Resistance to Social Influence

Question 1

What is a locus of control?

Answer 1

A person’s perception of personal control over their own behaviour

Question 2

What is a strong internal locus of control?

Answer 2

• They believe they can control events in their lives
• More likely to display independence in thought and behaviour
• Rely less on the opinions of others, more likely to resist social influence

Question 3

What is strong external locus of control?

Answer 3

• Believing that what happens to them is determined by external factors, e.g. luck.
• They have a more fatalistic attitude, taking less personal responsibility
• Less likely to display independent behaviour and more likely to accept influence

Question 4

Describe how a high internal locus of control resists social influence

Answer 4

• They seek useful information so don’t rely on the opinions of others, making them less vulnerable to them.
• Tend to be more achievement-oriented so more likely to be leaders than followers. Spector found a relationship between LoC and leadership style, with internals being more persuasive and goal-oriented than externals
• Able to resist coercion from others. e.g. in a simulated prisoner-of-war camp, Hutchins and Estey found internals better resisted the attempts of an interrogator to gain info than externals

Question 5

Give evaluation for locus of control (historical trend)

Answer 5

• There’s a historical trend that supports the external LoC
• A meta-analysis by Twenge et al found that young Americans increasingly believed that their fate was determined more by luck and others rather than their own actions. Researchers found that locus of control scores became more external in student and child samples
• Twenge interprets this trend in terms of the alienation experienced by young people and the tendency to explain misfortunes on outside forces.

Question 6

Give evaluation for locus of control (normative social influence)

Answer 6

• Locus of control is related more to NSI
• Spector measured LoC and predisposition to normative and informational social influence in undergraduate students
• He found a correlation between LoC and predisposition to NSI, with externals more likely to conform to this influence. However, he found no relationship for predisposition to ISI, with LoC not appearing to be a significant factor in this type of conformity
• Spector concluded that externals would conform more to normative pressure but wouldn’t conform to informational pressure

Question 7

Give evaluation for locus of control (supporting research)

Answer 7

• Holland repeated Milgram’s study and measured whether participants were internals.
• He found 37% of internals didn’t give the highest shock while 23% of externals didn’t give the highest shock
• Internals are more able to resist authority

Question 8

What is social support?

Answer 8

When people resist the pressures of social influence, they can help others to do the same. These people act as models to show others that resistance to social influence is possible

Question 9

How did Asch research the effect of social support on conformity?

Answer 9

In Asch’s unanimity variation, a confederate disagreed (dissenter) with others, sometimes giving the right and wrong answer. Conformity was reduced by a quarter

Question 10

How did Milgram research the effect of social support on obedience?

Answer 10

• In one of his variations, the participant was in a team of 3 testing the learner. The other 2 were confederates who refused to continue shocking the learner.
• Their defiance influenced the participants, with obedience levels dropping to 10% at the maximum shock level

Question 11

Why does the presence of social support cause conformity and obedience to decrease?

Answer 11

• Supporters and dissenters can reduce conformity as they break the unanimity of the majority. The ally makes them more confident in their decisions and better able to stand up to the majority.
• Individuals are more confident in their ability to resist temptation to obey if they have an ally who is willing to join them. Disobedient peers act as role models where the individual can model their own behaviour.

Question 12

Give evaluation for social support (real world application)

Answer 12

• Albrecht evaluated a 8-week programme to help pregnant teens to stop smoking. The teens were paired with a buddy that provided social support. When the programme finished, teens with buddies were less likely to smoke than a control group who didn’t have a buddy.
• Social support can help young people to resist social influence as part of real-world intervention

Question 13

Give evaluation for social support (research support)

Answer 13

• Research supports the role of dissenting peers in resisting conformity
• Allen and Levine found that conformity decreased when there was 1 dissenter in an Asch-type study. More importantly, this occurred even if the dissenter wore thick glasses and said he had trouble with his vision.
• Supports that resistance isn’t just motivated by following what someone else says but it enables someone to be free of the pressure from the group

Question 14

Give evaluation for social support (social support in the real world)

Answer 14

• The Rosentrasse protest is an example of social support
• A group of German women protested in Berlin, where the Gestapo were holding 2,000 Jewish men, most who were married to non-Jews or were the child of ‘mixed’ marriage. Despite the Gestapo threatening to open fire, the women’s courage prevailed and the Jews were set free.
• These women defied the authority of the Gestapo together, and were given courage by the collective action of their peers and their social support.