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Social Influence Flashcards

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1
Q

What is conformity?

A

A type of social influence involving a change in belief or behaviour to fit in with a group

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2
Q

What are the 3 types of conformity?

A

Compliance
Identification
Internalisation

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3
Q

What is compliance?

A

Compliance is where the individual changes his or her own behaviour to fit in with the group.

They may not necessarily agree with the behaviour belief but they go along with it publicly.

It is not a permanent form of social influence; it lasts only as long as the group is present.

Here the type of conformity is likely to be linked to NSI.

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4
Q

What is identification?

A

An individual changes their behaviour because they want to be accepted in the group.

The person publicly and privately accepts the views but it is

It is not permanent. It lasts until you leave the group and then disappears

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5
Q

What is internalisation?

A

Internalisation is where the belief of the majority is accepted by the individual and becomes part of his or her own belief system.

It is the most permanent form of conformity and lasts even if the majority is no longer present.

This type of conformity is most likely to be linked to ISI.

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6
Q

What are the 2 explanations for conformity? Who proposed them?

A

Normative
Informational
Deutsch & Gerard

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7
Q

What is the informational explanation for social influence?

A

May lead to internalisation

We conform because we want to be right
We assume the group knows more than us
We genuinely thing the group is right

Happens more in ambiguous situations

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8
Q

What is the normative explanation for social influence?

A

May lead to compliance

We conform because we want to be liked
We go along with the group though we may disagree privately
Just going along with the crowd

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9
Q

Jennes

A

Researching ISI (an ambiguous task)

Participants make a private guess on the numbers of jelly beans in a jar
They discuss their estimates in a group
Group estimates were created
Participants made a second estimate

Participants estimates tended to converge towards group estimate

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10
Q

Lucas

A

Found that when presented with difficult maths problems to solve, participants were more likely to conform to the majority answer, showing that people will conform due to the need for information (ISI).

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11
Q

Asch

A

Researching NSI as unambiguous task

123 Male Participants
6 confederates
12 critical trials, 18 total
36.8% critical trials conformed on
Over the 12 critical trials, 75% conformed once
When a dissenter gave a correct response, it dropped to 5.5

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12
Q

Evaluating Asch (1956)

A

Participants were all from USA and Men - doesnt refelct all cultures - collectivist cultures are more conformist as they orientate towards the group

A child of its time- study was done post war when people were more likely to conform - when the study was repeated by Perrin and Spencer in 1980, only 1 in 396 conformed- confounded as engineers

Ethics - deception

Low ecological validity

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13
Q

Evaluating the explanations for conformity

A
  • Hard to distinguish between NSI & ISI (often a bit of both in lucas and Asch studies)
  • People may not admit to NSI (embarrassing you did something just to be liked)
  • Idividual differences - Naffilitator - some people have greater need to conform - this is on a spectrum like locus of control - it is a variable that Asch did not account for and suggests idividual differences
  • R.S - Lucus (ISI) - participants conformed more difficult maths problems compared to easier ones
  • Asch found conformity dropped to 12.5% if particpants wrote answers showing when pressure to conform is removed providing further support for NSI
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14
Q

What variables affected Ash’s conformity study?

A

Group Size: 32% conformity on the critial trials (larger than 3 = nothing). Small majorities are easier to resit than hard ones. Greater than 15 started to drop as pariticpants may have caught on

Unanimity: dissenter dropped to 5.5% if participant got it right as naive participant feels able to give their own opinion
Dropped to 9% if dissenter got it wrong

Task difficulty - when lines are similar, conformity increases

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15
Q

What are social roles?

A

Parts we play as members of society - behaviour changes to suit that role

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16
Q

Zimbardo method

A

Sought to answer the question “do prison guards behave brutally because of their personality or because of their situation/location

Will people conform to social roles?

  • Mock prison in stanford university
  • 24 Male participants ($15 a day)
  • Selected by volunteer sampling
  • Guards were given uniforms, clubs, whistles and wore reflective sunglasses
  • Dehumanisation of prisoners (numbers) & guards (sunglasses)
  • Zimbardo was superintendant
  • Prisoners lives heavily regulated
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17
Q

Zimbardo findings

A

Guards took up their roles with enthusiasm- treated prisoners inhumanely
After 2 days rebellion / psychological issues
5 prisoners left early due to psychological issues e.g. anxiety
Ended after 6 days (due to last 2 weeks)
Prisoners showed no solidarity

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18
Q

Evaluating Zimbardo

A

Observer bias - Zimbardo was the superintendent as well as the researcher

Ethical issues - Not protected from psychological or physical harm

Fromm - found that 1 third of the guards were aggressive, 1 third were fair and 1 third were sympathetic and gave prisoners cigarettes - ** individual differences and dispositional factors**

Real world application - zimbardo explained USA soldiers committing human rights violations in Iraq who were abusive to captured prisoners

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19
Q

What is obedience?

