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social influence Flashcards

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1
Q

compliance

A

occurs when an individual accepts influence because they hope to achieve a favourable reaction from those around them. an attitude or behaviour is adopted not because of its content, but because of the rewards or approval associated with its adoption

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2
Q

conformity

A

is a form of social influence that results from exposure to the majority position and leads to compliance with that position. it is the tendency for people to adopt the behaviour, attitudes and values of other members of a reference group

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3
Q

identification

A

a form of influence where an individual adopts an attitude or behaviour because they want to be associated with a particular person or group

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4
Q

informational social influence

A

is a form of influence, which is the result of a desire to be right- looking to others as a way of gaining evidence about reality

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5
Q

internalisation

A

occurs when an individual accepts influence because the content of the attitude or behaviour proposed is consistent with their own value system

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6
Q

normative social influence

A

is a form of influence whereby an individual conforms with the expectations of the majority in order to gain approval or to avoid social disapproval

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7
Q

social roles

A

are the behaviours expected of an individual who occupies a given social position or status

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8
Q

obedience to authority

A

obedience refers to a type of social influence whereby somebody acts in response to a direct order from a figure with perceived authority. there is also the implication that the person receiving the order is made to respond in a way that they would not otherwise have done without the order

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9
Q

agent state

A

a person sees himself or herself as an agent for carrying out another persons wishes

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9
Q

legitimate authority

A

a person who is perceived to be in a position of social control within a situation

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10
Q

authoritarian personality

A

a distinct personality pattern characterised by strict adherence to conventional values and a belief in absolute obedience or submission to authority

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11
Q

dispositional

A

explanations of behaviours such as obedience emphasise them being caused by an individuals own personal characteristics rather than situational influences within the environment

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12
Q

F scale

A

also known as the California F scale or the Fascism scale the F scale was developed in California in 1947 as a measure of authoritarian traits or tendencies

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13
Q

externality

A

individuals who tend to believe that their behaviour and experience is caused by events outside their control

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14
Q

right-wing authoritarianism

A

a cluster of personality variables (conventionalism, authority submission and authoritarian aggression) that are associated with a right-wing attitude to life

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15
Q

internality

A

individuals who tend to believe that they are responsible for their behaviour and experience rather than external forces

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16
Q

locus of control

A

people differ in their beliefs about whether the outcomes of their actions are dependant on what they do (internal locus of control) or on events outside their personal control (external locus of control)

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17
Q

social support

A

the perception that an individual has assistance available from other people, and that they are part of a supportive network

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18
Q

social norms interventions

A

attempts to correct misperceptions of the normative behaviour of peers in an attempt to change the risky behaviour of a target population

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18
Q

consistency

A

minority influence is effective provided there is stability in the expressed position over time and agreement among different members of the minority

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19
Q

commitment

A

the degree to which members of a minority are dedicated to a particular cause or activity. the greater the perceived commitment the greater the influence

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20
Q

flexibility

A

a willingness to be flexible and to compromise when expressing a position

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21
Q

minority influence

A

a form of social influence where members of the majority group change their beliefs or behaviours as a result of their exposure to a persuasive minority

22
Q

social change

A

occurs when a society or section of society adopts a new belief or way of behaving which then becomes widely accepted as the norm

23
Q

explanation for conformity positive evaluation

A

normative influence supported by linkenbach and Perkins (2003), Schultz et al (2008)
informative influence supported by Wittenbrink and Henly (1996), Fein et al (2007)

24
Q

explanation for conformity negative evaluation

A

difficult to distinguish between compliance and internalisation
normative influence may not be detected
informational influence is moderated by type of task

25
Q

evaluation points for Asch’s study

A

may be a child of its time
problems with determining the effect of group size
independent behaviour rather than conformity
unconvincing confederates
cultural differences in conformity

26
Q

evaluation for conformity to social roles

A

conformity to roles in not automatic- Haslam and Reicher (2012)
problems of demand characteristics- Banuazizi and Movahedi (1975)
ethical issues
relevance to Abu Ghraib

27
Q

types of conformity

A

compliance- conforming to gain approval
internalisation- conforming because of an acceptance of their views
identification- accepting influence because of a desire to be associated with a group
identification has elements of compliance and internalisation

