Resistance To Social Influence Flashcards
What are the two explanations for the resistance of social influence?
— social support
— locus of control
What is social support?
When there is another individual who is not conforming/ obeying, then the pressure to conform/ obey is reduced. These people act as a model to show that resistance is possible.
What is an example of social support when resisting conformity?
Asch’s research: the non conforming confederate provided social support, even when they would also give an incorrect answer. The confederate acts as a model for independent behaviour.
What is an example of social support when resisting obedience?
Milgram’s study: the rate of obedience dropped from 65% to 10% when the genuine participant was joined by a disobedient confederate. This confederate acted as a model for dissent. The disobedient model challenges the legitimacy of authority, making it easier for others to disobey.
What is locus of control (LOC)?
The sense we have about what directs events in our lives. Internals believe we are mostly responsible for what happens to ourselves. Externals believe it is mostly a matter of luck, or fate. The LOC is a scale, so you are not either one or the other, but somewhere along the scale.
How does LOC explain resistance?
People who have a high internal LOC are more likely to resist social influence, because they take more responsibility for their own behaviour. People with high internal LOC also tend to be more confident and have higher intelligence. These traits often lead to greater resistance.
What are strengths of social support as an explanation for resistance?
— research evidence from Susan Albrecht: she conducted an 8 week programme on pregnant adolescents aged 14-19 to help them resist the pressure to smoke. Social support was provided by a slightly older mentor who acted as their ‘buddy’. At the end of the programme, those who had a buddy were significantly less likely to smoke than the control group who did not have a buddy.
— research support from Gamson et al: participants were told to produce evidence to help an oil company run a smear campaign. The researchers found higher levels of resistance than Milgram, probably because the participants were in groups where they could discuss. 88% rebelled. This shows peer social support can lead to resistance.
What are the strengths of LOC as an explanation for resistance?
— Holland repeated Milgram’s baseline study and measured whether participants were high internals or externals. 37% of internals did not continue to the highest voltage, but only 23% of externals didn’t continue. Internals therefore showed greater resistance.
What are the limitations of LOC as an explanation for resistance?
— Twenge et al found that in america, over a 40 year period, people became more resistant, but also more external. If resistance was linked to LOC, we would have expected people to become more internal.
— Rotter said that LOC is only relevant if you’re in a new situation. If you have experienced the situation before, he said that was more important e.g. if you resisted in the past, chances are you will again, regardless of your LOC