A

A type of social influence where someone acts in response to a direct order from a authority figure

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20
Q

What is an authority figure?

A

A person who had control over others

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21
Q

Obedience vs Conformity

A

Obedience - changing behaviour to follow an authority figure

Conformity - Going along with the crowd

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22
Q

Milgram Method

A

Wanted to see if the German soldiers in the war had naturally “evil” personalities or if they just followed orders

Yale

40 Male participants from the newspaper

Thought they were doing a memory study

They thought they were randomly assigned learner or teacher but they were always teacher

Confederate deliberately got questions wrong and participant told to shock them from 15 - 450 V

The confederate would cry out and plead

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23
Q

Give 2 prods milligram used

A

You have no other choice but to continue

The experiment requires you to continue

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24
Q

Milgram findings

Experts?

A

100% of people went to 300 V
65% went to 450 (lethal)

Experts predicted people would stop at 150v

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25
Q

Milgram “normal clothes” results

A

20% Normal Clothes (Uniform)

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26
Q

Milgram “run down office” results

A

47.5% Run down office (Location)

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27
Q

Milgram “in the same room” results

A

40% In the same room (Proximity)

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28
Q

Milgrams “over the phone” results

A

22% Over the phone

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29
Q

Qualitative results of Milgram’s findings

A

Participants showed extreme stress

3 people had seizures

Participants felt **“moral strain”*

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30
Q

Evaluating Milgram

A

Unethical - no protection from harm

Opposed by Rank and Jacobson - asked nurses to carry out an irregular order - overprescribe vallium - nurses could consult with colleagues - 16 of 18 refused

Supported by Hofling nurses which was a more realistic setting

Socially sensitive - gives an excuse to the Nazis

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31
Q

Hofling’s nurses

A

22 nurses
Conducted in a hospital
Nurses received a call from “Dr Smith” asking them to give 20mg of Astrogen to a patient
This was against hospital regulations
21 nurses did as the doctor requested

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32
Q

What are the explanations for obedience?

A

Uniform (Situational)
Location (Situational)
Proximity (Situational)
Authoritarian Personality (Dispositional)
Agentic state (Situational)
Legitimacy of Authority (Situational)

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33
Q

For what 3 reasons might people obey an authority figure?

A

People don’t know what to do
People want leadership
Different personality types

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34
Q

Bickman

A

Milkman
Civilian
Guard

Asked people to pick up bag or provide money for parking meter

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35
Q

What type variable did milgram change

A

Situational varibales

36
Q

What is the agentic state

A
  • When a person acts on behalf of an authority figure/person of higher status
  • The actor feels no personal responsibility/does not feel guilty for their actions
  • The opposite of an autonomous state in which people act according to their own principles
37
Q

How does an autonomous individual behave

A

We act towards our own beliefs and values
We are aware of consequences

38
Q

How do people behave on an agentic level

A

We are “agents” for authority figures and are therefore not responsible

39
Q

What happens when you are given an order?

A

You experience an agentic shift. We shift the responsibility of our actions onto the person who gave use the order

40
Q

What makes it easier to enter the agentic state

A

Other people being obedient

41
Q

How did Milgram’s study involve the agentic state and autonomous state

A

The people weren’t responsible for pushing the button, the researcher was

When the researcher left the room, they were in an autonomous state so they couldn’t put the blame on someone else

42
Q

What are binding factors (agentic state)

A

During Milgram’s experiment, he observed that many participants said they wanted to stop but seemed powerless to do so

Milgram said this was due to them staying in an agentic state through binding factors

Binding factors are when aspects of the situation mean the individual is able to take away their own ‘moral strain’ and ignore their damaging behaviour

43
Q

Agentic state evaluation

A

Research support of Hoflings nurses

Real life application of Nazis

Adorno believed that obedience is due to personality factors. People with authoritarian personalities are very obedient

When Milgram’s participants asked “Who is going to take responsibility if I hurt this man?”, the experimenter replied “I will take responsibility”. If the agentic state was a true reason for obedience, there should have been a much higher rate of obedience than 65%. The agentic state cannot explain why some participants in , Milgram’s study refused to continue and did not obey.

