EXPLANATIONS FOR CONFORMITY

Question 1

COMPLIANCE

Answer 1

‘going along with others’ in public, but privately not changing personal opinions/behaviour
- superficial change – stops as soon as group pressure stops

Question 2

IDENTIFICATION

Answer 2

conforming to the opinions/behaviour of a group because there is something about the group that we value.
- we identify with the group, so we want to be part of it
- publicly change our opinions to achieve this goal, even if we privately don’t agree with everything the group stands for
e.g. football teams

Question 3

INTERNALISATION

Answer 3

when a person genuinely accepts the groups norms
- public & private
- permanent change as attitudes have been internalised
- behaviour persists in the absence of the group

Question 4

INFORMATIONAL SOCIAL INFLUENCE (ISI)

Answer 4

when uncertain about what behaviours/beliefs are right or wrong
- follow the opinion of the majority of the group as you think it is most likely to be right
- typical in new situations and crisis situations, or when someone is more of an expert
- INTERNALISATION

Question 5

NORMATIVE SOCIAL INFLUENCE

Answer 5

conforming due to a desire to be liked, and to ‘fit in’ with a group
- following the ‘norms’ of a group
- likely to occur in situations where rejection is a fear and social support is needed
- COMPLIANCE

Question 6

AO3: RESEARCH SUPPORT FOR ISI

Answer 6

LUCAS ET AL (2006):
- asked students to give answers to maths problems that were easy or more difficult
- greater conformity to incorrect answers when they were more difficult compared to when they were easier ones
- shows people conform in situations when they do not know the answer –> exactly the outcome predicted by the ISI explanation
- we look to other people and assume they know better than us and must be right

Question 7

AO3: INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN NSI

Answer 7

• some research shows that NSI does not affect everyone’s behaviour in the same way
• e.g. people who are less concerned with being liked are less affected by NSI than those who care more
• those with a need for association = nAffiliators
• shows the desire to be liked underlies conformity for some people more than others
• therefore there are individual differences in the way people respond
  I&D: idiographic rather than nomothetic – attempts to create nomothetic laws and apply them to everyone in society – not the case in reality

Question 8

AO3: NSI AND ISI WORK TOGETHER

Answer 8

• more often, BOTH processes are involved
• e.g. conformity is reduced when there is one dissenting ppt (Asch).
• This dissenter may reduce the power of NSI because the dissenter provide social support OR may reduce the power of ISI because there is an alternative source of info
• shows it is not always possible to be sure whether NSI or ISI is at work
• this is the case in lab studies but even truer in real-life conformity situations
• casts serious doubt over the view of ISI and NSI operating independently.
  SUPPORT: lab studies in this have external validity as they can prove their results in real situations