social influence Flashcards
What does milgrams (1963) study demonstrate
Obedience
What is obedience
This is the change of an individuals behaviour to comply with a demand by an authority figure
What was the method of milgrams experiment
Milgram recruited 40 male volunteers who we led to believe that they were participating in a study to improve learning and memory
The participants were shown how to use a device which gave electric shock to another participant who was really a confederate
What percentage of participants continued to shock the participant up to the maximum voltage (450 volts )
65% at this point the learner was unresponsive
What was the percentage when the setting of the experiment was moved to an office building
The highest shock rate dropped to 48%
What was the shock rate when the learner was in the same room as the teacher
The highest shock rate dropped to 40%
What was the highest shock rate when the teacher and the learners hands were touching
The highest shock rate dropped to 30%
What was the highest shock rate when the researcher gave the orders by phone
The rate dropped to 23%
What did the variations show of milgrams experiment show
They showed that when the humanity of the person being shocked was increased, obedience decreased
Similarly , when the authority of the experimenter deceased , so did obedience
What are the pros of milgrams experiment
Strict variables -variables could be controlled because the experiment was done in a laboratory. We should be able to establish the cause and effects
What are the cons of milgrams study
- low ecological validity = participants were on an artificial situation ( they wouldn’t naturally be in a situation of shocking people. This means the study has low ecological validity ( can’t be generalised easily)
- deception - participants weren’t able to give informed consent because they didn’t know the real nature of the experiment . They weren’t told they could withdraw
-lack of protection - participants were visibly stressed during the study
In Milgram’s defend , no formal ethical guidelines existed at the time
What was milgram experiment influenced by
Trial of Adolf Eichmann
What is another reason as to why people obey and comply
They are concerned about a consequence if they don’t comply
What is an agentic state
This is a state in which an individual behaves as if the agent of another person. This allows them to deny responsibility for their action and distance themselves from the consequence of those actions
What two states did milgram suggest that people can be in
- autonomous state = when people have control and act according to their own wishes
- agentic state =when people obey an authority figure , they give up some free will
What is an agentic shift
When individuals shift from the autonomous to agentic state
Eg in milgrams study the participants started the experiment in autonomous state but shifted into the agentic state when they started taking orders
What three factors did milgram say caused his participants to stay in the agentic state
1 insistence of authority- the experimenter told them to continue when they showed signs of stress
2 pressure of location - the study was conducted in a university. Participants would see the experimenter as a legimate authority
3 unwillingness to disrupt - participants might have felt like they couldn’t stop the experiment
Because they had already been paid
What three factors can affect the likelihood of a person being obedient to authority
Proximity , location and uniforms
How does proximity affect obedience
How physically close individuals are to the consequences of their actions affects how much they feel compelled to follow orders.
Explain an example of how proximity can affect obedience
- milgram found that when the teacher and the leaner were in the same room , and the Teacher could see the distress, obedience dropped to 40%
- when the teacher was instructed to take the hand of the learner and place it on a metal plate and receive the shock , obedience levels dropped to 30%
How can location affect obedience
Locations such as prestigious universities or government buildings add to the legitimacy of the authority figure. Obedience rates are higher in institutional settings and are deemed to have a legitimacy all of their own
What is an example of how the location can affect obedience
When milgram carried out his study at the prestigious Yale university, obedience levels were higher than when he moved the experiment to a office block in a run down part of town (62.5%-47.5%)
How can uniforms affect obedience
Uniforms such as those worn by police officers add further legitimacy of an authority figure. This means that means that people are more likely go obey people wearing a uniform as we have been socialised from young that they are high on the hierarchy table
What is an example of how uniform can affect obedience
Bickman carries out a study where ordinary people were told to pick up litter on a New York street ,loan a coin to a stranger of move away from a bus
Only 14% of people obeyed an individual dressed as
a milk,am , whilst 38% obeyed a person Westinghouse a security guards uniform
What idea did Adorno et al (1950) propose
An authoritarian personality - our personality stems from early childhood experiences and influences , especially parents
Which type of people are more likely to have an authoritarian personality
Children raised in strict households are thought to be more likely to develop authoritarian personality type than others
In milgrams study what happened when two confederates paired with real participants left saying they would discontinue
Only 10% of participants gave the maximum 450- volts shock
So the creation of disobedient group norms puts more pressure on participants
What does locus of control mean
The extent to which people think they’re in control of their own lives
What does internal locus of control
The belief that things happen as a result of our choices and decision
What is external locus of control
The belief that things happen because of luck, fate or other external forces beyond the control of the individual
