Conformity: Types and Explanations (Kelman)

Question 1

Conformity

Answer 1

‘Yielding to group pressures’. Or a change in a person’s behaviour or opinions as a result of a real or imagined pressure from a group of people

Question 2

Internalisation

Answer 2

A strong type of conformity. Making the beliefs, attitude and behaviour your own as it is the majority view. Permanent change (result of ISI)

Question 3

Identification

Answer 3

A moderate type of conformity. Act in the same way as group as we want to be part of it. Don’t agree with everything. Temporary change.

Question 4

Compliance

Answer 4

A weak type of conformity. Follow their ideas to get approval. Publicly agree but privately disagree.

Question 5

ISI

Answer 5

Wanting to be right as majority says so. When someone is unsure, they look to others and copy them assuming the others are correct. Cognitive

Question 6

NSI

Answer 6

Wanting to be liked. About norms i.e. what is normal behaviour for a social group. Not wanting to get embarrassed. Emotional

Question 7

Strength (Lucas et al)

Answer 7

Research support for ISI. Asked students to give answers to maths qs that were easy or hard. Great conformity to incorrect ones when difficult qs and when students rated poor ability for maths. Showing we look to others and assuming they are right when we are ambiguous

Question 8

Strength (Asch)

Answer 8

Research support for NSI. Found that most participants went along with clearly wrong answer as other people did. They said it was because they didn’t want disapproval. When Asch repeated this and told them to write answer, conformity rates were low.

Question 9

Weakness (McGhee and Teevan)

Answer 9

Individual differences in NSI. People who are less concerned with being liked are less affected by NSI than those who care more, called nAFFILATORS. Those people who are in need of affiliation were more likely to conform. Therefore there are differences in which people may respond

Question 10

Weakness

Answer 10

Individual differences in ISI. Doesn’t affact everyone’ behaviour in same way. Asch found that they were less conformist. Perrin and Spencer did a study on science and engineering students and found little conformity. Therefore there are differences in which people may respond