Paper 1 - Social Influence - Conformity

Question 1

Define compliance?

Answer 1

Publicly but not privately agreeing with the majority to gain approval / avoid ridicule. It is weak/ temporary and it only happens in the presence of a group

Question 2

Define internalisation?

Answer 2

(True conformity) Publicly and privately acceptance of a majority influence through adoption of the majority’s believes. This is a stronger and permeant form of conformity.

Question 3

Define identification?

Answer 3

Public and private acceptance of majority influence in order to gain group acceptance but still not permeant. (A stronger form of conformity than compliance)

Question 4

Define ISI?

Answer 4

A cognitive process which is an explanation for conformity that says that we agree with the opinions of the majority because we believe it to be correct . We accept it to be correct because we want to be correct as well so we change our private and public opinions to be consistent with the majority’s

Question 5

Define NSI?

Answer 5

An emotional process which is an explanation of conformity. We agree with the opinion of the majority to gain approval and to avoid looking foolish

Question 6

What is the simple way to explain ISI and NSI?

Answer 6

ISI - we want to be right

NSI - we want to be liked

Question 7

What are the 3 types of conformity?

Answer 7

Compliance
Internalisation
Identification

Question 8

What are the 2 explanations of conformity?

Answer 8

ISI
NSI

Question 9

What experiment did Sherif do?

Answer 9

Conformity and the auto kinetic effect

(The moving dot)

Question 10

Who did the conformity and the auto kinetic effect?

Answer 10

The moving dot experiment
Sherif

Question 11

When did Sherif do his experiment?

Answer 11

1935

Question 12

What was Sherif’s method?

Answer 12

This was a laboratory experiment with a repeated measures design. Sherif used a visual illusion called the autokinetic effect, where a stationary stop of light, viewed in a dark room, appears to move.
Participants were falsely told that the experimenter would move the light. They had to estimate how far it had moved.
In the first phase, individual participants made repeated estimates. They were then put into groups of 3 people, where they each made their estimate with others present. Finally they were retested individually.

Question 13

What were Sheirf’s results?

Answer 13

When they were alone, participants developed their own stable estimates (personal norms), which varied widely between participants. Once the participants were in a group, the estimates tended to converge and become more alike.
When the participants were then retested on their own, their estimates were more like the group estimates than their original guesses.

Question 14

What were Sheirf’s conclusions?

Answer 14

Participants were influenced by the estimates of other people, and a group norm developed. Estimates converged because participants used information from others to help them- they were affected by informational social influence.

Question 15

What were the positive evaluations of Sherif’s experiment?

Answer 15

This was a laboratory experiment, so there was strict control of the variables. This means that the results are unlikely to have been affected by a third variable, so it should be possible to establish cause and effect.
It also means that the method could be replicated.
The repeated measures design meant that participant variables that could have affected the results were kept constant.

Question 16

What were the negative evaluations of Sherif’s experiment?

Answer 16

However, the method is flawed because the participants were being asked to judge the movement of a light that was not moving- this rarely happens in real life.
Because it created an artificial situation, the study can be criticised for lacking ecological validity.
The sample used was quite limited- all of the participants were male, so the results cannot be generalised to everyone.
An ethical problem with this study was deception- the participants were told the light was moving when it was not.

Question 17

What happens to conformity when the task is more difficult?

Answer 17

Increases

Question 18

What happens to conformity when the task is more familiar to the participant?

Answer 18

Decreases

Question 19

What happens to conformity when there is another non conformist is in the group giving the right answer?

Answer 19

Decreases

Question 20

What happens to conformity when there is only 1 confederate?

Answer 20

Decreases

Question 21

What happens to conformity when the task is easier

Answer 21

Decreases

Question 22

What happens to conformity when there are more people in the group giving the wrong answer (increasing from 8)?

Answer 22

The same

Question 23

What happens to conformity when the confederates are more expert in task?

Answer 23

Increases

Question 24

What happens to conformity when instead of 7 confederates, there is 4?

Answer 24

The same

Question 25

What happens to conformity when the task is done alone and they see other results on a screen

Answer 25

Decreases

Question 26

What happens to conformity when there is another non conformist in the group who gives a different wrong answer?