Individuals with an internal locus of control are less likely to conform than those with an external locus of control
What is not a factor affecting conformity
Self perception
What was a minority influence
Refers to a type of social influence where individuals reject established majority group norms
What does conversion mean
A process where the minority gradually adopt a new minority’s viewpoint or behaviour. This new belief or behaviour becomes accepted publically and privately
What type of conformity is conversion
Internalisation, And happens through informational social influence. This means that the minority provide new information and ideas to the majority
Why does minority influence take longer to achieve than majority influence
Because majority influence is based on compliance
What is the name for the process by which a new behaviour is accepted
Conversion
How can a minority influence bring about a behavioural change
Consistency , commitment and flexibility
How can a minority influence be consistent
Be consistent in both their opinions and behaviour. This indicates that the minority are committed
How can a minority influence show commitment
Commitment is seen as stronger if the minority has had to resist social pressure and abuse because of their viewpoint
How can a minority influence show flexibility
Cons isn’t minority’s that are inflexible and are not persuasive
Those who are flexible ( moderate , co operative and reasonable ) are seem as persuasive
What does consistency and commitment lead to
Doubt in established norms
What does the code of ethics address
- a participant has the right to withdraw from the research
- the need to get fully informed consent from the participants
- the use of deception
- the importance of protecting participants from the risk of psychological and physical harm
What was the aim of Milgrams debriefing
This was an opportunity for him to explain the true purpose of the study and what has really happened. It was intended to make the participants feel better about their role in the study, especially if they had been completely obedient throughout
What was the rate of obedience in the proximity variations
- When the learner and the teacher were in the same room obedience dropped from 65% to 40%
- when the teacher forced the Learners hand on the plate = obedience dropped further to 30%
- when instructions were made my telephone obedience dropped to 20.5%
What was the rate of obedience in the location variations
-run down building rather than a prestigious Yale uni where it was originally obedience fell to 47.5% from 65%
What was the rate of obedience in the uniform variation
The role of the experimenter was taken over by an ‘ ordinary member of the public ‘ ( played by a confederate ) in everyday clothes rather than a lab coat. The obedience rate dropped to 20% lowest of these variations
Pros of milgrams variation
- cross cultural application - his finding have been replicated in other cultures. For example Miranda et al found an obedience rate of over 90% amonngst Spanish students. This suggests that milgrams conclusions about obedience are not limited to American males but are valid across cultures and apply to females
- control of variables
Cons of milgrams variations
- lack of internal validity - participants realised the procedure was faked such as the experimenter that was a “ member of the public “. This is a limitation as it isn’t clear whether the results are genuinely due to the operation of obedience or the participants worked it out
What does legitimacy of authority mean
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 individuals position of power within a social hierarchy
What is the definition of autonomous state
This is the opposite of agentic state. A person in this state is free to behave according to their own principles and therefore feel a sense of responsibility over their own actions
What is an agentic shift
Milgram suggested that this occurs when a person perceives someone as a figure of authority. This other person has power because of their position in a social hierarchy
Evaluation of agentic state
+ research support= blass and Schmitt found that people do blame and legitimate authority for the participants behaviour
- limited explanation =can not explain why some of milgrams participants disobeyed or the lack of moral strain in Hofling et al’s nurses
Evaluation of legitimacy of authority
+ cultural differences = explains obedience in different cultures because reflects different social hierarchies
What is an authoritarian personality
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
What was the procedure in adorno et al study
They investigated the cause of the obedient personality in the study of more 2000 middle class, white Americans and their unconscious attitudes towards racial groups.they developed ways to investigate this including the F scale
What was adorno a findings
- those who scores high on the F scale identifies with strong people
- authoritarian people had a cognitive style where there was no ‘ fuzziness’ between categories of people with fixed and distinctive stereotypes about other groups
List some authoritarian characteristics
- especially obedient to authority
- extreme respect for authority and submissive to it
- believe we need strong and powerful leaders to enforce traditional values such as love of country and religion
What is the origin authoritarian personality
They concluded that it formed in childhood as a result of harsh parenting. Typically the parenting style identified by adorno is extremely strict discipline, impossibly high standards , severe criticism
Pro of authoritarian personality
- research support = some of milgrams obedient participants had authoritarian personalities ( elms )
Cons of authoritarian personality
- limited explaination = can’t increase in obedience across a whole culture
- political bias = equates authoritarian personality with right wing ideology and ignores extreme left wing authoritarianism
Definition of resistance to social norms
Refers to the ability of people to withstand the social pressure to conform to the majority or to obey authority.
