Lecture 9- Compliance, Conformity, Obedience Flashcards
What is compliance?
Superficial public and transitory change in behaviour and expressed attitudes in response to requests, coercion, or group pressure
What is dissonance?
A feeling of discomfort caused by two or more inconsistent cognitive elements (thoughts, feelings, and behaviours).
Explain the foot in the door study by Freedman and Frasier, 1966…
- It’s a lot easier to get someone to agree to a large request if you first ask them small (get a bit of prior engagement)
- From a dissonance perspective signing the petition (small act) creates an attitude and then not acting in larger request would create dissonance.
- From a Self-perception perspective you view yourself objectively and consult your recent behavior when you are trying to decide to agree to a larger request. Because you signed the petition you are now the type of person to support causes (changed your perception of ourself) and so now you will take the next step of larger request as it aligns with self image
Why are free trials effective?
- Same reason as foot in door. Changes self perception you become a ‘Netflix person’. Or dissonance created between having positive attitude as result of trial and not following through with purchase.
- Perseverance effect= you search for good things to support your behavior, positive attitude to thing increases once in free trial so is harder to walk away.
- Endowment= things you perceive to own/ belong seem to hold greater value (attached to us)
What is lowballing? What study shows this?
- Securing commitment to a course of action by undervaluing its true cost (luring someone in so they don’t want to back out).
- Cialdini, Cacioppo, Bassett, & Miller, 1978: Do you want to take part in this study? Yes …. It’s at 7 am gets more people following through with study then leading with it’s a 7am.
If you see an advertisement for 50% storewide and then go and the bargain is less for a particular item but you still buy it, what phenomenon is at work?
Low balling, you have already committing in your head that you will work away with a purchase so it is unlikely you will back out now despite the specifics having changed
Does the small request you ask for before real or can it be imagined?
- Imagining has the same effect on compliance
- Sherman 1980 asked participants: Would you spend 3 hours working for the American Cancer Society? Those who were asked this were more likely to agree to a large request as opposed to if you asked them straight off the bat for a large request.
What is reciprocity? What technique involving doors relates to this?
- Belief that receiving anything positive from another person requires you to reciprocate in response
- “door in the face” technique…
- Cialdini and colleagues, 1975: asked large request (supervise kids for two years) and then when people said no compromised with a more moderate request (supervise kids for the afternoon). This technique resulted in more people complying/ saying yes compared to just asking them to complete the moderate request because they are grateful for the step down.
What is the That’s not all sales technique? Which researcher came up with it?
- Burger 1986
- Had a Bakesale where: Cupcakes= 75 cents, Cookie= 25 cents (total $1). Or instead framed it as Cupcakes= $1, cookies are free bonus a lot more go for this option. This cause we believe the cookie is a gift that needs to be reciprocated via our purchase (we are grateful instead of viewing it as a scam to get more money out of us).
What is conformity? What are the two types?
- Assimilation to group norms
- Informational conformity (informational social influence): conformity due to ambiguous physical reality. We don’t know what is going on in a situation so we look to others as a source of guidance/ information. This produces private acceptance (attitude change).
- Normative Conformity (normative social influence): conformity in unambiguous physical reality. This is based on a motivation to be liked or accepted by your reference group. Produces compliance (without, necessarily, attitude change -you can still have own beliefs inside head and are just complying to look normal)
What study is an example of Informational conformity?
- Sherif’s “autokinetic effect
- It’s an ambiguous situation as to how much the light moves we therefore look to those around us to help with our judgements. While individuals initially give different judgements they come into alignment with the group at the end. Follow up shows people do actually accept/ belief their new thinking- its not superficial.
What study is an example of normative conformity?
- Asch’s line judgements
- Which of 3 comparison lines are a match to a standard line? When surrounded by people who say A is get conformity 2/3 of the time despite answer clearly being B. Individuals don’t actually believe what they say they just don’t want to look stupid (unambiguous situation).
What are some factors affectivity comformity?
- Size of majority (although limit to this, in Asch’s experiment after about 4 there was no additional increases in compliance)
- Unambiguity of the majority: if any of them disagrees then compliance dropped right down
- Ambiguity of the situation: less certain of their attitude/ judgement themselves then compliance increases
- Motivation and opportunity: If they don’t care about the issue or are stressed (don’t have opportunity to think for themselves) compliance increases
- Expertise: Individuals who are particularly trustworthy, or individuals who have knowledge in area discount others
- Individual and cultural differences: some individuals or cultures don’t mind standing out or maybe are particularly opposed to standing out (collectivist attitude)
How does social impact theory relate to conformity?
- Latane, 1981
- States there are lots of things influencing individuals.
- How much impact these sources have on the target depends on the number, strength and distance of these sources
What is obedience and the most famous study of it?
- Obedience: behaviour change in response to a direct order
- Milgram’s obedience study
