Lecture 3

Question 1

what is social influence

Answer 1

The study of how thoughts, feelings, and behavior of individuals are influenced by the actual, imagined or implied presence of others

Question 2

Who are we influenced by and what do we think of this influence

Answer 2

1) mass-media delivered by marketing source
2) mass-media delivered by non-marketing source
3) delivered personally by marketing source
4) delivered personally by non-marketing source

Question 3

Reference groups

Answer 3

A set of people with whom we compare ourselves for guidance in developing attitudes, knowledge and or behavior

Question 4

Reference group (rankings?)

Answer 4

Membership: yes/no
Strength link: Primary/secondary
Type of contact: Direct/indirect

Question 5

aspirational reference groups

Answer 5

not yet a member

Question 6

Associative reference groups

Answer 6

Already a member

Question 7

Dissocial referene groups

Answer 7

Do not want to be a member

Question 8

Aspirational reference groups

Answer 8

Want to be a part of (e.g. popular rich kid/ athlete/ frat)

Question 9

Dissociative reference groups

Answer 9

Dont want to be a part of (e.g. unpopular, nerdy, frat)

Question 10

conformity

Answer 10

changing ones behavior in response to information or pressure from others

Goal: align ourselves with the standards of the group

Question 11

Why conform

Answer 11

to lean and to be included

Question 12

Two kinds of conformity

Answer 12

Information social influence:

going along with others because others comments/information guides us as to what is correct and proper

value others opinion; generally useful information; adaptive advantage

Ambiguous, highly complex situations need answers right away; immediate action necessary
Looking for information from others
Leads to private attitude change

Question 13

Normative social influence:

Answer 13

Going along with others in pursuit of social approval or belonging (and to avoid disapproval and rejection)
Need for acceptance; need for approval; want to be liked (rather than disliked)
Publicly consumed products, luxury products, high need for acceptance 8e.g. meeting new people, after exclusion)
Seeking social connection with others
 Can lead to mere public compliance

Question 14

Conformity: Informational social influence

Answer 14

: You are unsure how to behave during the lecture, you look around and see that the other students are quiet, so you are quiet as well

Question 15

Compliance

Answer 15

Type of social influence that involves responding favorably to a direct request from another person

Question 16

Liking

Answer 16

people are more likely to comply with people they like

Question 17

Sources of liking:

Answer 17

Physical attractiveness (halo effect)
Similarity (age, religion, political views, smoking habits etc.) (chameleon effect = mimicry of postures etc)
Familiarity (mere exposure effect, friends)

Question 18

The mere-exposure-effect (zajonc)

Answer 18

Unfamiliar Chinese symbols were evaluated in a sequence
Some symbols were shown repeatedly, others only once
Finding: the more frequently people were exposed to a symbol, the more attractive it was.
Familiarity boosts liking

Question 19

Reciprocity

Answer 19

people repay in kind
Chairities (pennies, address labels)
Free samples
Free home inspection

Question 20

Consistency

Answer 20

People fulfill public and voluntary commitments

Undersupplied toys

Foot-in-the-door technique

Door-in-the-face technique

-To be effective, commitments need to be (public and voluntary)

Question 21

Social proof

Answer 21

People follow the lead of similar others

Canned laughter

Testimonials

Consumer online ratings (amazon, trip adviser)
Especially when:
Situation is ambiguous/uncertain
Others are similar

Question 22

Authority

Answer 22

: People defer to experts

Experts provide shortcuts to decisions requiring specialized information

Expertise needs to be noticed

Diplomas on wall

Uniform

Question 23

Scarcity

Answer 23

People want more of what they can have less of

Items are seen as more valuable as they become less available

For a limited time only

Limited editions

Auctions

Especially when:
They were more available before

They became less available because of others demand

Question 24

Why do these principles work?

Answer 24

Because they are oftentimes adaptive

Liking – people who like each other typically trust each other

Reciprocity – social norm

Consistency – desirable personality trait; save mental energy

Social proof – when a lot of people are doing something it is usually the right thing to do

Authority – experts typically know more

Scarcity – scarce things are often valuable