44
Q

What is legitimacy of authority?

A

When a person recognises their own and other’s positions in a social hierarchy

Leading to recognition of the authority figure’s right to issue a demand

45
Q

Why does legitimacy of authority increase obedience?

(How can we tell)

A

We feel pressure to obey when we perceive the person giving the order has the right or expertise to do so

We assume they know best and that we have no right to question them

We use environmental cues e.g. dress

46
Q

What increases legitimacy of authority

A

External factors like uniform

47
Q

Legitimacy of authority evaluation

A

R.S: Milgram took people to a dodgy office instead of a uni –> 47.5%

Legitimacy of authority is supported by cultural differences - In countries where obedience authority are less valued (such as Australia), obedience rates are much lower than in countries that value legitimate authority figures (such as Germany)

Application: We respond to police officers

T.L: Cant explain all types of (dis)obedience e.g. In Rank and Jacobsons studies, the nurses should have obeyed the doctor above them in the hierarchy

48
Q

What did adorno believe

A

Obedience is due to personality factors

49
Q

What does it mean to have an authoritarian personality?

A

You are very obedient

50
Q

What are the 4 characteristics of an authoritarian personality?

A

Highly obedient
Very submissive to authority
Believes in social hierarchy
Very aware of social status

51
Q

What did Adorno believe people underwent in childhood to gain an authoritarian personality

A

Strict discipline
High standards
Severe criticism
Conditional love

52
Q

Why does harsh parenting lead to an authoritarian personality

A

The child feels hostile and angry towards their parents however they cannot express this for fear of punishment so they displace onto weaker / inferior people

53
Q

Who created the f (facism) Scale? What does it measure?

A

Adorno
The authoritarian personality

54
Q

What 2 biases does the F scale show

A

Response - People want to look desirable in their responses
Acquiescence - People just tick agree

55
Q

Elms and Milgram

A

20 obedient participants - 20 disobedient participants
Obedient: Higher score on F scale - worse relationship with dad
Disobedient: Opposite

56
Q

What are the 3 components of right-wing authoritarianism

A

Conventionality - adherence to conventional norms
Authoritarian aggression - aggressive to unconventional people
Authoritarian submission - Submissive to legitimate authorities

57
Q

Authoritarian personality evaluation

A

Application - change in parenting style

Individual differences - those who are better educated are less likely to have an authoriaan personality - multiple factors

Research limitation - elms and milgram - only 20 people and survey biases - all questions worded in the same direction

Very deterministic - raised in a household where you have no chiice but to develop that personality. Ignores all sitautional factors and is also reductionist - opposed by situational variables

58
Q

People who resist social influence …

A

Do not conform or obey

59
Q

What is locus of control?

A

A persons perception of control over their own behaviour

60
Q

What do people who have a high external locus of control believe

A

Others control their destiny e.g. luck

61
Q

What do people who have a high internal locus of control believe

A

They control their own destiny

62
Q

What personality factors do people with high internal loci of control have

A

More self-confident, intelligent and achievement-orientated, which provides them with personality traits that give them greater resistance to social control

63
Q

Holland

A

found that 37% of ‘internals’ refused to obey to the maximum shock level in a Milgram-type study, compared to 23% of ‘externals’, showing a link between locus of control and resistance to obedience.

locus of control / resisting social influence

64
Q

Locus of control evaluation

A

T.L very binary point of view - people often believe a combination of internal and external factors effect their lives

R.S - Holland (Milgram style study measuring locus of control) - C.A Rotter found that peoples locus of control only matters in new situations. e.g. if you have previously conformed in a situation, you will do it again no matter internal or external

Opposing argument - If someone is not in uniform, it is easier to resist their orders (Bickman)

Research support - Hutchins and Estey found that those with high internal locus of control were more able to resist social influence in prisoner of war situations.

65
Q

What is social support?

A

We have assistance from other people and are part of a support network

66
Q

How does social support affect resistance to conformity

A

It is much easier to withstand peer pressure if we have an ally.
Conformity levels reduce
Having social support gives people confidence

67
Q

How does social support help us resist social influence

A

Allies break unanimity of the majority
We imitate the disobedient role model
We gain confidence

68
Q

Social support evaluation

A

Opposing argument - locus of control

R.S. - In a variation of MIlgrams study, if 2 teacher confederates were present who refused to go on early in the study, the percent to 450v when from 65 —> 10

Research support - Asch dissenter dropped to 5.5%

Theory limitation - The theory states that we can only disobey of an ally is present but this isn’t true

69
Q

What is minority influence? What does it often lead to?

