Conformity: Types and Explanations

Question 1

What does the topic ‘Conformity: types and explanations consist of?

Answer 1

• types of way people conform and how they are explained

Question 2

What are three Types of Conformity?

Answer 2

• Internalisation
• Identification
• Compliance

Question 3

What are two Explanations for Conformity?

Answer 3

• Normative Social Influence
• Informative Social Influence

Question 4

What is Internalisation?

Answer 4

• A person genuinely accepts the groups norms, there is a private change in opinions and behaviors as well as a public change (a deep level of conformity)

Question 5

What is identification?

Answer 5

• Conforming with a groups ideas/beliefs publicly because there is something about that group we value
• However, we may not privately agree with everything the group stands for (a moderate level of conformity)

Question 6

What is Compliance?

Answer 6

• Compliance is ‘going along’ in public but not changing your beliefs whatsoever in private (superficial level of conformity)

Question 7

What is Informative Social Influence?

Answer 7

• Agreeing with the majority view/behavior because we believe they are more likely to be right

Question 8

What is normative Social Influence?

Answer 8

• Agreeing with majority belief/behavior because we want to be liked/don’t want to be rejected

Question 9

What research on Conformity supports NSI?

Answer 9

• Asch interviewed his pps post investigation and many admitted they conformed because they were afraid of disapproval from the group
• When pps wrote answers down conformity fell to 12.5% and there was no NSI pressure

Question 10

What research on Conformity supports ISI?

Answer 10

• Todd Lucas (2006) the harder the maths questions the higher conformity suggesting that the pss conformed because they did not want not be wrong
• Increases validity

Question 11

What is one way NSI is not necessarily generalisable to everyone?

Answer 11

• Some people are greatly concerned with if other people like them - these people are nAfilliators, so nAffiliators are more likely to conform. NSI has a greater influence on some people than it does on others
• There are individual differences in conformity that cannot be explained by one general theory