Social influence

Question 1

What is conformity?

Answer 1

A type of social influence that describes how a person changes their attitude or behaviour in response to group pressure.

Question 2

What are the three main types of conformity?

Answer 2

• Compliance
• Identification
• Internalisation

Question 3

Define compliance in terms of conformity.

Answer 3

The shallowest level of conformity where a person changes their public behaviour but not their private beliefs.

Question 4

What typically drives compliance?

Answer 4

Normative social influence (NSI).

Question 5

Provide an example of compliance.

Answer 5

Someone might say they like a popular music genre because their friends do, but privately they dislike it.

Question 6

Define identification in terms of conformity.

Answer 6

A middle level of conformity where a person changes both their public behaviour and private beliefs, but only in the presence of a group.

Question 7

What typically drives identification?

Answer 7

Normative social influence (NSI).

Question 8

Provide an example of identification.

Answer 8

A student may become vegetarian while living with vegetarian housemates but eats meat when away from them.

Question 9

Define internalisation in terms of conformity.

Answer 9

The deepest level of conformity where a person permanently changes both their public behaviour and private beliefs.

Question 10

What typically drives internalisation?

Answer 10

Informational social influence (ISI).

Question 11

Provide an example of internalisation.

Answer 11

If someone converts to a new religion after learning about it from a group, their beliefs remain even when the group is not present.

Question 12

What is normative social influence (NSI)?

Answer 12

People conform to be accepted or to fit in with a group.

Question 13

What motivates people to conform under normative social influence?

Answer 13

The desire for social approval and the fear of rejection.

Question 14

What type of change does normative social influence typically lead to?

Answer 14

Compliance or identification (short-term change).

Question 15

What is informational social influence (ISI)?

Answer 15

People conform because they believe others are right.

Question 16

In what situations does informational social influence typically occur?

Answer 16

In ambiguous situations where people look to others for guidance.

Question 17

What type of change does informational social influence typically lead to?

Answer 17

Internalisation (long-term change).

Question 18

What did Asch’s (1951) study demonstrate about normative social influence?

Answer 18

Many participants conformed to obviously incorrect answers given by a majority to avoid disapproval.

Question 19

What was the effect of private answers in Asch’s study?

Answer 19

Conformity dropped to 12.5% when participants wrote down answers privately.

Question 20

What did Jenness (1932) study demonstrate about informational social influence?

Answer 20

Participants’ estimates shifted closer to the group’s estimate after discussion, showing internalisation.

Question 21

Which gender conformed more in Jenness’s study?

Answer 21

Female participants conformed more than males.

Question 22

What effect does group size have on conformity according to Asch’s variations?

Answer 22

Conformity increases with group size up to three confederates, then slightly decreases with more.

Question 23

What was the conformity rate with three confederates in Asch’s study?

Answer 23

32%.

Question 24

What was the effect of unanimity on conformity?

Answer 24

Conformity dropped to 5% when one confederate gave the correct answer.

Question 25

What happens to conformity when task difficulty increases?

Answer 25

Conformity increases, suggesting that ISI plays a role in ambiguous situations.

Question 27

What occurs when an individual adopts a particular behaviour and belief system in a specific social situation?

Answer 27

Conformity to social roles ## Footnote Example: A teacher acts differently in school compared to how they behave with friends.

Question 28

What type of conformity represents a change in public behaviour and private beliefs only while in a particular role?

Answer 28

Identification

Question 29

How do people learn to behave in certain situations?

Answer 29

By observing others in similar roles and conforming to those expectations ## Footnote Example: A new teacher will likely adopt the behaviour of other teachers at their school.

Question 30

What was the aim of Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment?

Answer 30

To examine whether people would conform to the social roles of prisoner or guard in a mock prison environment

Question 31

What were the two factors Zimbardo wanted to investigate regarding behaviour in prisons?

Answer 31

* Internal dispositional factors * External situational factors

Question 32

How many male university students participated in the Stanford Prison Experiment?

Answer 32

21 male university students

Question 33

What was the payment for participants in the Stanford Prison Experiment?

Answer 33

$15 per day

Question 34

What were the conditions for prisoners in the Stanford Prison Experiment to make the experience realistic?

Answer 34

* Arrested by real police * Fingerprinted * Strip-searched * Given a numbered uniform with chains on their ankles

Question 35

What items were given to guards in the Stanford Prison Experiment?

Answer 35

* Uniforms * Sunglasses * Handcuffs * Batons

Question 36

How long was the Stanford Prison Experiment originally set to last?

Answer 36

Two weeks

Question 37

What immediate reactions did participants have to their assigned social roles?

Answer 37

* Prisoners rebelled * Guards became abusive

Question 38

What extreme behaviour did guards exhibit in the Stanford Prison Experiment?

Answer 38

Waking prisoners at night and forcing them to clean toilets with their bare hands

Question 39

What was the outcome for prisoners in terms of their behaviour during the experiment?

Answer 39

They became submissive and accepted their inferior role

Question 40

Why was the Stanford Prison Experiment terminated early?

Answer 40

Due to extreme anxiety and crying experienced by prisoners ## Footnote The study was stopped after just six days.

Question 41

What did Zimbardo conclude from the Stanford Prison Experiment?