A

Refers to situations where 1 person or a small group persuade others to adopt their beliefs - often leads to internalisation

70
Q

What are the 3 features of a successful minority?

A

Consistency
Commitment
Flexibility

71
Q

How does consistency affect a minority influence?

A

People must constantly bring up their views
(Relentless consistency can be a negative)

72
Q

2 types of consistency

A

Synchronic consistency: The minority presents a united front and share the same view/message consistency between group

Diachronic consistency: The minority have been arguing for their view/message for some time consistency over time

73
Q

How does commitment affect a minority influence?

A

Minority makes a sacrifice to show dedication

74
Q

How does flexibility affect a minority influence?

A

Minorities should be able to adapt their point of view

75
Q

Moscovici

A

192 Female participants (32g of 6)

4 real participants, 2 confederates

Consistent condition - Confederates answered wrongly and said that every one of the blue slides were green on 36/36 of the trials

Inconsistent condition - Confederates answered wrongly and said that the blue slides were green on 24 times and blue 12 times

Consistent: 8.42% adopted minority view
Inconsistent: 1.25% agreed

Consistency is important

76
Q

Moscovici evaluation

A

Gender bias
Artificial task

77
Q

What theory allows minorities to get a majority to reject an established norm?

A

Conversion theory

78
Q

If you are exposed to a point of view different to your own, what happens?

A

it creates conflict. In order to reduce this conflict we examine the minorities argument in order to understand why they go against the majority. This means we think very carefully about the content of the argument and therefore internalisation is more likely to occur.

79
Q

What is the snowball effect?

A

Overtime, minority becomes larger. The more this happens, the faster it continues. Gradually the minority becomes the majority

80
Q

Evaluating minority influence

A

Moscovicis task used only women who are often considered to be more conformist and it can be argued 4 people isnt a large enough majority

Research support - Wood did a meta analysis of 97 studies which said minorities that were consistent were particularly influential

When participants wrote their answers, they were more likely to agree with the minority as according to Moscovici, people don’t want to be considered weird saying it out loud

Nemeth - simulated a jury situation about the compensation someone was due after a ski-lift accident. A minority confederate proposed an alternative point of view and refused to change their position. However when they were flexible, people were far more likely to take the minority view

Evident in the real world - the martyrdom of Emily Davison, a suffragette who flung herself in front of the king’s horse to raise awareness of women’s right to vote

81
Q

What is social change?

A

When the whole society adopts a new belief with widely accepted norms

82
Q

How does social change occur through minority influence

A

Draw attention to the cause –> Create cognitive conflict –> Be consistent –> The augmentation principle (minority suffers for their views) –> snowball effect –> Social cryptoamnesia

83
Q

Nolan

A

Hung messages saying most residents were trying to reduce their energy usage.

As a control, some residents had a different message that just asked them to save energy but made no reference to other people’s behaviour.

Nolan et al. found significant decreases in energy usage in the first group.

This is a strength because it shows that conformity can lead to social change through the operation of normative social influence.

conformity and social change

84
Q

Use one possible explanation of resistance to social influence to explain why people may disobey

A

disobedience/resistance/defiance is more likely to occur in the presence of others who are disobeying/disobedient role models
* ‘some students’ suggests there was more than one who did not complete the work
* this would have given others more confidence to ignore the teacher’s instructions
* social support is associated with diffusion of responsibility/the more people who disobey the less severe the consequences are likely to be – the students may have reasoned that the more of them who disobey, the less likely they are to be in trouble

85
Q

Social change evaluation

A

Social change may involve different levels of cognitive processing. Moscovici believes that a minority viewpoint forces individuals to think more deeply about the issue. However, Mackie (1987) counters this, suggesting the opposite to be true. She suggests that when a majority group is thinking or acting in a way that is different from ourselves we are forced to think even more deeply about their reasons. This, therefore, casts doubt on the validity of Moscovici’s minority influence theory, suggesting it may be an incorrect explanation of social change.

Hard to test empirically - many examples of social change are case studies - idiographic approach taken - large amount of subjective interpretation - however Asch / moscovici take a nomothetic approach creating universal laws

R.S - Nolan

Application - Emily Davison

Psychology (14 decks)

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