Social Influence

Question 1

What is meant by internalisation?

Answer 1

• accepting the majority’s views as your own

Question 2

What is meant by compliance?

Answer 2

• going along with things even if you disagree with them

Question 3

What is meant by identification?

Answer 3

• doing what’s expected of you to fulfil a social role

Question 4

What was the Sherif (1935) experiment on conformity?

Answer 4

• laboratory experiment
• repeated measures
• visual illusion (autokinetic effect)
• RPS falsely told that experimenter was moving the light
• RPS were influenced by estimates of other people

Question 5

What was the Asch (1951) experiment on normative social influence?

Answer 5

• lab experiment with independent groups design
• line test
• confederates deliberately said the wrong answer
• 0.7% participants gave wrong answer in control trials, 37% conformed in critical trials

Question 6

What situational factors are participants influenced by?

Answer 6

• Group size
• Unanimity / Social Support
• Task difficulty

Question 7

What dispositional factors affect conformity?

Answer 7

• confidence
• expertise
• gender

Question 8

How did Zimbardo et al (1973) study conformity to social roles?

Answer 8

• male students were guards or prisoners
• guards asserted authority but became much more aggressive
• prisoners initially rebelled, but became passive and obedient
• experiment abandoned early

Question 9

How long was Zimbardo’s experiment supposed to last and how long did it last?

Answer 9

• 2 weeks

- 6 days

Question 10

What was the Milgram (1963) experiment on obedience?

Answer 10

• lab experiments
• confederate strapped to an electric chair
• participants thought the shocks were real
• 15V to 450V
• 65% administered 450V, none stopped after 300V
• participants showed obvious stress

Question 11

What were the good points of Milgram’s experiment?

Answer 11

• lab experiment, highly controlled variables
• 84% of participants said they were pleased to take part
• weren’t any ethical guidelines, so he didn’t breach any

Question 12

What were the bad points in Milgram’s experiment?

Answer 12

• possible that demand characteristics played a part
• lack of ecological validity
• deception; no informed consent
• participants showed signs of stress

Question 13

What situational factors did Milgram identify that affected obedience?

Answer 13

• presence of allies
• proximity of the victim
• proximity of the authority
• location

Question 14

What is meant by ‘informational social influence’?

Answer 14

• motivational force to look to others for guidance in order to behave in the correct way.
• common in unfamiliar situations

Question 15

What is meant by ‘normative social influence’?

Answer 15

• motivational force to be liked and accepted by a group

- they may agree with what others say even though it goes against what they actually believe