28
Q

explanation for conformity

A

normative social influence- conformity based on the desire for approval
more likely to occur when individual believes they are under surveillance by the group
informational social influence- based on an acceptance of information from others as evidence about reality
more likely if the situation is ambiguous or where others are experts

29
Q

types of conformity
explanations for conformity
evaluation

A

difficulties distinguishing between compliance and internalisation
research supports for normative influence, e.g. smoking take-up (Linkenbach and Perkins)
research support for informational influence, e.g. attitudes about African Americans (Wittenrbink and Henley)
people underestimate the impact of normative influence on their behaviour (Nolan et al)
informational influence is moderated by type of task (Laughlin)

30
Q

Asch 1956 study

A

procedure- participants viewed lines of different lengths and compared them to a standard line
group contained confederates with participants answering second to last
confederates gave same wrong answer on 12 out of 18 trials
findings-conformity rate was approx 33%
without confederates, participants made mistakes 1% of the time
participants conformed to avoid disapproval

31
Q

variables affecting conformity

A

group size- increased to 30% with majority of three
Campbell and Fairey- group size has different effect depending on type of judgement and motivation
unanimity of the majority- with one dissenter giving the right answer, conformity 5.5%
dissenter giving different wrong answer, conformity 9%
difficulty of the task- if correct answer less obvious, conformity was higher
Lucas et al- influence of task difficulty moderated by individuals self-efficacy

32
Q

variables affecting conformity
evaluation

A

Asch’s research ‘child of its time’ (Perrin and Spencer)
we know very little about the effects or larger majority sizes on conformity levels
independent behaviour rather than conformity- participants maintained their independence on two-thirds of trials
unconvincing confederates- Mori and Arai overcame this problem. similar result to Asch
cultural differences in conformity- smith et al found conformity rates high in collectivist cultures

33
Q

conformity to social role
zimbardo

A

procedure- male volunteers assigned roles of either prisoners or guards
prisoners referred to by numbers only, guards given uniform and power to make rules
findings- guards became tyrannical and abusive with the prisoners
prisoners conformed to their role with some showing extreme reactions of crying and rage

34
Q

conformity to social roles
evaluation

A

conformity to roles is not automatic- Haslam and Reicher argue the guards chose how to behave rather than blindly conforming to their social role
demand characteristics- Banuazizi and Movahedi argue that participants behaviour in the SPE was a response to powerful demand characteristics
were these studies ethical? Zimbardo study followed ethical guidelines but participants still suffered. greater steps to minimise potential harm to participants in the BBC study
the SPE and its relevance to Abu Ghraib- similarities between the SPE and prisoners abuses at Abu Ghraib
zimbardo claims unthinking conformity can lead to a drift into tyranny- disputed by Reicher and Haslam

34
Q

BBC prison study (Reicher and Haslam)

A

procedure- male volunteers, matched on social and clinical measures, assigned roles of prisoners or guards
findings- unlike SPE, neither guards nor prisoners conformed to their assigned role
prisoners worked collectively to challenge authority of the guards, resulting in power shift

35
Q

milgram 1963 study

A

procedure- 40 volunteer participants in each condition
real participant acted as ‘teacher’, confederate as ‘learner’
teacher administered increasing shock levels up to 450V
findings- in voice feedback condition, 65% went to maximum 450V
all participants went to 300V level

36
Q

situational factors in obedience

A

proximity- obedience levels decreased with increasing proximity
location- obedience levels dropped to 48% in lower-status setting
the power of uniform- people more likely to obey someone in a uniform (Bushman)

37
Q

legitimacy of authority

A

person must perceive an individual in a position of social control
people accept definitions of a situation offered by legitimate authority figure
legitimate commands arise from institutions, e.g. a university of the military

37
Q

agentic state

A

personals as an agent to carry out another person’s wishes
binding factors operate to maintain obedience, e.g. social etiguette
demonstrated in actions at My Lai

38
Q

authoritarian personality

A

people scoring high on F scale raised within authoritarian family background (Adorno et al)

39
Q

authoritarian personality
Elms and Milgram (1966)

