social influence

Question 1

What is internalisation

Answer 1

when a person genuinely accepts the group norms, this results in a private as well as public change of opinions and behaviour. this change is likely to be permanent as the attitudes have been internalised the change in behaviour/opinion persists even in the absence of other group members

Question 2

what is identification?

Answer 2

sometimes we conform the the opinions/behaviours of a group because there is something about the group that we value. we identify with the group so we want to be part of it. this may mean we publicly change our opinions/behaviours to achieve this goal, even if we dont privately agree with everything the group stands for.

Question 3

what is compliance?

Answer 3

this type of conformity includes simply going along with others in public, but privately not changing personal opinions. results in only a superficial change. particular behaviour/opinion stops as soon as group pressure stops

Question 4

what is conformity?

Answer 4

a change in a persons behaviour or opinions as a result of real or imagined pressure from a person or group of people

Question 5

what is informational social influence?

Answer 5

An explanation of conformity that says we agree with the opinion of the majority because we believe they are correct. we accept it because we want to be correct as well. this may lead to internalisation

Question 6

what is normative social influence?

Answer 6

an explanation of conformity that says we agree with the opinion of the majority because we want to be accepted, gain social approval and be liked. this may lead to compliance

Question 7

what did asch do with group size?

Answer 7

asch increased group size by adding more confederates, thus increasing the size of the majority. conformity increased with group size, but only up to a point, levelling off when the majority was greater than three

Question 8

what is unanimity and what did asch do with it?

Answer 8

the extent to which all members of the group agree. in asch’s studies was unanimous when the confederates selected the same comparison line. this produced the greatest degree of conformity in the naive participant

Question 9

what did asch do with the task difficulty?

Answer 9

asch’s line judging task is more difficult when it becomes harder to work out the correct answer. conformity increases as naive participants assume the majority is more likely to be right

Question 10

what are social roles?

Answer 10

the parts people play as members of various social groups. these are accompanied by expectations we and others have of what is appropriate behaviour in each role

Question 11

what is obedience?

Answer 11

a form of social influence in which an individual follows a direct order. the person issuing the order is usually a figure of authority who has power to punish when obedient behaviour is not forthcoming

Question 12

what are situational variables (milgram)?

Answer 12

in his research, milgram identified several factors he believed influenced the level of obedience shown by participants. they are all related to external circumstances rather than to the personalities of the people involved. these include proximity, location and uniform.

Question 13

proximity

Answer 13

the physical closeness or distance of an authority figure to the person they are giving an order to. also refers to the physical closeness of the teacher to the learner in milgram’s studies

Question 14

location

Answer 14

the place where an order is issued. the relevant factor that influences obedience is the status or prestige associated with the location

Question 15

uniform

Answer 15

people in positions of authority often have a specific outfit that is symbolic of their authority, this indicates to the rest of us who is entitled to expect our obedience

Question 16

agentic state

Answer 16

a mental state where we feel no personal responsibility for our behaviour because we believe ourselves to be acting for an authority figure, i.e as their agent. this frees us from the demands of our consciences and allows us to obey even a destructive authority figure

Question 17

legitimacy of authority

Answer 17

an explanation for obedience which suggests that we are more likely to obey people who we perceive to have authority over us. this authority is justified (legitimate) by the individual’s position of power within a social hierarchy

Question 18

dispositional explanation

Answer 18

any explanation of behaviour that highlights the importance of the individual’s personality (i.e. their disposition). such explanations are often contrasted with situational explanations

Question 19

authoritarian personality

Answer 19

a type of personality that Adorno argued was especially susceptible to obeying people in authority. such individuals are also thought to be submissive to those of higher status and dismissive of inferiors

Question 20

resistance to social influence

Answer 20

refers to the ability of people to withstand the social pressure to conform to the majority or to obey authority. this ability to withstand social pressure is influenced by both situational and dispositional factors

Question 21

social support

Answer 21

the presence of people who resist pressures to conform to the majority or to obey can help others to do the same. these people act as models to show others that resistance to social influence is possible

Question 22

locus of control

Answer 22

refers to the sense we each have about what directs events in our lives. internals believe they are mostly responsible for what happens to them (internal locus of control) externals believe it is mainly a matter of luck or other outside forces (external locus of control)

Question 23

minority influence

Answer 23

a form of social influence in which a minority of people (sometimes just one person) persuade others to adopt their beliefs, attitudes or behaviours. leads to internalisation or conversion, in which private attitudes are changed as well as public behaviours

Question 24

consistency

Answer 24

minority influence is most effective if the minority keeps the same beliefs, both over time and between all the individuals that form the majority. its effective because it draws attention to the minority view

Question 25

commitment

Answer 25

minority influence is more powerful if the minority demonstrates dedication to their position, for example, by making personal sacrifices. this is effective because it shows the minority is not acting out of self-interest

Question 26

flexibility

Answer 26

relentless consistency could be counterproductive if it is seen by the majority as unbending and unreasonable. therefore minority influence is more effective if the majority show flexibility by accepting the possibility of compromise

Question 27

social influence

Answer 27

the process by which individuals and groups change each other’s attitudes and behaviour. includes conformity, obedience and minority influence

Question 28

social change

Answer 28

this occurs when whole societies, rather than just individuals, adopt new attitudes, beliefs and ways of doing things. examples include accepting that the earth orbits the sun, womens suffrage, gay rights and environmental issues