Resistance to social influence

Question 1

Social support

Answer 1

• Social support = someone else not following the majority
• Pressure to conform can be resisted if there are other people who don’t conform
• Pressure to obey can be resisted if other people don’t obey
• Disobeying can challenge the legitimacy of the authority figure and make it easier for others to disobey

Question 2

Locus of control

Answer 2

• Locus of control = sense we have about what directs events in our lives
• Internal LOC = things that happen to them are controlled by themselves
• People with internal LOC’s are able to resist pressures to conform or obey
• External LOC = things that happen to them are out of their control
• People with external LOC’s are more likely to conform or obey

Question 3

Social support - evaluation - strength

Answer 3

• Research support
• Evaluated pregnant teens in an 8 week programme to help them resist the pressure to smoke
• Social support provided by a mentor
• at end of programme - teens who had a mentor were less likely to smoke compared to a control group
• Shows SS can help young people resist social influence

Question 4

Locus of control - evaluation - strength

Answer 4

• Research support
• Researchers repeated Milgram’s study and measured whether p’s were internals or externals
• 37% internals - didn’t continue shock to highest level
• 23% externals -didn’t continue shock to highest level
• Shows resistance is partly related to LOC - increases validity of LOC

Question 5

Locus of control - evaluation - limitation

Answer 5

• Contradictory research
• Analysed data from LOC studies conducted over 40 years
• Data showed that overtime people became more resistant to obedience + more external
• If resistance is linked to an internal LOC, we would expect people to be more internal
• Suggests LOC is not a valid explanation