A

procedure- 20 obedient participants and 20 defiant participants
completed MMPI and F scale, and asked open-ended questions
findings- little difference between obedient and defiant participants on MMPI
higher levels of authoritarianism in obedient participants
obedient participants reported being less close to fathers

40
Q

resistance to social influence
social support

A

presence of social support enables individual to resist conformity (Asch)
social support breaks unanimity and provides and independent assessment of reality
disobedient peers act as role models
obedience rates dropped to 10% when two confederates defied experimenter (Milgram)

41
Q

resistance to social influence
locus of control

A

internal LOC = greater independence and less reliance on the opinions of others
external LOC= more passive attitudes and greater acceptance of the influence of others
high internals less vulnerable to influence and better able to resist coercion (Hutchins and Estey)

42
Q

minority influence and behavioural style

A

minority influence effective with a consistent, committed and flexible style
Wood et al- minorities who were especially consistent were most influential
commitment important as suggest certainty and confidence
flexibility more effective at changing opinion than rigid arguments

43
Q

minority influence
Moscovici et al (1969)

A

procedure- groups of four naïve participants and two confederates
shown blue slides varying in intensity but confederates called them green
group 1 confederates answered consistently
groups 2 confederates answered inconsistently
findings- consistent minority influenced naïve participants to say green on 8% of trials
inconsistent minority exerted very little influence

44
Q

social change through minority influence

A

drawing attention to an issue
minority creates a conflict between majority position and minority position
minorities more influential when they express their views consistently
augmentation principle- minorities more influential if they suffer for their views
the snowball effect- an initial small effect spreads more widely until it reaches a ‘tipping point’

45
Q

social change through majority influence

A

if people perceive something as the norm, they alter their behaviour to fit that norm
correcting misperceptions about ‘actual’ norms using social norms interventions
e.g. most of us don’t drink and drive campaign
resulted in a drop of drink driving by 13.7%

46
Q

situational variables affecting obedience
evaluation

A

internal validity- Orne and Holland claim many participants saw through the deception
Historical validity- Milgram’s findings still as relevant today. No relationship between year of study and obedience levels found (Blass)
proximity- reserve pollice battalion 101
location- high levels of obedience not surpirising
the power of uniform- research support

47
Q

agent state and legitimacy of authority
evaluation

A

the agent state does not explain gradual transitions found in Nazi doctors
agent state or cruelty? obedient behaviour may be due to a desire to inflict harm on others
agent shift is a common response when a person loses self-control (Fennis and Aarts)
legitimacy can serve as the basis for justifying harm to others
Tarnow provides support for power of legitimate authority in aircraft cockpits

48
Q

authoritarian personality
evaluation

A

research evidence- correlation between RWA scores and maximum voltage shock (Dambrun and Vatine)
social context explanations are more flexible
differences- many fully obedient participants had good relationship with their parents
education may determine authoritarianism and obedience (Middendorp and Meloen)
left-wing views associated with lower levels of obedience (bègue et al)

49
Q

social support
evaluation

A

social support in conformity studies more effective when it was from first responder in group
research demonstrates importance of social support in resisting pressure to drink (Rees and Wallace)
the Rosenstrasse protest showed power of social support

50
Q

evaluation of locus of control

A

locus of control related to normative but no informational influence (Spector)
young people far more external than in 1960s (Twenge et al)
research support- people high in externality more easily persuaded and more likely to conform (Avtgis)

51
Q

minority influence evaluation

A

research support flexibility (Nemeth and Brilmayer)
the real value of minority influence is that it ‘opens the mind’ (Nemeth)
Mackie argues that it is the majority rather than the minority that process information more
tipping point for commitment- percentage of committed opinion holders necessary to ‘tip’ the majority was 10% (Xie et al)
minority influence in none only- difficult to convince people of the value of dissent

52
Q

social change
evaluation

A

social change through minority influence is gradual
being perceived as ‘deviant’ limits the influence of minorites
social norms interventions have their limitations- not all have led to social change, e.g. DeJong et al
social norms and the boomerang effect, e.g. Schultz et al with electricity usage
the communist manifesto- overcame issues that typically limit the influence of minorities

psychology paper 1 (5 decks)

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