Answer 41

People quickly conform to social roles, often against their moral values

Question 42

What influenced the behaviour observed in the Stanford Prison Experiment?

Answer 42

Situational factors rather than personality

Question 43

What is one strength of Zimbardo's study?

Answer 43

Real-world Applications

Question 44

What is a weakness related to the ethical considerations of Zimbardo's study?

Answer 44

Participants experienced extreme psychological distress

Question 45

What dual role did Zimbardo have that affected his objectivity?

Answer 45

Both researcher and prison superintendent

Question 46

What limitation did Zimbardo's study have regarding the sample population?

Answer 46

Lack of Generalisability

Question 47

What contradictory research challenges Zimbardo's findings?

Answer 47

Reicher & Haslam (2006) found that guards did not automatically become aggressive

Question 48

What is the main difference between obedience and conformity?

Answer 48

Obedience involves following direct orders from an authority figure, while conformity involves pressure from the behavior of the majority.

Question 49

Who conducted the famous study on obedience in 1963?

Answer 49

Stanley Milgram

Question 50

What was the aim of Milgram's study?

Answer 50

To investigate whether ordinary people would obey an unjust order from an authority figure, even if it meant harming another person.

Question 51

How many male participants were involved in Milgram's study?

Answer 51

40 male volunteers

Question 52

What were participants told they were studying in Milgram's experiment?

Answer 52

Learning and memory

Question 53

What role did the confederate Mr. Wallace play in the study?

Answer 53

He was the learner.

Question 54

What was the range of electric shocks administered in Milgram's study?

Answer 54

From 15V to 450V in 15V increments.

Question 55

What happened at 300V during the experiment?

Answer 55

The learner banged on the wall and stopped responding.

Question 56

What verbal prods did the authority figure give to the participants who hesitated?

Answer 56

* Please continue. * The experiment requires that you continue. * It is absolutely essential that you continue. * You have no other choice; you must go on.

Question 57

What percentage of participants obeyed and administered the full 450V shock?

Answer 57

65%

Question 58

What percentage of participants continued to at least 300V?

Answer 58

100%

Question 59

What signs of extreme stress did participants show during the experiment?

Answer 59

* Sweating * Trembling * Nervous laughter

Question 60

What conclusion did Milgram draw from his study?

Answer 60

Ordinary people are capable of following orders from an authority figure, even when those orders result in harm to another person.

Question 61

What is the agentic state in the context of obedience?

Answer 61

A shift from an autonomous state to an agentic state, where individuals see themselves as agents carrying out someone else's orders.

Question 62

What belief do people hold in the agentic state regarding responsibility?

Answer 62

They believe the authority figure is responsible for their actions.

Question 63

What does the legitimacy of authority explain in terms of obedience?

Answer 63

People obey those in positions of power because they believe they have the right to give orders.

Question 64

What societal roles often reinforce the legitimacy of authority?

Answer 64

* Police * Teachers * Doctors

Question 65

What is a criticism of Milgram's findings regarding individual differences?

Answer 65

Not all participants obeyed; 35% refused to continue to 450V.

Question 66

True or False: Milgram's study suggests that obedience is solely due to personality.

Answer 66

False

Question 67

What is the primary focus of dispositional explanations?

Answer 67

Internal personality traits that make some people more obedient. ## Footnote Dispositional explanations contrast with situational explanations, which focus on external factors.

Question 68

What is the Authoritarian Personality?

Answer 68

A personality type that may make individuals more obedient to authority. ## Footnote It is one of the dispositional explanations for obedience.

Question 69

What was the aim of Adorno et al. (1950) study?

Answer 69

To investigate whether a person’s personality type makes them more obedient to authority.

Question 70

What was the sample size in the Adorno et al. (1950) study?

Answer 70

2,000 middle-class, white Americans.

Question 71

What tool did participants complete in the Adorno et al. (1950) study?

Answer 71

The F-scale (Fascism Scale).

Question 72

What did the F-scale measure?

Answer 72

Unconscious attitudes towards authority.

Question 73

Which statement is an example from the F-scale?

Answer 73

‘Obedience and respect for authority are the most important virtues a child should learn.’

Question 74

What were the findings regarding people with authoritarian personalities?

Answer 74

They scored high on the F-scale and were highly obedient to authority figures. ## Footnote They were also hostile towards perceived inferiors and traditional in values.

Question 75

What parenting style contributes to the development of an authoritarian personality?

Answer 75

Strict, harsh parenting emphasizing obedience to authority and severe discipline.

Question 76

What is scapegoating in the context of the authoritarian personality?

Answer 76

Displacing resentment onto weaker groups, such as minority groups.

Question 77

What did Milgram & Elms (1966) find regarding obedience and personality traits?

Answer 77

Highly obedient participants scored higher on the F-scale.

Question 78

What is a limitation of the correlation found between authoritarianism and obedience?

Answer 78

Correlation does not imply causation; other factors may influence both.

Question 79

What does the Authoritarian Personality explanation fail to account for?

Answer 79

Mass obedience in societies, such as Nazi Germany.

Question 80

What political bias exists in the F-scale?

Answer 80

It only measures right-wing authoritarianism.

Question 81

Fill in the blank: Situational explanations focus on ______ factors.

Answer 81

external

Question 82

Fill in the blank: Dispositional explanations focus on ______ factors.

Answer 82

internal