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Social Influence Flashcards

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1
Q

Social Psychology

A

Looks at the relationships between people + how people affect each other’s behaviour (social influence)

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2
Q

Conformity

A
  • Is a form of social influence where a person changes their behaviour, attitudes or beliefs so that they are in line with the majority
  • This occurs because of pressure from the majority + this pressure can be real or imagined
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3
Q

Compliance

A
  • Is when individuals adjust the behaviour, attitudes, beliefs so that they are in line with the majority
  • There is no change in private behaviour, attitudes or beliefs + conformity only lasts while the group is present
  • It is therefore a superficial and temporary form of conformity
  • E.g. pretending to like a book or movie so you fit in with the group
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4
Q

Internalisation

A
  • Is when individuals adjust the behaviour, attitudes or beliefs publicly AND privately so that they are in line with the majority
  • The individuals examines their own behaviour, attitudes or beliefs based on what others are saying + decides that majority is correct
  • This is deeper than compliance and can be permanent
  • E.g. converting religions
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5
Q

Identification

A
  • Is when an individual accepts social influence because they want to be associated with a role model or social group
  • By adopting the role model/group’s behaviour, attitudes or beliefs they feel connected to the role model/group
  • E.g. adopting the same style as your friends however when you move away from that friend you go back to your old clothing style
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6
Q

Explanations for Conformity

A
  • Deutsch and Gerrard (1955) developed a theory to explain why people conform
  • They proposed that there were only 2 reasons why people conformed
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7
Q

Normative Social Influence

A
  • People have a fundamental need for social approval and acceptance
  • We avoid any behaviour that will make others reject or ridicule us
  • This can lead us to copy the behaviour of others in order to ‘fit in’
  • Studies have shown that people like those who are similar to them + so conformity can be an effective strategy to ensure we fit in with a group
  • NSI is likely to lead to compliance
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8
Q

Informational Social Influence

A
  • People have a fundamental need to be right + to have an accurate perception of reality
  • Individuals may make objective tests against reality (e.g. check the facts) but if this is not possible they will rely on the opinions of others to check if they are correct + then use this as evidence about reality
  • ISI is more likely to happen if the situation is ambiguous or when others are experts
  • ISI leads to internalisation
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9
Q

Advantage of Normative Social Influence (1) - Asch

A
  • Asch (1951) asked participants to say which 3 test lines was the same as the standard line
  • Participants were in a group with confederates (not real participants) who gave the same wrong answer even though the correct answer was obvious
  • 33% of trials the participants conformed to the group + gave the wrong answer due to NSI
  • After experiment they claimed they knew the correct answer but were worried the group would ridicule them if they answered differently
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10
Q

Advantage of Informational Social Influence (2) - Jenness

A
  • Jenness (1932) asked participants to estimate how many beans they thought were in a jar
  • Each participant had to make an individual estimate first + then do the same as a group
  • Found that when they did with a group participants would report estimates roughly the same as others even though they previously reported different estimates as individuals
  • Example of ISI as participants would be uncertain about the actual no. of beans in the jar so genuinely influenced by the group
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11
Q

Disadvantage of Normative and Informational Social Influence (1)

A
  • There is a third explanation for conformity known as ingratiational conformity
  • Similar to NSI but group influence does not enter into the decision to conform
  • Instead motivated by the need to impress or gain favour rather than the fear of rejection (McLeod, 2007)
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12
Q

Disadvantage of Normative and Informational Social Influence (2)

A
  • Dispositional factors (personality traits) may also impact whether a person conforms or not
  • People with an internal locus of control are less likely to conform than those with an external locus of control
  • NSI/ISI cannot explain this finding
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13
Q

Variables Affecting Conformity (Asch)

A

1 - Group size
2 - Task difficulty
3 - Unanimity

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14
Q

Procedure of Asch’s study

A
  • Asch (1951) placed a naïve participant in a group with several confederates
  • The group was asked to look at a ‘standard line’ + then decide individually which of three other ‘test lines’ was the same length as the standard line without discussing
  • They then gave their responses one at a time out loud
  • The answer was obvious however the confederates gave the wrong answer on 12/18 trials
  • The naïve participant was the last or second to last one to give their response so they heard the rest of the groups’ responses before giving their own
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15
Q

