ispy obedience + power Flashcards
conformity
the tendency to change our perceptions, opinions or behaviors in ways that are consistent with social or group norms
auto-kinetic effect
when in total darkness a point of light seems to move, sometime erratically in many directions even if its still (shown in sherif experiment)
informational influence
desire to be right
normative influence
desire to be liked. fear of ostracism
what factors contribute to group conformity?
What is the difference between conformity, compliance and obedience?
conformity = changing our perceptions, opinions, or behavior in ways to be consistent with social or group norms
compliance = changes in behavior that are elicited by direct requests (all the sneaky techniques)
obedience = behavior change produced by the commands of authority
How does deindividuation happen in group settings?
you get immersed in the groups values and just lose yourself and follow the crowd
sherif experiment (light) aim and method
- aim: explore how norms develop in small groups
- male students thought they were participating in a visual perception experiment
- sat in totally dark room
- a small dot appeared in front of them (15 feet away)
- participants asked to estimate how far it moved
- repeated many times
- what they didn’t know, the line never moved
sherif experiment (light) results when participants tested alone vs together
- when tested alone, they gave their answers and at some point settled on a stable calculation ranging from 1-10 inches.
- when together, over the span of 3 days, participants gave their answers 1 by 1 and at first the results varied hella but then reached a common group perception
Auto-kinetic effect
when in total darkness a point of light seems to move, sometime erratically in many directions even if its still (shown in sherif experiment)
solomon Asch line eperiment aim, method and results
- aim: how peoples beliefs affect the beliefs of others
- line test where all participants are confederates except 1.
- they are shown 1 line and are given a set of 3 lines in which they gotta say which one is the same length as the reference line.
- at first confederates give right answer but then 12 out of 18 times they all gave obviously wrong answers
- participant is stuck between wanting to stick to what they believe or the desire to be liked and fit in
what are 2 reasons that influences people to conform
informational influence
normative influence
informational influence for conforming
- desire to be right
- ppl want to have the most accurate judgments of reality so if most people have a common answer, then they must be right, and thats why ppl go with it
- “4 eyes are better than 2” type train of thought
- especially when ppl are in a state of uncertainty they can rely on others
normative influence for conforming
- the main purpose of conforming is being scared of negative social consequences
- fear of being rejected for being deviant
- research shows that ppl who stray away from norms are rejected and ridiculed
private conformity
- aka true acceptance or conversion
- others cause us to change our external behaviors AND our opinions
- fully believing and being convinced that what others are expressing is correct
public conformity
- sometimes called compliance
- more superficial change in behavior
- privately a person will stick to their beliefs but overtly will pretend to agree with the group and go with what people are doing/saying
- a reason for this may be to feel accepted or because we feel pressured
how to distinguish between private or public conformity if both look the same on the outside
- private conformity will remain long after the group is gone
- when compared to Sherif’s and Asch’s experiments , sherif retested participants a year after and participants still stuck to what the group believed. in Asch, since participant was only conforming publicly, their conformity dropped significantly when they had to give private answers
minority influence– moscovici’s theory
the opposers (less people) slowly become the majority by convincing the rest of the group
12 angry men movie example
majority influence
more ppl have the same views and convince the minority
foot in the door technique
a two step compliance technique. step one get someone to comply with a small simple request, then ask the real favor. this makes u more likely to say yes
lowballing
another 2 step trap. salesperson gets you all riled up and makes u secure an agreement but then increases the size of the request. car dealersgip example
door in the face technique
sort of opposite of foot in the door or lowballing. they ask huge favor and then ask the real favor (which is less than the huge favor) e.g. boy scouts selling circus tickets and when ppl decline he says ok but at least do u wanna get boy scouts cookies?
that’s not all technique
similar to door in the face but here, the request is big at the beginning and keeps decreasing in size.
from Pearson book, what are the 3 types of conformity
internalization
identification
compliance
what’s the difference between compliance and conformity
is compliance more to dow ith orders and conformity a more general thing
Haun study on preschoolers (compliance):
1. how was the compliance level compared to adults compliance level?
2. at how old are you already susceptible to peer pressure
3. was there private acceptance?
showed preschoolers compliance levels similar to adults, 4-year olds are already susceptible to peer pressure, showed more compliance; there was no private acceptance
what are 4 experiments used to further explain conformity
asch’s line experiment
Sherif autokinetic
stanford prison exp
haun preschoolers
deindividuation
a state where you become so immersed in the norms of the group that you lose your self of identity and personal responsibility; happens in a setting that promotes anonymity; eg. military can get someone more aggressive; fitness can become their life passion
types of nonconformity: independence
members disagree by publicly expressing beliefs consistent with their own personal standards
types of nonconformity: anti conformity
oppose the opinion
types of nonconformity: strategic anti conformity
privately agree, but publicly disagree, create a discussion/conflict
social impact theory
When group is highly cohesive, or members try to make a good impression, an Individual is more likely to conform
dynamic social impact theory
Social impact theory is now often called dynamic social impact theory as it considers the target’s ability to influence the source. It views influence as a two-way exchange rather than a one-way street.
conformity factors, 3 factors of social impact theory
Social impact theory
dynamic social impact theory
group unanimity
milgram’s experiment
teachers had to give students who were getting answers wrong shocks, consecutively increasing the strength
they obeyed the orders of authority (experimenter)
exerts all power bases
some peers were present who were not obedient who made the teacher also disobey the demands; vice versa
was replicated and the findings were consistent across time and different countries
factors that contribute to obedience
situation
immediacy
raven’s 6 power bases
coercive
reward
legitimate power
referent power
informational power
expert power
coercive power
power to punish or threaten
reward power
e.g. boss can persuade u to work harder cuz he has power to give u a promotion
legitimate power
Authorized power by law (eg a judge)
referent power
Charisma: Follow me (eg cult leaders, political figures, religious leaders)
informational power
i know something you don’t
expert power
trust me i’m a pro (e.g. doctors)
what is the difference between obedience, compliance, and conversion?
Obedience: eg obeying to teachers in school
Compliance: eg when ordering food we often comply to the group opinion + public conformity: group projects; compliance for the greater good eg clapping in a theater
Conversion: in situations where we lack experience, we convert our opinion with an expert present, eg in media to convert public opinion on a topic (expert power)
