Resistance to Social Influence Flashcards
What is resistance to social influence?
Refers to the ability of people to withstand the social pressure to conform go ghd majority or to obey authority. This ability to withstand social pressure is influenced by both situational and dispositional factors
What can help people with conforming?
Social support
What is social support?
The presence of other people who resist or obey can help others to do the same. The people act as models to show others that resistance to influence is possible
How does social support affect conformity levels?
The pressure to conform can be reduced if there are other people present. The individual not conforming does not haver to right but by simply not following the majority it will be enable a person to feel free to follow their own conscience.
What did Asch find about the long term of effects of social support on conformity?
Asch’s research showed that if this “non - conforming” person started to conform again, the naive participant would follow suit. Therefore Asch concluded the effect of dissent is not long lasting
How can social support help with obedience?
Social support can help people resist obedience, the pressure to obey can be reduced if there is another person disobeying.
How did Milgram’s experiment show social support aided in obedience?
Milgram found that the rate of obedience dropped from 65% to 10% when the naive participant was joined by a disobedient confederate. The other person’s disobedience acts as a ‘model’ for the participant to copy that frees him to act from his own disobedience
What is the concept of the locus of control?
What two type of people are involved in this theory?
The concept of the locus of control is about internal control vs external control. The sense some people have about what is the cause of events in their life
There are Internals and Externals:
Internals: believe they are mostly responsible for what happens to them - having a locus of control
Externals: believe it is mainly a matter of luck or other outside forces - external locus of control
What is the continuum, when talking about the locus of control?
There is a continuum with high internal LOC at one end and high external LOC at the other end, then low internal and low external locus of control lying in between
Who is more likely to resist pressures to conform or obey, someone with a internal locus of control or external locus of control?
Why is this?
People with an internal locus of control are more likely to be able to resist pressures to conform or obey. A person who takes responsibility for their actions will be more likely to base their decisions on their own beliefs, thus resisting pressures from others
What is another explanation for why people with internal locus of control resists pressures to conform or obey?
Another explanation is that people with high internal locus of control tend to be more self - confident, more achievement - oriented, have higher intelligence and less need for social approval. These traits lead to a greater resistance to social influence
What is a strength of resistance to social influence? (there is supportive research for resistance to conformity)
Research evidence supports the role of dissenting peers in resisting conformity. For example, Allen and Levine found that conformity decreased when there was one dissenter in an Asch type study. More importantly, this occurred even if the dissenter wore thick glasses and said he had difficulty with his vision making him clearly unable to judge the length of the lines
What is a strength of resistance to social influence? (there is supportive research for resistance to conformity)
Another strength is that there is research evidence that supports the role of dissenting peers in resisting obedience. Gamson et al found higher levels of resistance in their study than Milgram. This was probably because the participants in Gamson’s study were in groups. In Gamson’s study, 29 out of 33 groups of participants 88% rebelled. This shows that peer support is linked to greater resistance
What is a limitation of the locus of control? (there is a limited role of the locus of control)
The role of locus of control in resisting social influence has been exaggerated. Rotter points out that locus of control only comes into play in novel situations. It has very little influence over our behaviour in familiar situations where our previous experiences will always be more important. This point is often overlooked in discussions of locus of control and resistance. It means that people who have conformed or obeyed in specific situations in the past are more likely yo do so again, if they have a high internal locus of control