Findings of Asch’s study

A
  • The chance of making a genuine mistake on this task was only 1% but 33% of the responses given by participants were incorrect
  • 75% of participants conformed in at least 1of the 18 trials
  • 5% of participants conformed on every trial but 25% did not conform on any trial
  • When Asch interviewed his participants afterwards he discovered that the majority of participants who had conformed had continued to trust their own judgment but gave the same answer as the group to avoid disapproval (NSI)
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16
Q

Group Size

A
  • Asch (1956) changed group size
  • Groups with 1 confederate = conformity rate of 3%
  • Groups with 2 confederates = conformity rate of 13%
  • With 3 confederates conformity rose significantly = 32%
  • It appears that we can resist the influence of 2 people fairly easily but 3 people are much harder to resist
  • There was little change to conformity once groups have reached 4 or more confederates
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17
Q

Task Difficulty

A
  • Asch adjusted the task difficulty so he made the test lines more similar in length
  • The level of conformity increased possibly because ISI was starting to have an impact
  • This is because when we are uncertain, we look to others for confirmation
  • The more difficult the task became the greater the ISI + the conformity
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18
Q

Unanimity

A
  • When the group had unanimity (everyone agreed) conformity increased
  • However when only 1 other person in the group gave a different answer from the others meaning that the group was not unanimous, conformity dropped
  • Asch found that even the presence of just 1 confederate who went against the majority reduced conformity from 33% to 5%
  • Even when the confederate gave a different wrong answer to the rest of the group conformity dropped from 33% to 9%
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19
Q

Disadvantages of Asch’s study

A

Look at notes for more detail
1. No temporal validity
2. Lacks mundane realism + ecological validity
3. Gender/culture bias
4. Volunteer sample used
5. Ethical issues

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20
Q

Conformity to Social Roles

A
  • Social roles are the behaviours expected of an individual who occupies a social position/status
  • People can conform to the social roles assigned to them
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21
Q

Procedure of Zimbardo’s study

A
  • Zimbardo (1973) wanted to investigate whether conformity to social roles would alter a person’s behaviour
  • A simulated prison was created in the basement of the Stanford University Psychology department
  • 24 emotionally + psychologically stable young men were recruited and randomly assigned to the role of prisoner or guard
  • The guards had complete control over the prisoners
  • The guards were told to maintain order using any means necessary except for physical violence
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22
Q

Findings of Zimbardo’s study

A
  • On the 2nd day the prisoners tried to rebel, they ripped off their prison numbers and barricaded themselves in their cell
  • The guards sprayed them with CO2, stripped them naked, took their beds away and forced the ringleaders into solitary confinement
  • Over the next few days the guards became increasingly cruel and aggressive creating a brutal atmosphere
  • Prisoners became passive and depressed as the guards used verbal abuse, forced them to do repeated press ups, pushed them into urinals and left them in a pitch black cupboard for hours
  • The guards became so aggressive that the study had to be ended after only 6 days (it was meant to last 2 weeks) because of concerns about the psychological health of the prisoners, who were showing signs of severe distress
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23
Q

Evaluation of Zimbardo’s study

A

Look at notes for detail

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24
Q

Obedience

A
  • Is behaving as instructed to by an authority figure
  • Authority figures have status + power over others
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25
Q

Procedure of Milgram’s study

A

Look at notes for detail

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26
Q

Findings of Milgram’s study

A
  • 100% of participants gave shocks up to 300 volts (when Mr Wallace banged on the wall and stopped answering)
  • 65% of participants gave electric shocks all the way up to the maximum 450 volts
  • Participants felt a high level of stress during the experiments, they showed symptoms including sweating, trembling, anxious and hysterical laughter
  • Despite this most were obedient and willing to inflict potentially lethal shocks on a man with a weak heart
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27
Q

Evaluation of Milgram’s study

A

Look at notes for detail

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28
Q

Situational Variables Affecting Obedience

A
  • Milgram (1974) conducted several variations of his original study
  • He wanted to determine which situational variables lead to high levels of obedience + reduces obedience
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29
Q

3 different Situational Variables:

