Social influence Flashcards
What is conformity?
a type of social influence where persons behaviour or opinion is changed as a result of a real or imagined pressure from a person or a group of people. yielding to group pressures
what three types of conformity did Kelman propose
- Compliance
- identification
- internalisation
What is internalisation?
- strongest type of conformity
- making beliefs/attitude/ value/ behaviour your own
- change of view is permanent
- change is present even if the individual or group are not
what is identification?
- middle level
- temporary change of behaviour/ opinion
- don’t privately agree with everything the group stands for
- only in presence of a group
What is compliance
- lowest level of conformity
- follow other peoples ideas to avoid rejection or gain approval
- publicly agree but privately disagree
- does not privately challenge personal opinions
What is informational social influence
- when someone conforms
because they want to be right - copy or obey others when unsure
- more likely to happen in situations that are new to a person
What is normative social influence
- When someone conforms because they want to be liked - acceptance and approval from a group
- avoid embarrassment/ disagreeing with majority
What was the aim of the Asch study
To investigate conformity and majority influence
What was the procedure of Asch’s study
- 123 male American undergraduate into groups of 6 ( 1 true ptsp and 5 confederates )
- ptsps and confederates were presented with 1 standard line and 3 comparison lines
- asked which was same length as stimulus line
- confederates would give the same incorrect answer for 12 out of the 18 questions
- ptsp was Always last or second to last
What were the findings of the Asch study
- 36.8% conformed every time
- 75% conformed at least once
- 25% never conformed
What are the three factors that affected level of conformity in Aschs study
- Unanimity
- Group size
- Task difficulty
how does size effect conformity?
asch varied group size from 1-15
- an individual is more likely to conform when there is a larger group
- there was low conformity when group size of confederates were less than 3
- more than 3 = conformity rose by 30%
how does unanimity of majority effect conformity?
Asch introduced confederates who disagreed with the rest of the group
- an individual is more likely to conform when the group is unanimous
- conformity fell from 32% to 5% when disaffected ptsp was added to the group
- ptsps gave more confidence when someone goes against group even if they didn’t get the right answer but still disagreed
how does task difficulty affect conformity?
Asch increased task difficulty to make more lines similar to each other
- an individual is more likely to conform when the task is difficult
- answers were harder to judge so conformity increased because they were more uncertain
- individuals look to others for guidance as they assume that others know more - informative social influence ( ISI )
what was the aim of Zimbardo’s study?
- how readily people would conform to social roles in a environment
- why good people do bad things
- do prison guards behave brutally because they have sadistic personalities or is it the situation that creates such behaviour
what was Zimbardo’s procedure?
- 24 American male students volunteered to take part ( they were paid )
- they were randomly issued either guard or prisoner - both had uniforms
- wanted situation to look real so they:
- only referred to prisoners with assigned numbers
- guards were given props eg sunglasses and handcuffs
- prisoners arrested from homes, blindfolded, strip-searched - guards were told they have complete control over the prisoners, but no physical violence was permitted
- behaviour of ptsps were observed
what were the findings of the Zimbado’s study?
- guards treated prisoners harshly and in an aggressive way
- within 2 days, the prisoners rebelled and after the rebellion was put down, they became quiet, depressed and anxious
- one went on a hunger strike and was punished by being placed in a dark small room
- guards became increasingly brutal, and some were enjoying the power the had over the prisoners
- Zimbado had to end the study after 6 days instead of 14
overall : guards became more demanding of obedience and prisoners became increasingly more obedient. the respective social roles became increasingly internalised
what is obedience?
following order from a person of perceived authority
what is the Agentic state?
when a person believes that someone else will take responsibly for their own actions
the shift from autonomous state to the agentic state is called the agentic shift
people are more likely to obey when they are in the agentic state because they believe they will nit suffer the consequences
what is the Agentic state?
explanation for obedience
when a person believes that someone else will take responsibly for their own actions
the shift from autonomous state to the agentic state is called the agentic shift
people are more likely to obey when they are in the agentic state because they believe they will nit suffer the consequences
what is legitimacy of authority ?
explanation for obedience
people are more likely to obey those who are seen as credible in terms of being morally right and legitimate
what was the aim of the Milgram study?
to observe whether people would obey a figure of authority when told to harm another person
what was Milgrams procedure?
