size
• unanimity
• task difficulty

Question 9

Group size - results

Answer 9

• 1 confederate: 3% conformed
• 2 confederates: 12.8% conformed
• 3 confederates: 32% conformed
  Didn’t change after 3 confederates were added

Question 10

Unanimity - results

Answer 10

When a dissenter was added conformity dropped to 5.5% regardless if they were right or wrong

Question 11

Task difficulty - results

Answer 11

Conformity increased when the comparison lines became closer in length - ppts looked to others for guidance

Question 12

Social roles

Answer 12

A pattern of behaviour expected of a person in a given setting or group

Question 13

Zimbardo (1973)

Answer 13

Conducted an extremely controversial study on conformity to social roles - Stanford prison experiment

Question 14

Explanations for obedience

Answer 14

Agentic state & legitimacy of authority

Question 15

Agentic state

Answer 15

A state of mind where the individual believes they don’t have responsibility for their behaviour as they are an agent of authority

Question 16

Legitimacy of authority

Answer 16

Learnt through socialisation and is usually shown through uniform or setting

Question 17

Situational variables affecting obedience

Answer 17

Proximity, location and the power of uniform

Question 18

Obedience

Answer 18

A direct response to an order from another person

Question 19

Proximity

Answer 19

Teacher and learner in the same room: 40% obedience
Teacher instructs learner over phone: 20.5% obedience

Question 20

Location

Answer 20

Yale university - 65% obedience
Run down office building: 47.5% obedience

Question 21

Milgram (1961)

Answer 21

To investigate if ordinary people would obey unjust orders from an authority figure to inflict pain on an innocent person

Question 22

Uniform

Answer 22

White lab coat: 65% obedience
Normal everyday clothes: 20% obedience

Question 23

Dispositional

Answer 23

Internal factors that contribute to obedience

Question 24

Authoritarian personality - dispositional

Answer 24

Adorno (1950) - result of harsh parenting creating resentment and hostility in the child which cannot be expressed. These fears are displaced onto others who are perceived as weaker (scapegoating)

Question 25

Explanations of resistance to social influence

Answer 25

Willingness to resist social influence: social support and locus of control

Question 26

Social support

Answer 26

If someone has an ally it builds confidence and allows the individual to remain independant

Question 27

Locus of control (Rotter 1996)

Answer 27

The extent to which people believe they have control over their life

Question 28

Internal LOC

Answer 28

What happens in their life is a result of their own behaviour - often independent and resist conformity

Question 29

External LOC

Answer 29

When an individual believes the events in their life are a result of external factors - more likely to conform and less independent

Question 30

Minority influence

Answer 30

When a minority changes the belief of a majority

Question 31

Consistency

Answer 31

Minority influence is more likely to occur when the minority share the same the same belief and maintain it across time

Question 32

Commitment

Answer 32

Engaging in risky (dangerous) behaviour and acts in order to draw attention to their views

Question 33

Flexibility

Answer 33

Minority influence is more likely to occur when the minority if willing to compromise to avoid being viewed as dogmatic

Question 34

Social change

Answer 34

Influencing an entire society to change their attitude, belief and behaviours

Question 35

Moscavichi (1969)

Answer 35

To see if a consistent minority could influence a majority to give the incorrect answer in a line perception task

Question 36

F - scale (Adorno)

Answer 36

Measure of authoritarian personality (facism scale)

Question 37

Snowball effect

Answer 37

Minorities changing the majority views is a slow process. However the process speeds up as more of the majority convert

Question 38

Socio-crypto amnesia

Answer 38

Minority view becomes a norm in society and the sacrifices made by the minority get forgotten

Question 39

How can social change be achieved

Answer 39

-drawing attention - concictency - deeper processing - augmentation principle - snowball effect - social crypto-amnesia

Question 40

Drawing attention

Answer 40

Group has done something to alert the majority to their cause e.g protests, adverts, leaflet drops

Question 41

Consistency

Answer 41

Group must present a consistent image - clear about what they want and will repeat the same message

Question 42

Deeper processing

Answer 42

Majority starts to accept the viewpoint of the group more deeply, starting to doubt their own understanding and previously help views

Question 43

Augmented principle

Answer 43

People are willing to make sacrifices for the group - makes them more persuasive so will gain more intrest and support

Question 44

Snowball effect

Answer 44

As the majority engages in more deeper processing and augmentation more people join the cause and the change gets quicker

Question 45

Social crypto amnesia

Answer 45

Society adopts the new social norm and there is an element of forgetting that the norms were any different

Question 46

Authoritarian submission

Answer 46

An uncritical attitude towards authorities

Question 47

Authoritarian submission

Answer 47

An uncritical attitude towards authorities

Question 48

Power and Toughness

Answer 48

Preoccupation with dominance-submission, identification with power figures