A

1 - Proximity
2 - Location
3 - Uniform

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30
Q

Proximity

A
  • In the proximity variation the teacher + the learner were seated in the same room
  • Obedience levels fell to 40% as the teacher was now able to experience Mr. Wallace’s anguish directly
  • In a more extreme variation known as the touch proximity variation the teacher had to actually force the learner’s arm down onto a metal plate to
    administer the shocks = the obedience rate was 30%
  • The proximity of the experimenter is also important
  • In the absent experimenter variation the experimenter left the room after giving his instructions + gave subsequent orders by telephone
  • The vast majority of participants missed out shocks or gave lower voltages than they were meant to = the obedience rate was 21%
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31
Q

Location

A
  • In the alternative setting variation the experiment was carried out in a rundown office by an experimenter wearing casual clothes = the obedience rate was 48%
  • Participants reported the location of Yale Uni gave them confidence in the integrity of the experimenter
  • The lower status of the rundown office changed participants’ perception of the legitimacy of the authority of the experimenter
  • The experimenter had a higher authority at Yale Uni than the rundown office which led to higher obedience rates
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32
Q

Uniforms

A
  • Uniforms have a powerful impact on obedience as uniforms are visible symbols of authority
  • Sometimes uniforms show that someone has power and status e.g. a police officer’s uniform however on other occasions they show that someone does not have power and status e.g. a prisoner’s uniform
  • Bickman (1974) asked confederates to order passersby to pick some litter off the street or move away from a bus stop
  • The confederates were dressed as either a guard, milkman or just in smart clothes
  • 90% of people obeyed the guard but only 50% obeyed the civilian
  • A person in a guard uniform is more likely to be obeyed
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33
Q

Situational Explanations of Obedience

A
  • Agentic State
  • Legitimate Authority
34
Q

Agentic State

A
  • Milgram argued that people can obey horrific orders not because of their own personalities but because of the situation they are in (this is why it is a situational explanation)
  • He suggested that people following orders go from an autonomous state into an agentic state = this is called the agentic shift
  • Once in an agentic state people unthinkingly carry out orders + perceive themselves as merely the instrument of an authority figure
  • They believe that authority figure is responsible for their actions (diffusion of responsibility) + so don’t follow their own conscience or feel guilt for their actions
35
Q

Gradual commitment

A
  • This state occurs because in people’s experience those in authority are usually trustworthy + orders seem reasonable at first before becoming more aggressive (gradual commitment)
  • And people are psychologically protected from the consequences of their actions (buffers)
36
Q

Positive self image

A
  • One explanation for why people adopt an agentic state is to maintain a positive self image
  • It does not matter what negative behaviour they show because they are not responsible for their actions
  • Once a person has entered an agentic state they stay in it because they are concerned that breaking their commitment to the authority figure would seem arrogant and rude
37
Q

Evolution

A
  • Milgram thought that the agentic state had developed during human evolution + is necessary for hierarchies to function in society which prevents chaos
  • We live in a society where we are constantly submitting to authority figures such as parents, teachers, police and doctors + so obedience is essential
38
Q

Advantage of Agentic State (1)

A
  • Participants in Milgrams study were less likely to shock Mr Wallace when they were in the same room + could see the consequences of their actions (no buffers)
  • This supports the idea of agentic state
  • Being in close proximity to Mr Wallace + seeing him in pain would have prevented some from going into an agentic state
39
Q

Disadvantage of Agentic State (1)

A
  • Without buffers people shouldn’t go into an agentic state + obey an order to harm someone
  • However, Mandel (1998) reported the case of Major Trapp
  • In a Polish village Major Trapp and his batch were given orders to take a large group of Jewish people to the edge of the village + shoot them
  • Although soldiers were given a chance to say no, only a few did
  • This occurred despite the victims being in close proximity to the soldiers
40
Q

Legitimate Authority

A
  • Is another situational explanation of obedience
  • It claims that we recognise our own + other people’s position in the social hierarchy + that we will obey those who have a higher position in the hierarchy than we do (they have legitimate authority)
  • We will not obey those who have an equal or lower position in the social hierarchy than we do
41
Q

How is legitimate authority increased?