Answer 26

Decreases

Question 27

What are the negative evaluations of Ash’s experiment

Answer 27

It lacks temporal validity
Participants may of shown demand characteristics (the task may have been too easy)
Fiske (2014) said that Asch’s groups weren’t very groupy

Only men were used so results can’t be generalised to women
Results can’t be generalised to other societies (communists (china) conform more than capitalists (US)

Asch believed that this experiment demonstrated independence and not conformity (only 1/3 conformed)

Question 28

What evidence is there to show that people conform less now?

Answer 28

In 1980 Perin and Spenser repeated Asch’s experiment
They used engineer students and only 1/396 in the UK conformed
This shows that Asch’s experiment lacks temporal validity

Question 29

What was suggested about conformity in women?

Answer 29

Women are more conformist
A meta analysis was done
This proved that women are more conformist than men
They said that this may be because women are more concerned with group harmony and that assertiveness and independence are valued male atributes

Question 30

What are the 3 reasons why people may conform?

Answer 30

Distortion of:
Perception
Judgment
Action

Question 31

Explain distortion of perception?

Answer 31

When we doubt out own understanding of the task so we conform

Question 32

Explain distortion of judgment?

Answer 32

When you feel doubt about the accuracy of our understanding of our perception

Question 33

Explain distortion of action?

Answer 33

When you trust the judgment and perception of the majority so you change your behaviour to avoid disapproval

Question 34

What explanation of conformity did Asch show?

Answer 34

NSI

Question 35

What support is there for the existence of ISI?

Answer 35

Lucus (2006)
He got students to answer maths problems
Conformity increased as the problems got harder
The students who thought that their maths ability was bad conformed more
These results showed that people conform more when they are unsure about the correct answer

Question 36

What evidence is there against ISI?

Answer 36

People who want to be liked conform way more often
People described as affiliaters (people who had great need for affiliation)
A study was done about students who were in need of affiliation

Question 37

When was Asch’s experiment?

Answer 37

1951
And
1953

Question 38

What was Asch’s experiment called?

Answer 38

Conformity of an unambiguous task

Question 39

Who did an experiment into conformity on an unambiguous task?

Answer 39

Asch

Question 40

What was Asch’s method?

Answer 40

Asch carried out a laboratory experiment with an independent group design. In groups of 8, participants judged line lengths by saying out loud which comparison line (1,2, or 3) matched the standard line.
Each group contained only one real participant- the others were confederates (who acted like real participants but were really helping the experimenter). The real participant always went last or last but one, so that they heard the others’ answers before giving theirs.
Each participant did 18 trials. On 12 of these (critical trials) the confederates all gave the same wrong answer. There was also a control group, where the participants judged the line lengths in isolation.

Question 41

What were Asch’s results?

Answer 41

In the control trials, participants gave the wrong answer 0.7% of the time. In the critical trials, participants conformed to the majority 37% of the time. 75% conformed at least once.
Afterwards, some participants said they didn’t really believe their answers, but did not want to look different

Question 42

What were the conclusions of Asch’s experiment?

Answer 42

The control condition showed that the task was easy to get right. However, 37% were wrong on the critical trials- they conformed to the majority due to normative social influence

Question 43

What are the positive evaluations of Asch’s experiment?

Answer 43

This was a laboratory experiment, so there was good control of the variables. This minimises the effects of extraneous variables.
Strict control of the variables also means that you could easily repeat the study to see if you get the same results.

Question 44

What are the negative evaluations of Asch’s experiment?

Answer 44

However, because the participants were not in a natural situation, the study lacks ecological validity. Whether they were right or wrong didn’t matter to the participants- they might have been likely to conform if their answer had real-life consequences. In terms of ethics, the participants were deceived and might have been embarrassed when they found out the true nature of the study.

Question 45

What evidence is there to suggest that ISI and NSI work together?

Answer 45

This is known as the two process approach
Asch showed that conformity is decreased when there is another person decanting. This may be because the dissenter reduces the power of NSI - as it provides social support…. Or it may reduce the power of ISI because there is an alternative source of information

This experiment casts doubt over the view that ISI and NSI operate independently in conforming behaviour

Question 46

What does the two process approach mean?

Answer 46

The belief that ISI and NSI work together

Question 47

What support is there for NSI?

Answer 47

Asch made people write down their answers rather than saying them out loud - conformity then fell to 12.5%

Question 48

What is a social role?

Answer 48

The part people play as members of various social groups
Eg parents, passengers

Question 49

What experiment did Zimbardo do?

Answer 49

Stanford Prison Experiment (SPE)

Question 50

When was the SPE?