Definition of social support
The presence of people who resist pressures to conform or obey can help others to do the same
Social support in terms of conformity
Social support can help people resist conformity. The pressure to conform can be reduced
social support in terms of obedience
Social support can help resist obedience. The pressure to obey can be reduced if there is another person who is seen to disobey
Resistance to social support in terms of locus of control
People who have an internal LOC are more likely to be able to resist pressures to conform or obey. Another explanation is that people with a high internal locus of control tend to be more self confident and have less a need for social approval. These personality traits lead to greater resistance to social influence
Definition of minority influence
A form of social influence in which minority of people persuade others to adopt their belief , attitudes and behaviours. Leads to internalisation of conversion
What does minority influence involve
- consistency - minority influence is most effective if the minority keep the same beliefs over time and with the individuals who form the minority
- commitment - the minority influence is more powerful if the minority demonstrates dedication to their position
- flexibility- relentless consistency could be counter productive if it is seen by the majority as unbending and unreasonable
Why is consistency effective
Because it draws attention to the minority view
How is commitment effective
Because it shows the minority is not acting out of self interest such as by making personal sacrifices
How is flexibility effective
By accepting the possibility of compromise
The process of change in minority influence
Snow ball effect - minority view gathers momentum until it becomes majority influence
Evaluation of minority influence
+ research support- Moscovici study showed that a consistent minority opinion has a greater effect on other people than an inconsistent opinion ( emphasised the importance of consistency )
- artificial tasks - ( such as aschs Line judgement task)
Lacks in external validity and are limited in what they can tell us
Definition of social influence
The process by which the individuals and groups each others attitudes and behaviours. Includes conformity, obedience and minority influence
Definition of social change
This occurs when societies rather than just individuals adopt new attitudes ,beliefs and ways of doing things
Stanford prison experiments procedure, findings and conclusions
Procedures - mock prison with students randomly assigned as guards or prisoners
Findings - guards became increasingly brutal, prisoners increasingly with drawn and depressed
Conclusions - participants conformed to their roles as guards or prisoners
Evaluation of Stanford’s prison experiment
- control = random assignment to roles increased internal validity
- lack of realism = participants were playing-acting their roles according to media derived stereotypes
- dispositional influence = only one third of guards were brutal so conclusions exaggerated
- lack of research support + ethical issues
Milgrams procedure and findings
Procedure - participants have fake electric shocks to a “learner “in obedience to instructions from the “experimenter “ Findings - 65% gave highest shock of 450v 100% gave shocks up to 300v Many showed signs of anxiety
Social support evaluation
Research support = conformity decreases when one person dissents even if they are not credible ( Allen and Levine )
Research support =obedience drops when disobedient role models are present ( Gamsen et al )
What special role can minority influence play
Minority influence is powerful force for innovation and social change for example civil rights movement in the USA
What lessons can be learnt from conformity research
Normative social influence can lead to social change by drawing attention to what the minority is doing
research support for normative social influence
normative beliefs have an important role in shaping behaviours such as smoking and energy conservation. Linkenbach and perkins adolescents exposed to a message that the majority of the peers did not smoke were less likely to take up smoking themselves. This supports the claim that people shape their behaviours out of desire to fit in with the reference group
research support for informational social influence
exposure to other peoples beliefs and opinions can shape many aspects of social behaviour and beliefs. Wittenbrenk and Henley found that individuals exposed to a negative viewpoint found that individuals to a negative viewpoint (about African Americans), represented as the majority, later reported the same negative attitudes to themselves. this shows the importance of informational social influence in shaping our attitudes and behaviours