A
  • Increased by visible symbols of authority e.g. uniform
  • Legitimate authority is dependent on setting, order, system and location e.g. the military or a prison especially if the commands are potentially harmful or destructive
42
Q

Advantage of Legitimate Authority (1)

A
  • Hofling (1966) found that nurses would obey a dangerous order from a doctor because they were in a hospital location
  • Nurses received a call from an unknown doctor (actor) called Dr Smith + asked to administer 20mg of drug called Astroten (sugar pill) to a patient
  • This broke hospital rules as it was twice the maximum dose + instruction were given over the phone + doctor was unknown + medicine wasn’t on the stock list
  • 95% carried out the instructions despite the potential danger because doctors have legitimate authority
43
Q

Advantage of Legitimate Authority (2)

A
  • Bickman (1974) asked confederates to order passersby to pick some litter off the street or move away from a bus stop
  • The confederates were dressed as either a guard, milkman or just in smart clothes
  • 90% of people obeyed the guard but only 50% obeyed the civilian
  • A person in a guard uniform is more likely to be perceived as a legitimate authority figure
44
Q

Disadvantage of Legitimate Authority (1)

A
  • Legitimate authority does not explain why some people are able to resist the order of authority figures
  • 35% of people in Milgram’s (1963) study refused to obey the experimenter even though he had legitimate authority in that situation
45
Q

Dispositional Explanations of Obedience

A
  • Adorno (1950) proposed a dispositional explanation of obedience
  • Dispositional explanations of behaviour claim that individuals’ personality characteristics determine their behaviour + not situational influences in the environment
46
Q

Authoritarian Personality

A
  • Adorno argued that authoritarian personalities are more likely to obey authority figures
  • Authoritarian personalities have a collection of traits which make them more obedient
47
Q

Traits that make authoritarian personalities more obedient:

A
  1. servile towards people of perceived higher status
  2. hostile towards people of lower status (scapegoating)
  3. preoccupied with power
  4. inflexible in their beliefs and values
  5. conformist and conventional e.g. rule following
  6. likely to categorise people as ‘us’ or ‘them’
  7. dogmatic (intolerant of ambiguity)
48
Q

Adorno thought that people developed these personalities due to:

A
  • Due to receiving extremely strict/rigid parenting usually involving physical punishment
  • This creates feelings of hostility which are displaced onto weaker others who cannot fight back + are therefore safe
  • They cannot take out their anger on their parents because they fear them so instead they repress their anger + act in a submissive way towards them
  • They then extend this submissive behaviour to all authority figures
49
Q

F scale

A
  • Adorno developed a questionnaire to measure authoritarian personalities called the F (Fascism) scale
  • Participants are asked to rate how much they agree with statements such as ‘obedience and respect for authority figure are important virtues children should learn’ and ‘rules are there to follow, not to be changed’
50
Q

Advantage of Authoritarian Personality (1)

A

Miller (1975) found that people who scored high on the F scale were more likely to obey an order to hold onto some electrical wiring while working on an arithmetic problem compared to people who scored low

51
Q

Advantage of Authoritarian Personality (2)

A
  • Altemeyer ordered participants to give themselves increasing levels of electric shocks when they made a mistake in a learning task
  • There was a significant correlation between those willing to shock themselves + high scores on the F scale
52
Q

Disadvantage of Authoritarian Personality (1)

A
  • Dispositional explanations can’t explain obedience in entire societies as authoritarian personalities are not common
  • Fewer than 65% of people have AP so it can’t be the only explanation for the level of obedience found in the original Milgram study
53
Q

Disadvantage of Authoritarian Personality (2)

A
  • It is possible that rather than authoritarian personality causing obedience, a lack of education causes an AP + obedience
  • Middendorp and Meleon found that less educated people are more likely to have an AP + Milgram found that participants with lower levels of education were more obedient
54
Q

Situational Explanations of Resistance to Social Influence

A
  • The pressure to conform and obey can exert powerful influences over peoples’ behaviour
  • E.g. in Milgram’s study 65% of people obeyed + Asch found that 75% of people conformed at least once
  • However in both of these studies some people managed to resist the pressure to conform (non-conformity) or obey (disobedience)
  • E.g. 35% of people in Milgram’s study refused to obey + 25% of the participants in Asch’s study did not conform on a single trial
55
Q

Social Support Theory (SST)

A
  • Social support is a situational explanation of resistance to social influence
  • It argues that when 1 person refuses to conform/obey it makes it far more likely that other people will also resist social influence + refuse to conform/obey
56
Q

How do people behave according to SST?

