Social Influence, Conformity

Question 1

What is conformity?

Answer 1

• Person changes behaviour, attitudes or beliefs to align with majority
• Due to pressure from majority

Question 2

What is compliance?

Answer 2

• Change publicly to align with majority
• No change privately
• Superficial, only when group present

Question 3

What is internalisation?

Answer 3

• Change publicly and privately
• Examines behaviour and decides majority is correct
• Permenant

Question 4

What is identification?

Answer 4

• Accepts influence because want association with role model or social group
• Adopt groups behaviour to feel connected

Question 5

Define NSI

Answer 5

Normative social influence
Need to approval and acceptance
Avoid behaviour that could cause ridicule or rejection
Fit in
Leads to compliance

Question 6

Define ISI

Answer 6

Informational social influence
Need to be correct
Difficult/ambiguous question so look to others for help
Leads to internalisation

Question 7

NSI and ISI +

Answer 7

+ Asch
- confederates give wrong answer
- 37% trials pps conformed
- interviewed and said confirmed to avoid ridicule so NSI

+ Jenness
- beans in jar individual estimate first
- then estimate in groups
- estimates became roughly similar
- ISI as difficult task

Question 8

NSI and ISI -

Answer 8

-ingratiational conformity
* similar NSI but not due to fear rejection
* need to impress

• Dispositional factors
• internal and external locus
• internal locus = less likely conform
• cannot be explained NSI and ISI

Question 9

Asch procedure

Answer 9

3 line test
Several confederates
Decide which test line was same as standard line
Naive pp gave answer penultimate or last
Confederate gave wrong asnwer 12/18 times

Question 10

Asch findings

Answer 10

Chance mistake 1% but incorrect asnwer given 37% of time
75% conformed at least one out of 18
5% conformed all times
Debrief: gave same answer as group to avoid disapproval but believed they were still right themselves

Question 11

Group size

Answer 11

One confederate 3% conformity rate
Two confederates 13% conformity rate
Three confederate 32% conformity rate
After three is little difference

Question 12

Task difficulty

Answer 12

Lines similar length= conformity rates increased
Obvious answer = conformity rates decreased
Due to ISI

Question 13

Unanimity

Answer 13

Majority unanimous in WRONG answer = increased conformity
One disssented = conformity rates drop from 37% to 5%
Due to NSI conformity is higher when groups are unanimous

Question 14

Asch -

Answer 14

• 80 years ago so no temporal validity
• lacks mundane realism and ecological validity
• gender and culturally biased so cannot be generalised
• ethical issues, deception, lack of informed consent, lack of protection from harm