social influence

Question 1

define conformity (2)

Answer 1

1. changes in an individuals beliefs/behaviours
2. due to real or imagined group pressure

Question 2

what are the 3 types of conformity?

Answer 2

compliance
identification
internalisation

Question 3

define compliance (3)

Answer 3

1. most artificial, least permanent
2. in public- individual changes behaviours or beliefs to fit in
   in private- reverts back
3. linked to NSI

Question 4

define identification (3)

Answer 4

1. stronger type of conformity, possible private and public acceptance
2. individuals look to group for guidance and take on a role as membership is desirable
3. when group is no longer valuable, behaviour may revert back

Question 5

define internalisation (3)

Answer 5

1. deepest and most permanent
2. publicly and privately change behaviours and beliefs due to accepting a groups attitudes into our own cognition
3. linked to ISI

Question 6

what are the explanations for conformity?

Answer 6

informational social influence
normative social influence

Question 7

describe informational social influence (3)

Answer 7

1. driven by the desire to be right
2. individual is unsure about something they seek information from a group and assume it is right (cognitive process)
3. leads to internalisation

Question 8

describe normative social influence (3)

Answer 8

1. driven by the desire to be liked
2. go along with group behaviour to avoid ridicule and gain acceptance (emotional process)
3. leads to compliance

Question 9

what are 4 AO3 points for explanations of conformity?

Answer 9

1. RTS- Jenness
2. ^lacks ecological validity
3. RTS- Asch
4. ^gender bias

Question 10

what did Jenness do?

Answer 10

individuals private guessed the number of jelly beans in a jar, then group guessed and private guessed again.
second private guess was closer to the group guess

Question 11

why did Jenness’ research support explanations of conformity?

Answer 11

supports ISI because results were ambiguous

Question 12

how does Jenness’ research lack ecological validity?

Answer 12

it took place in an artificial lab environment

Question 13

what was Asch’s aim?

Answer 13

to investigate the effects of a majority opinion on individuals judgements

Question 14

what was Asch’s method?

Answer 14

lab experiment

Question 15

what was Asch’s sample?

Answer 15

124 American male students

Question 16

describe Asch’s procedure

Answer 16

1. 7-9 confederates in a group said the wrong line as the answer
2. participants were always second to last or last to answer and gave a wrong answer 37% of the time

Question 17

how much of the time did real ppts give the wrong answer for Asch’s experiment?

Answer 17

37%

Question 18

what happened post-experiment with Asch?

Answer 18

interviews found that the majority of ppts conformed publicly but not privately

Question 19

what was Asch’s conclusion?

Answer 19

supports NSI because results were unambiguous and ppts wanted to be accepted

Question 20

why does Asch’s experiment have gender bias?

Answer 20

only males were tested
females may react differently to conformity

Question 21

what are 3 variables affecting conformity?

Answer 21

group size
unanimity
task difficulty

Question 22

what did Asch find when investigating group size?

Answer 22

conformity rates increase as size of majority increases but stops having an effect once group reaches 3 people
one confederate- 3%
two confederate- 13%
three confederate- 32%

Question 23

what did Asch find when investigating unanimity

Question 24

what did Asch find when investigating unanimity?

Answer 24

unanimity- complete agreement
when dissenter breaks the groups unanimous position conformity decreases
one confederate correct answer- 5.5%
lone confederate- 9%

Question 25

what did Asch find when investigating task difficulty?

Answer 25

conformity increases when task difficulty increases one variation- lines more similar in length right answer less obvious we lose confidence

Question 26

what are 4 AO3 points for variables affecting conformity?

Answer 26

1. RTS- Lucas et al 2. ^individual factors 3. gender bias 4. culture bias

Question 27

what did Lucas et al do?

Answer 27

give students easy and hard maths problems give 3 fake answers students conformed more when maths was hard

Question 28

define conformity to social roles

Answer 28

- social roles are the parts people play as members of social groups - these come with expectations of appropriate behaviour - in each role we internalise these expectations

Question 29

what was Zimbardo's aim?

Answer 29

to investigate how freely people would conform to the roles of a guard and prisoner in a role play excercise that re-created prison life

Question 30

what was Zimbardo's sample?

Answer 30

24 emotionally stable US male uni students

Question 31

what was Zimbardo's procedure?

Answer 31

1. ppts randomly allocated to the role of prisoner or guard 2. prisoners – arrested at homes, taken to the prison, searched dressed in smock uniforms and referred to as a number rather than by name 3. guards – given uniforms, a ‘night stick’ and mirrored glasses. instructed to keep prisoners under control but to use no physical violence. 4. basement of the psychology department at Stanford University was converted into a mock prison. 5. prisoners placed in cells and a regular routine was established 6. Zimbardo took on the role of prison superintendent.

Question 32

what did the outfits in Zimbardo's experiment cause?

Answer 32

de-individuation- a loss of personal identity encouraging ppts to conform to their social role

Question 33

what would a prisoner have to do if they wanted to leave Zimbardo's study?

Answer 33

go through a parole process

Question 34

what did Zimbardo find?

Answer 34

1. prisoners rebelled and ripped off their numbers and guards responded by locking them in their cells and confiscating their blankets 2. punishments by the guards escalated- prisoners humiliated and deprived of sleep 3. Identification- prisoners referring prison numbers instead of names 4. prisoners were depressed and stressed 5. study meant to run for 2 weeks but was called off after 6 days

Question 35

what did Zimbardo conclude?

Answer 35

1. guards, prisoners and researchers conformed to their role within the prison 2. social roles have an extraordinary power over individuals, making even the most well-adjusted capable of extreme brutality towards others

Question 36

what are 4 AO3 points for Zimbardo's study on conformity to social roles?

Answer 36

- prone to demand characteristics - ethical issues - practical applications - gender bias

Question 37

define the term obedience to authority

Answer 37

type of social influence where somebody acts in response to a direct order from a figure with perceived authority

Question 38

who conducted obedience to authority?

Answer 38

milgram

Question 39

what was milgram's aim?

Answer 39

to investigate if individuals would obey the orders of an authority figure even if this led to negative consequences

Question 40

what was milgram's method?

Answer 40

lab experiment

Question 41

where did milgram's study take place?

Answer 41

yale university

Question 42

what was milgram's sample?

Answer 42

40 american males aged 20-50

Question 43

what was milgram's procedure?

Answer 43

1. ppts volunteered from a newspaper 2. ppt meets confederate 3. teacher is ppt, student is confederate 4. teachers job is to deliver questions and electric shocks when students got answers wrong 5. 15-450V 6. experimenter used prompts like 'please continue' and 'you have no other choice'

Question 44

what did milgram find?

Answer 44

all ppts went to at least 300V 65% of ppts went to 450V

Question 45

what did milgram conclude?

Answer 45

ordinary people are obedient to authority when asked to behave in an inhumane way not evil people- ordinary people obeying orders

Question 46

give 4 AO3 points for milgram's experiment

Answer 46

prone to demand characteristics RTS- hofling gender bias ethical issues