A
  • People are more likely to not conform if they have an ally who resists social influence + refuses to conform
  • This is because the ally refusing to conform breaks the unanimity of the group + groups are far more influential if they are unanimous
  • When unanimity is broken people start to think that there are other, equally legitimate ways of thinking or responding
  • The presence of an ally gives them an independent assessment of reality + makes them feel more confident in their decision + better able to stand up to the majority
  • People are also more likely to defy an authority figure if they see a disobedient role model refusing to obey
  • This is because when a person rejects the instructions of an authority figure it challenges that authority figure’s legitimate authority
57
Q

Advantage of Social Support Theory (1) - Milgram

A
  • Milgram asked participants to deliver electric shocks to Mr. Wallace when he got a question wrong
  • The shocks were not real, but the participants believed they were
  • 65% of participants shocked Mr. Wallace up to 450 volts
  • However, when there was another confederate who acted as a disobedient role model + refused to shock Mr. Wallace = only 10% of the participants delivered electric shocks up to 450 volts
58
Q

Advantage of Social Support Theory (2) - Asch

A
  • Asch asked participants to say which of 3 ‘test lines’ was the same as the ‘standard line’
  • The participants were in a group with confederates who purposefully gave the same wrong answer even though the correct answer was obvious
  • In 33% of the trials the participants conformed to the group + gave the wrong answer (the chance of making a genuine mistake was only 1%)
  • However, conformity dropped to 5% when 1 confederate acted as an ally to the participant + gave the right answer
59
Q

Disadvantage of Social Support Theory (1)

A
  • In both of the original versions of Milgram and Asch, participants were able to resist social influence and refuse to conform/obey, even though they had no social support
  • This means that social support is not a complete explanation of resistance to social influence
  • Other factors such as personality traits also play a part in allowing people to refuse to conform/obey
60
Q

Dispositional Explanations of Resistance to Social Influence

A

Rotter (1966) argued that a person’s personality determines whether they will conform/obey or resist social influence + therefore a dispositional explanation

60
Q

Locus of Control

A
  • A person’s locus of control refers to the extent to which they believe they have control over their own behaviour
  • Locus of control is measured on a dimension from internal to external
60
Q

Internal Locus of Control

A
  • People with an internal locus of control believe that what occurs in their life is the result of their own behaviour and actions
  • They can therefore alter what happens to them
  • E.g. if they do badly on a test they consider it to be the result of their own inadequate revision
  • People with an internal locus of control will agree with statements such as ‘misfortune is usually brought about by people’s own actions’
61
Q

People with a high internal locus of control are less likely to conform/obey because they:

A
  1. Are more likely to be leaders rather than followers
  2. Are less concerned with social approval
  3. Are more self-confident
  4. Believe that they control their own circumstances
61
Q

External Locus of Control

A
  • People with an external locus of control believe strongly that what happens in their lives is outside of their control
  • They think what occurs in their lives is determined by chance or other people so they have no ability to alter it
  • If they do badly on a test they will blame it on bad luck or inadequate teachers
  • They will agree with statements such as ‘things that make us unhappy are largely due to bad luck’
61
Q

Advantage of Locus of Control (1)

A
  • Oliner (1988) interviewed 406 German people who had sheltered Jewish people from the Nazis during the 1930s and 1940s
  • These German people had an internal locus of control, which had allowed them to disobey the Nazis
62
Q

Advantage of Locus of Control (2)

A
  • Milgram asked participants to deliver electric shocks to Mr. Wallace when he got a question wrong
  • The shocks were not real, but the participants believed they were
  • 65% of participants obeyed and shocked Mr. Wallace up to 450 volts
  • Milgram gave the participants a questionnaire to measure their locus of control and found that the 35% who had disobeyed were far more likely to have an internal locus of control than those who had obeyed
63
Q

Disadvantage of Locus of Control (1)

A
  • Williams and Warchal (1981) found that conformers were less assertive than non-conformers but that the 2 groups did not score differently on a test to determine their locus of control
  • This suggests that assertiveness is more important than locus of control in determining whether or not a person will refuse to conform/obey
64
Q

