Explanations for conformity

Question 1

What is meant by informational social influence (ISI) ?

Answer 1

it refers to instances where people conform because they are uncertain about what to do in a particular situation, so they look to others for guidance

Question 2

what does ISI tend to lead to ?

Answer 2

internalisation

Question 3

what kind of process is ISI ?

Answer 3

a cognitive process
- we think about the situation

Question 4

why does ISI happen ?

Answer 4

because during an unfamiliar situation we desire to be correct and look to our social group for answers

Question 5

In which year was JENNESS’ investigation ?

Answer 5

1932

Question 6

what was the aim of JENNESS’ investigation ?

Answer 6

to investigate wether individual judgements of jelly beans in a jar would be influenced by a group discussion

Question 7

what was the method of Jenness’ investigation ?

Answer 7

participants made their estimates privately of the number of jelly beans in a jar. They then discussed the estimates in groups, discovering that the estimates were widely different. They then made a second private estimate

Question 8

what were Jenness’ findings ?

Answer 8

1) 2nd private estimate tended to be closer to the group estimate
2)women conformed more

Question 9

Evaluation point for Jenness’ investigation

Answer 9

• the individuals judgement was highly affected by the others opinions especially as it was an unfamiliar situation meaning p’s felt others had more knowledge than them, showing internalisation

Question 10

support for ISI

Answer 10

• Jenness’ investigation
• Asch’s varied difficulty of tasks test

Question 11

what is meant by normative social influence (NSI) ?

Answer 11

it refers to instances where someone conforms in order to fit in and gain approval or avoid disapproval from other group members

Question 12

what does NSI often lead to ?

Answer 12

compliance

Question 13

hat kind of process is NSI ?

Answer 13

• an emotional process
  because we think about the situation and base our response on ow we feel in a situation

Question 14

EVALUATION- how can Asch’s study support NSI ?

Answer 14

during the debrief many said that they conformed because they wanted to fit in

Question 15

EVALUATION - how can Jenness’ study support NSI ?

Answer 15

because instead of conforming because of ISI, many individuals could have conformed because they didnt want to be different