Resistance to social influence

Question 1

What is resistance to social influence?

Answer 1

Resistance to social influence refers to the ability of people to withstand the social pressure to conform to the majority or to obey authority. This ability to withstand social pressure is influenced by both situational and dispositional factors.

Question 2

Two theories have been proposed as an attempt to explain why people resist social influence. What are these two explanations?

Answer 2

1. Social support

2. Locus of control (LOC)

Question 3

One explanation as to why we resist social influence is social support. What is social support?

Answer 3

The presence of people who resist pressures to conform or obey can help others to do the same. These people act as models to show others that resistance to social influence is possible.

Question 4

Which two types of social influence are affected by social support?

Answer 4

Conformity and obedience are both affected by the introduction of social support.

Question 5

How can social support help people to resist conformity?

Answer 5

The pressure to conform can be reduced if there are other people present who are not conforming.

Question 6

Whose study supports the view that social support can help people to resist conformity?

Answer 6

Asch’s research supports the view that social support can help people to resist conformity.

Question 7

Explain how Asch’s study demonstrates the influence of social support over conformity.

Answer 7

In Asch’s research the confederate does not have to be giving the ‘right’ answer, but simply the fact that someone else is not following the majority appears to enable a person to follow their own conscience. In this instance, the confederate acts as a ‘model’.

Asch’s research also showed that if this ‘non-conforming’ person stars conforming again, so does the naive participant. Thus, the effect of dissent is not long lasting.

Question 8

How can the pressure to obey be reduced?

Answer 8

The pressure to obey can be reduced if there is another person who is seen to disobey.

Question 9

Whose study supports the view that social support can help people to resist obedience?

Answer 9

Milgram’s research supports the view that social support can help people to resist obedience.

Question 10

Explain how Milgram’s study demonstrates the influence of social support over obedience.

Answer 10

In one of Milgram’s variations, the rate of obedience dropped from 65% to 10% when the genuine participant was joined by a disobedient confederate. The confederate acts as a ‘model’ for the participant to copy (this frees him to act from his own conscience).

Question 11

One explanation as to why we resist social influence is the locus of control. What is the locus of control?

Answer 11

The locus of control refers to the sense we each have about what directs events in our lives.

Question 12

Who first proposed the concept of locus of control?

Answer 12

Julian Rotter

Question 13

When did Julian Rotter first propose the concept of locus of control?

Answer 13

1966

Question 14

The locus of control explanation is divided into two components. What are these two components?

Answer 14

Internal locus of control and external locus of control

Question 15

How do people with an internal locus of control perceive their behaviour?

Answer 15

Internals believe that the things that happen to them are largely controlled by themselves. They view their life as being determined by their own decisions and efforts.

Question 16

How are ‘internals’ likely to perceive an exam situation?

Answer 16

If you do well in an exam it is because you worked hard. If you don’t do well it is because you didn’t work hard.

Question 17

How do people with an external locus of control perceive their behaviour?

Answer 17

Externals have a tendency to believe that things happen without their own control. They see their life as being determined by fate, luck and other external factors.

Question 18

How are ‘externals’ likely to perceive an exam situation?

Answer 18

If they did well in an exam they might put it down to the fact that they had a good textbook. If they failed they might blame it on their bad luck due to the questions being hard.

Question 19

How is the locus of control measured?

Answer 19

The locus of control is measured on a continuum with high internal LOC at one end and high external LOC at the other end.

Question 20

Who would be more likely to be able to resist pressures to conform or obey: ‘internals’ or ‘externals’?

Answer 20

People who have an internal LOC are more likely to be able to resist pressures to conform or obey because they take personal responsibility for their own actions, meaning they are more likely to base their decisions on their own beliefs. This results in them resisting the pressures from others.

People with a high internal LOC also tend to be more self-confident, more achievement-oriented, have higher intelligence and have less need for social approval. These personality traits lead to greater resistance to social influence.

Question 21

Evaluation point: ‘One strength of Rotter’s proposal of the locus of control derives from research support provided by Holland in 1967’. Write a paragraph outlining this AO3 point.

Answer 21

One strength of Rotter’s proposal of the locus of control derives from research support provided by Holland in 1967. Holland repeated Milgram’s study and measured whether the participants were internals or externals. He found that 37% of internals did not continue to the highest shock level, compared to only 23% of externals. This therefore acts as a strength of the locus of control because it supports Rotter’s proposal that people with an internal personality type are more likely to resist social influence. Rotter’s theory is thus high in internal validity because his initial theory has been validated. Additionally, the LOC has both reliability and temporal validity because other psychologists, such as Holland, have managed to maintain consistent findings. This evidence can however be used to criticise Rotter’s theory because only 37% of internals stopped before reaching the highest shock level. It is therefore impossible to establish a nomothetic law based on Rotter’s theory because research fails to demonstrate that 100% of internals will choose to resist social influence. In this light, the LOC is reductionist because it is ignoring wider environmental and biological factors which may influence our ability to resist conformity or obedience.

Question 22

Evaluation point: ‘One strength of social support, as an explanation for why people resist social influence, stems from supportive research findings’. Write a paragraph outlining this AO3 point.

Answer 22

One strength of social support, as an explanation for why people resist social influence, stems from supportive research findings. For example, in 1971 Allen and Levine found that conformity decreased when there was one dissenter in an Asch-type study. More importantly, this occurred even when the dissenter wore thick glasses and claimed he had difficulty with his vision. This evidence therefore acts as a strength of social support because it reinforces the belief that the pressure to conform can be reduced if there are other people present who are not conforming. Because findings have remained consistent over time, the concept of social support can be seen to have both reliability and temporal validity. This can however be criticised because the replication of Asch’s study was conducted in a laboratory environment, resulting in it failing to provide evidence of social support working in every-day environments. According to this evidence then, social support can be criticised for lacking external validity and real-life application.

Question 23

Evaluation point: ‘One limitation of the LOC is its association with conflicting research evidence’. Write a paragraph outlining this AO3 point.

Answer 23

One limitation of the LOC is its association with conflicting research evidence. In 2004, Twenge et al analysed data from American obedience studies, over a 40-year period, and found that people have become more resistant to social influence but also more external. This acts as a weakness of the LOC because it fails to support Rotter’s proposal that ‘internals’ are more likely to resist the pressure the conform and obey. Because findings have failed to remain consistent over time, the LOC can be criticised for being low in both reliability and temporal validity. Additionally, Twenge only conducted his research in America so it fails to inform our understanding of how the LOC influences people’s behaviour in other cultures. Consequently, the LOC can be criticised for being ethnocentric and lacking in population validity.