Obedience: Social impact theory

Question 1

What is social impact theory?

Answer 1

A psychological theory that explains how the presence or actions of others can influence an individual’s feelings, thoughts, or behaviours

Question 2

Who introduced social impact theory?

Answer 2

Bibb Latané (1981)

Question 3

Is social impact theory situational or dispositional?

Answer 3

Situational

Question 4

What is meant by a ‘target’?

Answer 4

Those who are influenced/impacted

Question 5

What is meant by a ‘source’?

Answer 5

Those who are doing the influencing/impacting

Question 6

What are the three components that impact the influence of a source?

Answer 6

• Strength
• Immediacy
• Number

Question 7

What is meant by ‘strength’?

Answer 7

How important the influencing group of people are to you
- status
- authority
- age

Question 8

What is meant by ‘immediacy’?

Answer 8

How close the group/s are to you at the time of the influence
- proximity
- distance
- buffers

Question 9

What is meant by ‘number’?

Answer 9

The amount of sources or targets
- more targets can decrease obedience
- more sources can increase obedience

Question 10

What is the multiplication of impact?

Answer 10

Increasing strength, immediacy and number of sources can significantly increase the social impact

Question 11

What is the division of impact?

Answer 11

Increasing targets can decrease social impact as the impact from the source/s is divided among targets so the individual pressure is released

Question 12

What is the ‘law of diminishing returns’?

Answer 12

Once the source group is bigger than 3, each additional person has less of an impact on the target

Question 13

What is a strength of social impact theory?

Hofling et al (1966) - PEECA

Answer 13

P - a strength of social impact theory is supporting evidence from Hofling et al (1966).
E - Nurses were instructed over the phone to give an unsafe drug dosage to a patient and 95% obeyed.
E - Therefore, this supports the importance of strength in social impact as the nurses believed the doctor was legitimate.
CA - However, it does not highlight the importance of immediacy, since the instructions were given via telephone, yet obedience was still high.

Question 14

What is a strength of social impact theory?

Sedikides and Jackson (1990) - PEE

Answer 14

P - Supporting evidence from Sedikides and Jackson (1990)
E - They carried out a field experiment in a zoo where a confederate zoo keeper asked visitors to not lean on the railings. When the confederate zoo keeper wore a uniform people showed higher levels of obedience (58% obedience) opposed to when the confederate wore a t-shirt and shorts (35% obedience).
E - Therefore, this suggests that there is a bigger impact when strength is increased, as the zoo keeper was percieved as a legitimate authority figure. Additionally, as time progressed, the level of obedience dropped which demonstrates the importance of immediacy.

Question 15

What is a strength of social impact theory?

Application - PEE

Answer 15

P - Social impact theory has applications as it can be used to enhance social influence
E - For example, political leaders can increase their influence by aiming to reach voters by talking face-to-face rather than through TV or radio broadcasts, increasing immediacy. Also, by addressing smaller groups rather than larger crowds, the division of impact does not take affect and the impact of their messages may increase.
E - Therefore, this shows that social impact theory can be applied to society and how voting can be influenced through a strategic campaign.

Question 16

What is a weakness of social impact theory?

Reductionist - PEE

Answer 16

P - Social impact theory could be seen as reductionist
E - For example, it reduces the complexity of human thoughts, feelings and experiences to 3 numbers (SIN) in order to predict outcomes.
E - Therefore, this shows that social impact theory ignores other factors that influence people to be obedient, such as dispositional factors like different personality types and traits.