Answer 50

1973

Question 51

Who did SPE?

Answer 51

Zimbardo

Question 52

What was the method of the SPE?

Answer 52

Male students were recruited to act as either guards or prisoners in a mock prison. They were randomly given roles of prisoner or guard, and their behaviour was observed. The prisoners were ‘arrested’ as they went about their day, taken to ‘prison’ and given uniforms and numbers. The guards also wore uniforms and mirrored glasses.

Question 53

What were the general results of the SPE?

Answer 53

Initially, the guards tried to assert their authority and the prisoners resisted by sticking together. The prisoners then became more passive and obedient, while the guards invested nastier punishments. The experiment was abandoned early because some prisoners became very distressed.

Question 54

What were the conclusions of the SPE?

Answer 54

Guards and prisoners adopted their social roles quickly. Zimbardo claims this shows that our social role can influence our behaviour- seemingly, well-balanced men became unpleasant and aggressive in the role of guard.

Question 55

What are the positive evaluations of the SPE?

Answer 55

It was a controlled observation so there were good controls of the variables

Question 56

What are the negative evaluations of the SPE?

Answer 56

However, because it was an artificial environment, the results cannot really be generalised to real-life situations.
In terms of ethics, some participants found the experience very distressing. There is also a problem with observer bias, as Zimbardo ran the prison himself, and later admitted that he became too personally involved in the situation. The conclusion Zimbardo reached does not explain why only some of the participants acted according to their assigned roles.
Participants didn’t give full consent and they got humiliated
The ends didn’t justify the means?

Question 57

How did Zimbardo respond to the criticism of his experiment?

Answer 57

He said that he spoke to participants afterwards
That He gave them longitudinal care

Question 58

How many people participated in the SPE?

Answer 58

25

Question 59

What happened to the participants during the SPE?

Answer 59

They were arrested in public and deloised

Prisoners became subdued, depressed and anxious

1 prisoner relaesed on the 1st day (shows chaos)
2 released on the 4th day

Hunger strikes - force fed and put in the “hole”
Prisoners shunned by other prisoners
Guards abused their power

Christina Maslash put a stop the the experiment

Question 60

Who was Zimbardo’s grad student???

Answer 60

Christina Malash

Question 61

What experiment did Reicher and Haslam do?
When?

Answer 61

The BBC Prison Study

2006

Aka the SPE replication

Question 62

What was the method of Haslam’s study?

Answer 62

This was a controlled observation in a mock prison, which was filmed for television. The participants were 15 male volunteers who had responded to an advert. They were randomly assigned to two groups- five were guards and 10 were prisoners. They had daily tests to measure levels of depression, compliance with rules, and stress. The prisoners knew that one of them, chosen at random, would become a guard within three days.
An independent ethics committee had the power to stop the experiment at any time in order to protect the participants.

Question 63

What were the results of Haslam’s study?

Answer 63

The guards failed to form a united group and identify with their role. They did not always exercise their power and they said they felt uncomfortable with the inequality of the situation. In the first three days, the prisoners tried to act in a way that would get them promoted to guard status.
After one was promoted, they become a much stronger group because they knew there was no more chances of promotion. The unequal system collapsed due to the unwillingness of the guards and the strength of the prisoner group. On day six, the prisoners rebelled and the participants decided to live in a democracy but this also collapsed due to tensions within the group.
Some of the former prisoners then wanted to set up a stricter regime with them as leaders. They study was abandoned early on the advice of the ethics committee, as the participants showed signs of stress.

Question 64

What were the conclusions of Haslams experiment?

Answer 64

The participants did not fit into their expected social roles, suggesting that these roles are flexible.

Question 65

What are the positive evaluations of Haslam’s experiment?

Answer 65

• The ethics of the study were good- the participants were not
  deceived- they were able to give informed consent.
• Participants were protected by the ethics committee
• They were debriefed and offered counselling afterwards.

Question 66

What are the negative evaluations of Haslam’s experiment?

Answer 66

• The study has been criticised for being made for TV- Many people
  including Zimbardo, argued that elements of the study were
  staged and the participants played up for the cameras.
• As this was an artificial situation, the results cannot be generalised
  to real life.

Question 67

What are the neutral evaluations of Haslam’s experiment?

Answer 67

• The prisoners were a strong group and the guards were weak
• The guards were not as empowered as the guards in Zimbardo’s
  group, who were actively encouraged to maintain order