Social Influence Key Terms Flashcards
Conformity- What is conformity?
A change in the person’s behaviour or opinions as a result of real or imagined pressure from a person or group of people.
Conformity- What is internalisation?
A deep type of conformity where we take on the majority view because we accept it as correct. It leads to a far-reaching and permanent change in behaviour, even when the group is absent.
Conformity- What is identification?
A moderate type of conformity where we act in the same way with the group because we value it and want to be part of it. But we don’t necessarily agree with everything the majority believes.
Conformity- What is compliance?
A superficial and temporary type of conformity where we outwardly go along with the majority view, but privately disagree with it. The change in our behaviour only lasts as long as the group is monitoring it.
Conformity- What is informational social influence (ISI)?
An explanation of conformity that says we agree with the opinion of the majority because we believe it is correct. We accept it because we want to be correct aswell. This may lead to internalisation.
Conformity- What is normative social influence (NSI)?
An explanation of conformity that says we agree with the opinion of the majority because we want to be accepted, gain social approval and be liked. This may lead to compliance.
Conformity- What happened when Asch increased group size?
He added more confederates, increasing the size of the majority. Conformity increased with group size but only up to a point, levelling off when the majority was greater than 3.
Conformity- What is unanimity?
The extent to which all the members of the group agree. In Asch’s studies, the majority was unanimous when all the confederates selected the same comparison line. This produced the greatest degree of conformity in naive participants.
Conformity- What impact did task difficulty have on Asch’s study?
Asch’s line judging task is more difficult when it becomes harder to work out the correct answer. Conformity increases because naive participants assume that the majority is more likely to be right.
Conformity- What are social roles?
The ‘parts’ people play as members of various social groups. Everyday examples include parent, child, student, passenger, etc. These are accompanied by expectations we and others have of what is appropriate behaviour for each role, for example, caring, obedient, etc.
Obedience- What is it?
A form of social influence in which an individual follows a direct order. The person issuing the order is usually a figure of authority, who has the power to punish when obedient behaviour is not forthcoming.
Obedience- What are situational variables?
In Milgram’s research he identified several factors that he believed influenced the level of obedience shown by participants. They are all related to the external circumstances rather than to the personalities of the people involved.
Obedience- What is proximity?
The physical closeness or distance of an authority figure to the person they are giving an order to. Also refers to the physical closeness of the teacher to the learner in Milgram’s study.
Obedience- What is location?
The place where and order is issued. The relevant factor that influences obedience is the status or prestige associated with the location.
Obedience- What is uniform?
People in positions of authority often have a specific outfit that is symbolic of their authority, for example, police officers and judges. This indicates to the rest of us who is entitled to expect our obedience.