what does social influence mean
the study of how peoples behaviours and attitudes are influenced by the presence- actual or imagined-of other people
what is a social group
two or more people who interact together and share things in common
what are social roles
behaviours and beliefs expected of a person with a particular position in a social group
what is a social norm
the unwritten rules for all members of a social group to behave
what was the aim of zimbardos research study
to investigate if prison brutality happens because of the personality of the guards or prisoners or because they are conforming to social roles
what is the process by which minority influence majority’s
conversion- this involves the majority internalising the attitudes of the minority
how can you bring about social change through minority influence
- cognitive conflict= a minority creates a conflict in the minds of the majority between what is currently believed and what the majority believe
- snowball effect= minority influence normally has a small effect but this spreads more widely until it eventually leads to wide scale social change
What three factors strengthen the influence of a minority
Consistency , flexibility and commitment
Definition of social change
When minorities change attitudes to that new social norms are created
What was the aim of moscovicis study
To investigate the role of a consistent minority upon the opinions of a majority in an unambiguous situation
What was moscovicis procedure
Participants were put in groups of 6.in each group there were 4 participants and 2 can confederates.participants were told it was a study into perception. Each group was shown 36 blue slides varying the intensity of the colour. Inconsistent condition = confederates said 24 slides were green 12 were blue
Consistent = the confederates answers wrongly that the slides were green
What was moscovicis findings
There were 8.2 % agreement with the minority in the consistent condition , with 32% agreeing at least once. There were only 1.25% agreement in the inconsistent condition
What was moscovicis conclusion
Findings show that although minority influence is relatively small, consistency is the important variable
Evaluation of moscovicis study
- unethical = involves deceit which means informed consent was not given .particpants many have endured mild stress
- female participants
Does not identify important factors in minority influence like group size
what are dispositional explanations for obedience
authoritarian personality
evaluation of authoritarian personality
research by Middendorp and Meleon (1990) found that less-educated people are more likely to display authoritarian personality characteristics, than well-educated people. If these claims are correct then it is possible to conclude that it is not authoritarian personality characteristics that lead to obedience, but levels of education.
describe social support in the context of resistance to social influence
One reason that people can resist the pressure to conform or obey is if they have an ally. Having an ally can build confidence and allow individuals to remain independent. Individuals who have support for their point of view no longer fear being ridiculed, allowing them to avoid normative social influence. Furthermore, individuals who have support for their point of view are more likely to disobey orders.
describe locus of control for resistance to social influence
People with an internal locus of control believe that what happens in their life is largely the result of their own behaviour and that they have control over their life. Whereas people with an external locus of control believe that what happens to them is controlled by external factors and that they do not have complete control over their life.
Consequently, Rotter suggested that individuals with an internal locus of control are more likely to resist the pressures to conform or obey, in comparison to individuals with an external locus of control.
research study for minority influence
Moscovici (1969) investigated behavioral styles (consistent / inconsistent) on minority influence in his blue-green studies. He showed that a consistent minority was more successful than an inconsistent minority in changing the views of the majority.
evaluation for minority influence
The study used the lab experiments – i.e. are the results true to real life (ecological validity)? Also Moscovici used female students as participants (i.e. unrepresentative sample), so it would be wrong to generalise his result to all people – they only tell us about the behaviour of female students.
