resistance to SI

Question 1

what is resistance to SI?

Answer 1

when a person completely rejects social influence (conformity and obedience).

Question 2

what are the 2 main reasons for resistance?

Answer 2

• social support
• locus of control

Question 3

what is social support and what is its effect?

Answer 3

• people may resist pressures to conform or obey if they have support from a dissenter (someone who disagrees with the majority or refuses to obey).
• this frees the individual from the pressure to conform or obey, allowing them to act independently

Question 4

example of social support

Answer 4

asch’s study - unanimity - when 1 confederate gave the correct answer rate of conformity dropped to 5%

Question 5

what is locus of control and who proposed it?

Answer 5

Proposed by Rotter - how much a person believes they control what happens in their lives, and can be measured on a scale from high internal to high external.

Question 6

what are those with an internal locus of control like?

Answer 6

• ‘Internals’ believe they have a great deal of control over their lives, and attribute their successes and failures to themselves personally
• More likely to resist influence and demonstrate independent behaviour, as they are less likely to follow the crowd or blindly follow an order they think is wrong.

Question 7

what are those with an external locus of control like?

Answer 7

• ‘Externals’ feel that many things which happen are outside of their control, and attribute successes and failures to luck, fate, or other outside circumstances
• Less likely to resist influence, as they are less likely to take personal responsibility for their behaviour and have more need for social approval.

Question 8

strength relating to milgram’s study

Answer 8

Holland (1967) found that 37% of ‘internals’ refused to obey to the maximum shock level in a Milgram-type study, compared to 23% of ‘externals’, showing a link between locus of control and resistance to obedience

Question 9

sterngth relating to asch’s study

Answer 9

Allen and Levine (1971) found that introducing a dissenter in an Asch-style study greatly reduced conformity levels, even if the dissenter wore thick glasses and claimed they had poor eyesight, supporting that having social support increases resistance to social influence.

Question 10

weakness

Answer 10

Twenge et al (2004) found that over time, Americans have become more resistant to obedience, but have also become more external in their locus of control. This weakens the suggestion that having an internal locus of control leads to resistance to social influence.