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Year 12 A-Level Psychology 2023-2025 > Social Influence: Explanations of Conformity 2024/2025 > Flashcards

Social Influence: Explanations of Conformity 2024/2025 Flashcards

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1
Q

Asch’s study only used males in the sample for his experiment. What type of bias does the study have?

A

Gender Bias

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2
Q

Asch’s study is gender bias, how do you know?

A

Because he used a male only sample

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3
Q

Asch’s study was only conducted on males, why is this a problem?

A

It is difficult to generalise the findings to females

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4
Q

Why is it difficult to generalise Asch’s results on conformity to females?

A

Females may conform more as research suggests they are more concerned about social relationships & liked by peers showing NSI explains conformity for some groups of people rather than others (females more than males).

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5
Q

Give two ways in which the methodology can be criticised in Asch’s research into conformity.

A

1) Gender Bias

2) Lacks Ecological Validity

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6
Q

In Asch’s study, the participant was joined by…

A

7 - 9 confederates

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7
Q

Asch’s sample?

A

123 American Male Students

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8
Q

When did participants give their answer in Asch’s study?

A

Last or second to last - heard all the confederate answers first

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9
Q

Asch’s Task

A

Match the comparison line to the standard lines a/b/c in terms of length

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10
Q

How many times did the confederates give the identical wrong answer in Asch’s study?

A

12/18 times - called the critical trials

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11
Q

Asch’s findings…

A

Participants gave the wrong answer 37% of the time

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12
Q

Post-experiment interviews on Asch’s participants found hat they conformed ….

A

publicly not privately to avoid ridicule

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13
Q

Asch’s research supports which explanation of conformity?

A

NSI

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14
Q

Why did Asch’s results support NSI?

A

As the task was unambiguous, participants conformed publicly to be accepted by the group

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15
Q

Name the two explanations of conformity

A

ISI

NSI

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16
Q

ISI stands for…

A

Informational Social Influence

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17
Q

NSI stands for…

A

Normative Social Influence

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18
Q

ISI is driven by the desire…

A

To be right

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19
Q

When does an individual conform according to ISI?

A

When they lack knowledge

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20
Q

In ISI, when we lack knowledge, what do we seek from who?

A

Information from the group on how to behave and assume it is right

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21
Q

What kind of process is ISI?

A

Cognitive

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22
Q

ISI is linked to which type of conformity?

A

Internalisation

23
Q

NSI is driven by a desire…

A

To be liked

24
Q

According to NSI, why will a person go along with the groups behaviour? Give 3 reasons

A

Avoid ridicule

Gain acceptance

Fit in

25
Q

What kind of process is NSI?

A

An emotional process

26
Q

NSI is linked to what type of conformity?

A

Compliance

27
Q

Conformity is changes in individuals…

A

beliefs & behaviours

28
Q

Why do individuals change beliefs & behaviours according to the definition of conformity…

A

Real or imagined group pressure

29
Q

Who conducted research to support NSI?

A

Asch

30
Q

Who supported research to support ISI?

A

Jenness

31
Q

How did Asch vary group size?

A

Varied the number of confederates//the majority

32
Q

What did Asch find about conformity rates when group size was varied?

A

As the number of confederates increased, conformity rates increased

33
Q

In the group size variation, when do the conformity rates plateau?

A

When there are 3 confederates

34
Q

When there is complete agreement from the group - this is called?

A

Unanimity

35
Q

How did Asch break Unanimity?

A

Adding a dissenting confederate

36
Q

What answer did the dissenting confederate give?

A

The correct answer - different to the majority’s view

37
Q

What happened to conformity rates when Asch broke unanimity?

A

Conformity rates decreases (5.5%)

38
Q

How did Asch vary the task difficulty?

A

Made the stimulus and comparison lines more similar in length

39
Q

What happens to the rate of conformity as task difficulty increases?

A

Conformity rates increase

40
Q

Why do conformity rates increase as the difficulty of the task increases?

A

The answer becomes less obvious so we lose confidence so conform

41
Q

How did participants’ second private estimates compare to their original estimates in Jenness’s study?

A

Participants’ second private estimates were significantly closer to the group’s estimate than their own original estimates.

42
Q

What were participants asked to do individually at the beginning of Jenness’s study?

A

Participants were asked to individually estimate the number of jelly beans in a jar.

43
Q

Why did participants change their estimates in Jenness’s study?

A

The task was ambiguous, and as the participants were unsure of the answer, they sought information from the group and changed their estimates publicly and privately to be right.

44
Q

What does Jenness’s study suggest about ISI as an explanation of conformity?

A

Jenness’s study supports ISI and increases its validity as an explanation of conformity, as participants conformed to the group’s estimate in an ambiguous situation to be correct.

45
Q

What aspect of Jenness’s research on ISI is criticised for lacking ecological validity?

A

Jenness’s research lacks ecological validity because it took place in an artificial environment (lab).

46
Q

Why is it difficult to generalise the findings from Jenness’s study to real-life situations?

A

It is difficult to generalise the findings because, in real-life situations, people may be less likely to conform to a group due to potential consequences for their actions, unlike in an artificial lab setting.

47
Q

How does the artificial lab setting of Jenness’s study affect its external validity?

A

The artificial lab setting reduces the external validity of the research because it does not accurately reflect real-life situations where the consequences of conforming might be different.

48
Q

What task were participants asked to perform in Asch’s study?

A

Participants were asked to state which line (a, b, or c) was closest in length to the stimulus line ‘x’.

49
Q

What percentage of the time did participants conform to the incorrect answers given by the confederates in Asch’s study?

A

Participants conformed to the incorrect answers given by the confederates 37% of the time.

50
Q

Why did participants in Asch’s study conform to the incorrect answers according to the explanation of NSI?

A

Participants conformed to avoid ridicule from the group, even though they knew the correct answer, which aligns with the concept of Normative Social Influence (NSI).

51
Q

How does Asch’s study increase the validity of NSI as an explanation of conformity?

A

Asch’s study increases the validity of NSI as it demonstrates that participants conformed to the group’s incorrect answer in an unambiguous task to avoid social disapproval, supporting the theory that people conform to fit in with the group.

52
Q

What is a criticism of Asch’s research on NSI regarding gender bias?

A

Asch’s research is criticised for gender bias because only males were tested.

53
Q

Why is it difficult to generalise Asch’s findings on NSI to females?

A

It is difficult to generalise the findings to females because it is suggested that females might be more conformist due to being more concerned about social relationships and being liked by their peers than males.

54
Q

How does the gender bias in Asch’s study affect the external validity of research into NSI as an explanation of conformity?

A

The gender bias weakens the external validity because NSI might explain conformity differently for females than males, suggesting that the findings may not apply equally to both genders.

Year 12 A-Level Psychology 2023-2025 (43 decks)

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