Resistance to social influence Flashcards
social support in resisting conformity
social support can help people resist to conformity. As seen in Asch’s variations, the addition of one other person not conforming reduces the level of conformity by 25%.
research support for resistance to conformity
Research evidence shows that conformity decreases when one person dissents in an Asch-like study. Even if that person was wearing glasses and said they couldnt see well, the pp still resisted conformity. So resistance is not motivated by following what other people say, but enables someone to be free from the pressures of the group.
social support in resisting obedience
The pressure to obey is reduced if someone else disobeys. In one of Milgrams variations, the rate of obedience dropped from 60% to 10% when
research support for resistance to obedience
research evidence to support the role of dissenting peers in obedience. A researcher found higher levels of resistance in their study than Milgram as they had their pps in groups - 88% rebelled - so peer support is linked to greater resistance
what is Locus of Control
Rotter proposed locus of control which is a concept concerned with internal and external locus of control.
what is an intenal locus of control
Some internals believe that the thinsg that happen to them are largely controlled by themselves, - eg, doing well inan exam because tou worked hard.
what is an external locus of control
tend to believe the things that happen to them without their control - eg luck
locus of control in resistance to social influence
people wjo have an internal locus of control are more likely to be able to resist pressures to conform or obey. They are more likely to base thier decisions on their own beliefs and thus resist pressure from others.
Personality traits - more self confident, higher intelligence and less need for social approval . all lead to greater resistance.
research evidence for locus if control in resisting obedience
researchers who replicated milgrams baseline study found that 38% of internals did not continue to the final shock whereas only 23% of externals did not continue.
- Internals showeed greater resistance to authority. THis resesrch increases the validity of LOC explanation.
limitation of LOC (situations)
Rotter argues that LOC only comes into play in novel situations. It has very little influence over our behaviour in familiar situations where our previous experience will be more important.
