Resistance To Social Influence - LOC + Social Support

Question 1

Social support

Answer 1

• Pressure to conform can be resisted if others resist

Question 2

Resisting Conformity - Asch

Answer 2

• Confederate not conforming may not be giving the ‘right’ answer but naive opinion will feel free to follow own conscience

=> confederate acts as model of independent behaviour naive pp follows
- dissent leads to more as no longer unanimous

Question 3

Resisting Obedience - Milgram

Answer 3

Pressure to obey decreased when other disobeyed: went from 65 - 10% when pp was paired w/ disobedient confederate

• Acts as model of dissent to copy - legitimacy of authority challenged

Question 4

Research Support in Real World - AO3

Answer 4

Alberecht et al - Evaluated Teen Fresh Start - 5w program to help pregnant teens resist pressure to smoke

When w/ a buddy, we’re less likely to smoke than control group - social support is effective

Question 5

When Social Support is Most Effective - AO3

Answer 5

Allen + Levine (1971) - Social support can help ppl resist group influence

• Asch type task: 64% genuine pps didn’t confirm w/o support only 3% d

Question 6

Locus of Control

Answer 6

Refers to the sense we each have about what directs events in our lives

Question 7

Internal LOC

Answer 7

Believe things that happen to them are largely controlled by themselves

E.g. not doing well in exam => didn’t work hard enough

Question 8

External LOC

Answer 8

Things are out of their control

Success in exam = used good textbook
Failure in exam = Qs were too hard

Question 9

The LOC Continuum

Answer 9

Not internal or external - LOC is a scale that ppl vary on

High external + internal on either end w/ low of each in between

Question 10

Why LOC leads to Social Resistance - LOC

Answer 10

People w/ high LOC - more able to resist pressure to conform or obey as they take personal responsibility for actions

=> tend to be more confident achievement-oriented + intelligent
Less need for social approval

Question 11

Research Support for LOC - AO3

Answer 11

Holland (1967) - repeated Milgram baseline study + measured pps LOC

37% of “I” didn’t go to highest shock while only 23% of “E” didn’t

Shows resistance partly due to LOC increases it’s validity

Question 12

Contradictory Evidence - AO3

Answer 12

Twenge et al (2004) - analysed data from US LOC studies over 40 yrs

Showed that people have become more resistant to obey but also more internal - if l LOC is linked ppl would be more inferior

Suggests LOC isn’t a valid explanation