Minority Influence

A
  • Occurs when very small persuasive groups or even individuals can change the way the majority behaves and thinks
  • Moscovici (1985) considered minority influence to lead to conversion (when individuals change their private beliefs + views because of minority influence)
65
Q

Minority groups are most likely to be convincing when they are:

A

1 - Committed
2 - Consistent
3 - Flexible

66
Q

Commitment

A
  • Commitment is shown when members of the minority demonstrate their dedication to their belief perhaps by making sacrifices (augmentation principle), taking risks or being inconvenienced in some way
  • This shows that the minority is not acting out of self interest
67
Q

Consistent

A
  • Consistency occurs when a minority repeatedly gives the same message over time
  • This makes a majority reassess their belief + consider the issue more carefully
68
Q

Flexible

A
  • Flexibility/being non-dogmatic is when a minority show they are willing to listen to other viewpoints, negotiate and compromise
  • The majority will then listen to the minority point of view + take their argument more seriously
69
Q

Snowball Effect

A
  • Minority influence initially has a small effect but then spreads as more and more people consider the issue being raised + are converted to the minority viewpoint
  • Eventually it reaches a tipping point, where the minority becomes the majority
  • This is known as the snowball effect
70
Q

Social Crypto Amnesia

A
  • Minority influence is a slow process + may even be unconscious
  • Sometimes the individual is not even aware of where the new idea originated from
  • This is called social crypto-amnesia
71
Q

Advantage of Minority Influence (1)

A
  • Moscovici (1969) told 172 female participants that they were taking part in a colour perception task
  • The naïve participants were placed in groups of 6 + shown 36 slides, which were varying shades of blue
  • 2/6 participants were confederates
  • The participants had to state out loud the colour of each slide
  • In the consistent condition the confederates said the slide was green in all 36 trials
  • In the inconsistent condition the confederates said that 24 of the slides were green + 12 were blue
  • In the consistent condition participants were swayed by the minority 8.2% of the time
  • In the inconsistent condition the participants only went along with the minority 1.25% of the time
  • This shows that a consistent minority is more effective than an inconsistent minority
72
Q

Disadvantage of Minority Influence (1)

A
  • Sample of studies into minority influence are gender biased + culturally biased
  • E.g. Moscovici only used women
  • As a result we cannot conclude that male participants would respond to minority influence in the same way
  • Research often suggests that women are more likely to conform than men therefore further research is needed to determine the effect of minority influence on male participants
  • Also all the participants were from America
  • As a result the findings cannot be generalised to other populations
  • We cannot conclude that participants from other cultures would respond to minority influence in the same way
73
Q

Disadvantage of Minority Influence (2) - Lab

A
  • Most of the studies into minority influence are based on experiments conducted in labs
  • This raises the question of ecological validity
  • The participants in lab experiments are usually a collection of students who do not know each other + will probably never meet again
74
Q

Disadvantage of Minority Influence (3)

A
  • Studies into minority influence have been criticised for deceiving participants
  • In Moscovici’s study participants were told that they were taking part in a colour perception test
  • This also means that Moscovici didn’t gain participants informed consent
  • Although it is seen as unethical to deceive participants, Moscovici’s experiment required deception in order to achieve valid results
  • If participants were aware of the true aim of the experiment, they might have displayed demand characteristics and acted differently
75
Q

Social Change

A
  • Refers to the change that occurs in a society + not at an individual level
  • E.g. equal rights for homosexual couples, increases in recycling rates, the smoking ban for public places and women gaining the vote
  • Social change occurs when the minority view challenges the majority view + is eventually accepted by the majority
76
Q

Social change by minority groups:

A

Know committed, consistent, flexible, snowball effect and social crypto amnesia

77
Q

How others bring about social change?

A
  • Once the majority has accepted the minority viewpoint people may conform to this viewpoint due to NSI (compliance) and or ISI (internalisation)
  • Govs/lawmakers can bring about social change through power + through the process of obedience
  • For example, changing the law to allow gay marriage could mean that people may be more accepting of homosexual rights because changes in the law make a behaviour a social norm which others then adopt
  • Dictators can also bring about social change through obedience
  • This leads to people changing their behaviour because of the fear of punishment/consequences of not obeying

Psychology (11 decks)

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