resistance to social influence Flashcards
What is resistance to social influence?
Ability to oppose the pressure to conform to a majority or obey an authority figure by maintaining personal autonomy
What % of ppts in Asch’s study resisted the pressure to conform in every round?
What % of ppts in Milgram’s study resisted all 4 rounds of shocks?
25%
35%
What are the 2 explanations of resistance to social influence?
Social support (situational)
Locus of control (dispositional)
What is social support?
The presence of others who defy authority>confidence to stand against majority pressure
One strength of social support is that it has been shown to help individuals resist the pressure to obey
PET
E: milgram’s variation of having 2 confederate teachers: 1 refused to continue at 150v, 2 refused to continue at 210v
Obedience rates dropped from 65% to 10% , T:Milgram argues this is due to defiant actions of peers>reducing experimenters legitimacy of authority
A weakness of social support is that there is still some individuals who continue to obey and conform even with social support
PET
E: e.g. did in 10% of Milgram’s
T: social support is incomplete as an explanation, instead there’s other factors e.g. locus of control, or if they have authoritarian personality (dispositional factors)
What is locus of control?
Personality trait regarding what people consider to be the causes of their experiences and the factors that influence their success/failures
This influences how people perceive and interact with their environment
What do individuals with an internal locus of control believe?
What do they attribute their actions to?
How do they take on responsibility?
They have personal control over their lives
Attribute success and failure to their own efforts and abilities
More likely to take control of their actions
What do individuals with and external locus of control believe?
What do they attribute their actions to?
How do they take on responsibility?
External factors e.g. fate, luck, the power of others control their lives
Attribute outcomes to outside factors
Less empowered to effect change in their lives and resist social pressures
One weakness is that the relationship between LOC and resistance to social influence is only correlational
PET
E: Other factors are suggested as being involved in resistance to social influence e.g. individuals who see an action as morally wrong are likely to resist, regardless of social pressures
T: limited explanation
One strength of locus of control is that there’s research support
PET
E: psychologist replicated Milgram’s study, ppts were asked for internal and external locus of control, 37% with internal LOC refused to continue to highest shock, compared to 23% of external LOC
T: supports
