Social Influence

Question 1

Types of conformity?

Answer 1

Internalisation

Identification

Compliance

Question 2

Internalisation

Answer 2

Conforming to the majority and believing in their views

Question 3

Identification

Answer 3

Conforming to what is expected of you in order to fulfil a social role

Question 4

Compliance

Answer 4

Going along with the majority but not sharing their views

Question 5

What are the explanations for conformity?

Answer 5

Informational social influence and Normative social influence

Question 6

Normative social influence

Answer 6

When a person conforms with the majority in order to fit in.

Motivated by the need to be accepted

Involves public agreement and private disagreement

Usually a temporary change

Question 7

Informational social influence

Answer 7

When a person conforms in order to be correct

Motivated by the need to be right

Involves public and private agreement

Usually a permanent change

Question 8

What variables did Asch find affected conformity?

Answer 8

Group size

Unanimity/social support

Task difficulty

Question 9

How does group size affect conformity? (Asch)

Answer 9

Asch found that conformity levels were higher with bigger groups TO A DEGREE.

With two confederates conformity was at 14% and rose to 32% with three confederates HOWEVER after that an increase in confederates had no further effect

Question 10

How does task difficulty effect conformity? (Asch)

Answer 10

As task difficulty increases, conformity increases

Ptts were more likely to conform when the lines were harder to tell apart a

Question 11

How does social support/unanimity affect conformity? (Asch)

Answer 11

As social support increases, the rate of conformity decreases

Social support causes conformity rates to fall to 5.5%

Asch found that if the real participant had a fellow dissenter they felt more comfortable in their own answer

This made it easier for them to disagree with the majority

Question 12

Asch study - aim, procedure and findings?

Answer 12

Aim: to investigate the effect of normative social influence

Procedure: Lab study, ptts in groups of 8, shown a standard line which they must match to one of three lines shown
Group= one real ptt and rest are confederates

Findings: ptts conformed with confederates 37% of the time
75% of ptts conformed at least once
Control conditions showed task was easy but ptts said they conformed to appear normal

Question 13

Evaluation points to Asch study

Answer 13

+ lab study - control of all variables eliminates extraneous variables making study reliable and replicable

• lacks ecological validity as it was done in an artificial environment so it’s hard to apply to the real world in order to make generalisations
• ethical concerns as ptts were deceived and may have been embarrassed after

Question 14

Zimbardo’s study - aim, procedure and findings?

Answer 14

Aim: To investigate conformity to social roles

Procedure: mock prison set up, male students assigned as guard or prisoner, ptts in uniform and behaviour observed via cameras

Findings: Each ptt accepted their social role Guards were quick to emphasise their authority (some violent) whilst prisoner stuck together at first before becoming passive and obedient

Question 15

Evaluation points to Zimbardo’s study

Answer 15

• Demand characteristics as ptts knew they were being watched (however violence was display even were cameras weren’t present)
• Unethical as study ended early due to distress of some ptts
• Zimbardo was too personally involved
• Lacks ecological validity as it was a artificial environment so has no real world application

+ random allocation of roles eliminates bias

Question 16

What explanations for obedience were found by Milgram ?

Answer 16

Agentic state and legitimacy of authority

Question 17

Define agentic state

Answer 17

When you act on behalf of an external authority and therefore act as an agent

This means that you do not take responsibility for your own actions

Question 18

Define legitimacy of authority

Answer 18

Idea that we are more likely to obey legitimate authorities

Question 19

Describe the agentic shift

Answer 19

Idea that people start of acting in an autonomous way which means they think for themselves
BUT then become obedient entering the agentic state

Question 20

Milgram’s study - aim, procedure and findings?

Answer 20

Aim: to investigate obedience to authority

Procedure: lab study, ptt was always teacher who administered shocks to learner, shocks were not real but ranged from 15V to 450V and the ptts were encouraged to continue

Findings: 65% of ptts reached 450V and no one stopped before 300V. Ptts showed signs of stress

People will obey orders to hurt other even if acting against their conscience

Question 21

What situational variables affect obedience?

Answer 21

Proximity
Location
Uniform

Question 22

Evaluation points to Milgram’s study

Answer 22

• low internal validity as ptts may not have believed the shocks were real
• Demand characteristics
• lacks ecological validity as the situation is unlikely in real life

+ lab study so control of variables and can establish cause and effect

• ethical issues of deception as ptts couldn’t give informed consent plus stress after shows they weren’t protected

+ informs us of the power of a situation

• Ignores individual differences such as gender and personality

Question 23

Describe the authoritarian personality

Answer 23

Adorno et al

It is a dispositional explanation of obedience

Over strict parents produce children who always obey authority

Child is hostile to inferior groups (minorities)

F scale measures authoritarian traits

Question 24

Evaluation points of authoritarian theory

Answer 24

• milgram found situational factors to have a bigger effect on obedience
• doesn’t explain how whole societies become obedient
• There are other factors such as education

+ Elms and Milgram found that people with high F scale score had administer bigger shocks HOWEVER this is correlational so hard to draw conclusions from

Question 25

Describe locus of control

Answer 25

How much personal control you believe you have over events in your life

Rotter developed a questionnaire to measure locus of control

Question 26

Internal locus of control

Answer 26

Believing that what happens in your life is from your OWN actions

Stronger sense of control over life

Independent behaviour

Less likely to conform or obey

Question 27

External locus of control

Answer 27

Believing that events are caused by external factors like luck

More likely to conform or obey

Question 28

How does social support affect social influence?

Answer 28

Makes it easier to resist social influence

Milgram found that if other ptts present refused then the ptt would find it easier to stand up to authority

Links to Asch’s line study

Question 29

Moscovici’s study - aim, procedure and findings?

Answer 29

Aim: To investigate minority influence and factors affecting it

Procedure: Lab study, 192 women in groups of 6 that had 2 confederates, judged 36 blue slides with different brightnesses
Consistent group= confeds say all slides are green
Inconsistent = two thirds of slides are green

Findings: minorities can produce conformity particularly when consistent
In the consistent group 32% of ptts conformed at least once

Question 30

Evaluation points to Moscovici’s study

Answer 30

+ lab study means control of extraneous variables and replicable and reliable

• large sample BUT there’s a gender bias so it lacks population validity
• Lacks ecological validity

Question 31

What makes minority influence stronger?

Answer 31

Consistency
Flexibility
Commitment

Question 32

What is the snowball effect?

Answer 32

When people start agree with the minority view then the minority become more influential

They then eventually become a majority

People must go from privately accepting the view to publicly expressing it

Question 33

Examples of social change?

Answer 33

MLK - segregation/ civil rights movement

Gay rights movement - higher age of consent/ equality act/ Sam sex marriage 2014

Question 34

What three factors influence social impact?

Answer 34

Strength
Numbers
Immediacy (how close source is)

Question 35

What are the five steps to social change through minority influence?

Answer 35

1- Drawing attention to issue
2- Cognitive conflict 
3- Consistency of position
4- The augmentation principle (minority is willing to suffer)
5- Snowball effect