resistance to social influence

Question 1

Milgram

Answer 1

• 35% didn’t obey
  when joined by a disobedient confederate & obedience decreased from 65% to 10%

Question 2

Zimbardo

Answer 2

• 1/3 were brutal
  1/3 keen on rules

Question 3

Asch

Answer 3

overall 25% of ppts didn’t conform

Question 4

Social Support

Answer 4

• the perception that an individual has assistance available from other people & they are part of a supportive network
• pressure to conform can be reduced if there are others present that aren’t conforming
• person who disagrees acts as a model
• done in Asch’s study: dissenter dropped conformity to less than ¼
• Milgram’s other variation: obedience decreased from 65% to 10%

Question 5

Social support AO3: research support of resistance to conformity

Answer 5

• Allen & Levine (1971): found conformity decreased when there was a dissenter (similar to Asch’s study)
  happened even if the dissenter wore thick glasses & said he had difficulty with his vision
• tells us resistance isn’t just about following what someone does but being free from pressure of a group

Question 6

Social support AO3: research support for resistance to obedience

Answer 6

• Gamson et al (1982):
  carried out a study on resisting obedience
  ppts responded to take part in a study supposedly run by a public relations firm
• were asked to discuss a case of a petrol station employee (behaved immorally) at a motel that was videotaped
  they were then asked to sign a form to say they could use the videotape
• 33 groups took part and 29 of them had disobeyed
  suggestion that peer support is linked to disobedience

Question 7

Locus of control: Rotter (1966)

Answer 7

• internal locus: people differ in their beliefs about whether the outcomes of their actions are dependant on what they do
  external locus: their outcomes are based on events outside of their personal control
• can’t describe people as internals or externals but a continuum with high internal locus of control at one end and high external locus at the other
• low internal locus & low external locus come in come in between
  internal locus of control less likely to obey & conform
  due to self-confidence , higher IQ, more achievement-oriented , less need for social approval

Question 8

Locus of control AO3: research support for locus of control

Answer 8

• Holland (1967): looked at the link between LOC & resistance to obedience
• repeated Milgram’s study while measuring if ppts were considered internals or externals
• found that 37% of internals showed resistance & didn’t continue to the highest setting
• 23% externals didn’t continue
• internals showed greater resistance to authority
  research supports validity of the LOC explanation

Question 9

Locus of control AO3: contradictory research

Answer 9

• Twenge et al: found that not all research supports link between LOC & resistance
• meta-analysis of American obedience studies over a 40 year period
• data showed people have become more resistant to obedient but also more external
• if resistance was linked to an internal locus we would’ve expected people to become more internal
• results due to a changing society where many things are now out of control

Question 10

Locus of control AO3: limited role of LOC

Answer 10

• role of LOC in resistance has been exaggerated
• Rotter: says that LOC comes into play in novel situations and has very little influence on our behaviour in familiar situations where previous experiences are more important
• explanation can’t be applied to all situations