- 40 male volunteers
- ptsps always given the role of the teacher and confederate given role of the learner
- ptsp had to ask learner questions and whenever the confederate got the answers wrong, the ptsps would give them an electric shock
- electric shocks increased by 15V each time
- ptsps were assessed on how many volts they were willing to shock the confederate with
- if ptsp refused to give the electric shock, the experimenter was given a series of 4 orders which increased in terms of demandingness. e.g. we must carry on
what were the finding of the Milgram study?
- all ptsps went up to 300V and 65% went up to 450V (max)
- 12.5% stopped at 300V
what were the three factors affecting obedience?
- proximity
- location
- uniform
explain situational factors that can explain obedience? ( Milgram study )
- a person is more likely to obey someone wearing a uniform - higher status- sense of legitimacy
- a person is more likely to obey someone in location linked to to higher status and legitimacy. Milgram study was conducted in a university therefore obedience was greater than it would be in a run down area
- a person is more likely to obey when they feel like they will not be responsible to the consequences. when ptsps told over the phone obedience dropped by 20%
What is an authoritarian personality?
A distinct personality pattern characterised by strict adherence to conventional values and a belief in absolute obedience or submission to authority
What are dispositional explanations of obedience
Internal explanations for obedience eg personality rather than the situation the Individual is faced with
What was Adornos aim
To see if you can identify a specify personality type ( authoritarian )
What was Adornos procedure
Questionnaire that assessed authoritarian personality. Requires ptsps to rate the extent of their own agreement to certain statements using likert scales - Measured using F scale
What did Adorno find
Ppl who scored high in the F scale tended to have been raised by parents who used authoritarian parenting style with a strong emphasis on obedience. They do not challenge stereotypes
What is the locus of controll
A measurement of an individuals sense of control over their lives - to what extent they feel the invents in their lives will be under their own personal control vs external powers like fate
What are the two explanations of resistance to social Influence
- Social support
2. Locus of control
What are some characteristics of an individual who has and internal locus of control
- lots of control over life
- responsible for actions
- leader
- ambitious
- resistant
Will obey less - more responsibly for their actions and see themselves as having more control
What are some characteristics of a person who has ab external locus of control
- believe in fate
- horoscopes
- don’t take responsibility for their actions
- events in life are beyond their control
More likely to obey
What is minority study
A form of social influence where people reject the established norm of the majority of the group members and move to the position of the majority
What three things do the minority have to be in order to successfully bring about change
- Consistent
- Committed
- Flexible
Explain how consistency in a minority group can bring about change
Two types of consistence
1. Same view as everyone else in the minority group ( synchronic consistency )
2.maintain the same views over time ( diachronic consistency )
Makes opposition think that the views of the minority and real and serious
Explain how commitment in a minority group can bring about change
When minority have a lot of passion and confidence in their POV shows that their views must be valid and it encourages ppl to explore why
Go out of their way to give up things
Explain how flexibility in a minority group can bring about change
Uncompromising and making irrational decision makes ur argument less appealing to the majority
When they appear flexible and rational and less extremist ppl r more likely to listen
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What was Moscovicis procedure
- a group of two confederates and four ptsps
- shown 36 blue slide (different shades )
- asked which was blue and which was green
- confederated deliberately said green 2/3 of the time
What we’re the finding of Moscovicis study
When confederates were consistent in answer 8% Of ptsps said it was green
When confederates answers inconsistently about 1% of ptsps said green
What is social change
When a society adopts a belief or way of behaviour whuxh then becomes widely accepted as the norm
What are the five ways in which minorities bring about social change
- Drawing attention to the issue
- Consistency
- Deeper processing
- The augmentation principle
- Social cryptomeria
