social impact theory

Question 1

what is social impact theory?

Answer 1

the presence of others can influence a persons attitudes

Question 2

what are the 2 types of people involved in social influence?

Answer 2

sources and targets

Question 3

what is a source?

Answer 3

sources provide the influence

Question 4

what is a target?

Answer 4

targets are those who are influenced

Question 5

explain number

Answer 5

• the number of sources can impact the effect of influence
• as the number of people who agree with something increases, so does social impact
• multiple sources causes people to be more likely to be influenced compared to one source

Question 6

explain immediacy/proximity

Answer 6

• if the source is psychologically, socially or physically close to the target, the target is more likely to be influenced by them
• increased proximity (closeness in time or space) can influence a target more
• increased psychological proximity (emotional closeness) also increases influence

Question 7

explain strength

Answer 7

• strength and importance of an individual increases social impact
• if the source is of a higher power or status then we are more likely to be influenced by them
• if the target sees other members of the group as competent they are more likely to give in and conform to their views

Question 8

when can compliance occur?

Answer 8

compliance can occur when the sources increase their strength by making the target feel obligated to obey the source

Question 9

how can sources obtain obedience?

Answer 9

by wearing uniforms/ symbols of authority or bragging about their important affiliations and who they are associated with

Question 10

how can social impact be calculated?

Answer 10

the formula, i=f(SIN), where the size of the impact (i) is the function of strength, immediacy and number of sources

Question 11

strengths

Answer 11

Milgram’s telephonic instruction experiment is a supporting study for SIT. He had an experimenter give orders over the telephone to increase the shock level to the learner when they had an incorrect answer and found that obedience levels dropped from 65% in the baseline, where orders were given face to face, to 20.5% Therefore, showing that the immediacy of a source, in this case the experimenter, affects social impact on the target. People are less likely to obey an authority figure over the phone than face to face.

Supporting evidence from Hofling. He found that 21/22 nurses would obey a doctor who asked to give a patient an overdose of a drug. Therefore, showing high levels of obedience when the authority figure is of higher status and power. The source in this case is the doctor and the target is the nurse, showing that the strength of a source impacts obedience.

Question 12

weaknesses

Answer 12

SIT assumes that social behaviour can be understood in terms of interaction of individuals without input from the wider society or social context. It also reduces human behaviour into a few variables in a mathematical formula.(I=f(SIN)), when we know that human behaviour is a lot more complex than that. It ignores other factors that cause obedience such as individual differences, which include situational factors like self upbringing, personality and past experiences. Therefore, SIT is reductionist and a limited and narrow explanation of obedience in humans

Question 13

application

Answer 13

High application to society as it tells authority figures like police and teachers to be present in larger numbers as people are more likely to behave accordingly, creating more positive behaviours in society. They should also give out orders face to face rather than through things like emails. SIT can also explain the events of WW2. For example, there were lots of Nazis who were the sources acting on people (targets) and Hitler made sure he wore a uniform only he could wear to show his power. Therefore, we can prevent and reduce situations where obedience is dangerous.