Social Influence Flashcards
Define conformity
Changing your beliefs or actions in order to agree with what the majority are doing, be that imaginary or real
Shallow conformity
Shallow- compliance: superficial, don’t agree with behaviour but do it to avoid feeling awkward/ confrontation
Moderate conformity
Moderate- identification: don’t completely agree, do it because you value the group and want to be part of it
Deep conformity
Deep- internalisation: private and public change, becomes part of your private belief system, continue to act in this way even if others disagree
ISI
Informational social influence
About wanting to be correct/ need for certainty
You think the group has the better information/ is more likely to be right than you
Comparison with others
Cognitive process
Leads to internalisation
NSI
Normative social influence
About wanting do what is normal/ be accepted
You don’t want to appear foolish or be rejected
Power of others to reward or punish
Emotive process
Leads to compliance or internalisation
Type of conformity
Compliance/ internalisation/ identification
Explanation for conformity
ISI/ NSI
Research support ISI
Lucas conducted a study on students
More participants conformed when the question was harder
Shows that people conform when they don’t know the answer
So supports ISI as this is what would be predicted
Individual differences NSI
Some research shows NSI does not affect everyone in the same way
People who are less concerned with being liked (nAfilliators) are less likely to be affected
Who came up with the idea of the Authoritarian Personality?
Theodor Adorno et al
People who scored high on the F-scale
People with authoritarian leanings (those who scored high on the F-scale):
Identified with ‘strong’ people and were scornful of the ‘weak’
Were very conscious of their own and other’s status
Showed excessive respect towards those of higher status
Had fixed and distinctive stereotypes about other groups
How is an authoritarian personality formed
Through childhood
Result of harsh parenting
Fear/ anger displaced onto a scapegoat
Problem with cause to authoritarian personality
Correlation in study; doesn’t necessarily mean cause and effect
Evaluation weakness of F-scale
Susceptible to acquiescence bias- all statements directed in the same way
Obedience vs conformity
Obedience:
acting upon an order/ instruction
difference in status from the outset
behaviour is affected by an order from someone of higher authority
order may come from someone who has the power to punish
Conformity:
no explicit requirement to act in a certain way
our peers influence our behaviour
due to the psychological need to be accepted/ be correct
Agentic state
We fail to take personal responsibility because we believe we are acting on behalf of an authority figure. We go against our conscience and do what we are told even if it causes us considerable distress (moral strain). People may want to leave the agentic state but can’t due to binding factors (aspects of the situation that allow a person to minimise the damaging effect of their behaviour)
Autonomous state
We feel free of other influences and so take personal responsibility for our actions
Agentic state
We switch from being autonomous to being an agent because we perceive someone else to be an authority figure entitled to expect obedience
Legitimate authority
Some people have positions of authority because they have been entrusted by society with certain powers
Agentic state evaluation strength
Research support- Milgram and Blass and Schmitt
Agentic state evaluation weakness
Could be due to personality
Doesn’t explain why some people disobey
Legitimate authority evaluation strength
Research support- Milgram and Bickmann
Legitimate authority evaluation weakness
Cannot explain why some people obey authority more than others- confounding variables
Authoritarian personality evaluation strength
Research support- Milgram and Elms
Authoritarian personality evaluation weakness
Cannot explain the obedience of large groups of people
Social support
Dissenter
Breaks unanimity
Makes it easier to not obey/ conform
Moral support
Locus of control
Internal- less likely to conform and obey: if a person takes personal responsibility for their actions and experiences then they are more likely to base their decisions on their own beliefs so resist pressures from others
External- more likely to conform, obey is unclear
3 things needed for a successful minority influence
Commitment
Consistency
Flexibility
Examples of pressure groups/ minority influences
Amnesty International
Jamie Oliver
The Suffragetes
How minority influence can lead to social change
- A minority group has an effective campaign
- People start to listen and adopt the ideas of the minority
- The snowball effect occurs, people change through conformity
- Government feels pressure to act/ hears about and decides to act
- A law is passed and people change through obedience
Snowball effect
Private change Public change More private and public change Repeats Minority becomes majority
Social cryptoamnesia
Linked to snowball effect
Hear about something
Don’t remember who from/ whose idea it was first
Conform/ agree
