Social Influence New Flashcards
Aims of Asch’s study
Measure extent that people conformed to the opinions of others
Even in a situation when others answers were completely wrong
Findings of Asch’s study (1951)
Naive p conformed 36% of the time
Shows high level of conformity when the situation is unambiguous
75% conformed at least once
What are the 3 variables investigated by Asch
Group size
Unanimity
Task difficulty
Group size
Variable investigated by Asch
Procedure= Asch varied the number of confederates in each group between 1 and 15
Findings= 2 confederates- conformity to the wring answer was 13.6%
3 confederates- conformity rose to 31.8%
Above 3 confederates= conformity rate levelled off
Explanation= people sensitive to opinions of others- one confederate was enough to sway opinions.
Unanimity
Second variable investigated by Asch
Procedure= Asch introduced dissenting confederates- sometimes gave the right answer and sometimes the wrong answer.
Findings= in the presence of dissenting confederates- conformity reduced on average to less than a 1/4 that it was before
Explanation- having the dissenter enabled the naive p to behave more independently
Task difficulty
Variate investigated by Asch
Procedure= Asch made the line-judging more difficult. It was difficult to see the difference between the lines
Findings- Conformity increased
Explanation= situation is more ambiguous. More liekly to look for guidance
Aka informational social influence
A03 of conformity with Asch
Limitation- tasks were artificial
P- tasks were artificial
E- p knew they were in a research study- demand characteristics. Not like real life groups
E- means the findings do not generalise to everyday life
A03 of conformity with Asch
Limitation- little application
P- Asch’s findings had little application
E- only American men were studied in the US. The US is individualistic.
When taken out in collectivist countries- China- they have found higher conformity.
E- tells us little about women and other cultures
A03 of conformity with Asch
Limitation- conformity is more complex than what Asch thought
P- conformity is more complex than what Asch thought
E- Lucas et a study- conformity was related to levels of confidence. High confidence= less conformity
E- individual factors have an effect but Asch did not investigate these
3 types of conformity
Internalisation
Identification
Compliance
Internalisation
Type of conformity
When a person genuinely accepts group noms
Public and private changes of opinions and behaviour
Change is usually permanent and persists in the absent of the group
They internalise it
Identification
Type of conformity
Value the group
Identify with a group you value we want to be apart of
Publically change our opinions/ behaviours even if we don’t privately agree with everything the group stands for
Compliance
Type of conformity
Temporary agreement
Involves ‘going along with others’ in public but not private
Results in a superficial change and the opinions/ behaviours change as soon as the group is not there.
Informational social influence
Explanations for conformity
Desire to be right
If we are uncertain we go with the majority in hope they are right
Cognitive process- leads to internalisation
Occurs in situations that are ambiguous.
When it isn’t clear what is right
Happens when the decisions need to be made quickly
We assume the group is likely to be right
Normative social influence
Explanations for conformity
NSI is about norms
A desire to be liked
Emotional process rather than cognitive
Want social approval rather than rejection
Leads to compliance
Occurs in unfamiliar situations
Happens in stressful situations where people need social support
A03-conformity explanations
Strength- research support NSI
P- Strength- research suppport NSI
E- many participants conformed because they were afraid of disapproval- Asch’s study
E- when no conformity pressure- it dropped to 12.5%
E- shows ad ensure to not be rejected by the group for disagreeing them
A03- conformity explanations
Strength- research support ISI
P- research support for isi
E- Lucas et al- found participants conformed more when maths questions were more difficult
Ambiguous (unclear) situations so they relied on the answers they were given
E- supports isi raise the results is what Isi would predict
A03- conformity explanations
Limitation- individual differences in NSI
P- individual differences in NSI
E- some people feel the need to relate to others
They are more likely to conform
E- the individual experiences were not explained by a theory of situational pressures.
Zimbardo procedures
Conformity to social roles
Zimbardo et al set up a mock prison in the basement of the psychology depeartment at Stanford university
To investigate the effect of social riles on conformity
21 male student volunteers were in the study
Had to be ‘emotionally stable’
They were random ally allocated to the role of prison guard or prisoner
1. Uniform: prisoners were strip searched and given a uniform and a number (to encourage de- individualisation)
2. Instructions about behaviour: guards had complete control over prisoners
Zimbardo findings and conclusions
Guards treated prisoners harshly
Prisoners rebelled within 2days
Study was stopped after 6 days instead of the planned 14 days.
Most conformed strongly to their roles
Guards became brutal, and prisoners became submissive
A03- conformity to social roles- zimbardo
Strength- control over key variables
P- control over key variables
E-the Stanford prison experiment- participants were randomly allocated tot he roles of guard and prisoner. Had the roles by chance.
E- increases internal validity
Means more confidence in getting conclusions about the effect of social roles on conformity.
A03- conformity on social roles. Zimbardo
Limitation- lacked realism
P- lacked realism of a true prison
E- participants were play- acting. Their preface represents stereotypes of how guards and prisoners were supposed to act.
E- suggests that SPE tells us little about conformity to social roles in actual prisons
A03- conformity to social roles. Zimbardo.
Limitation - exaggerated social roles
P- zimbardo exaggerated the power of roles
E- only 1/3 of guards behaved brutally. 1/3 applied the rules fairly. The rest supported the prisoners
E- suggests the SPE overstates the view that the guards were conforming to a brutal role and minimised dispositional influences. E.g personality.
Milgram- obedience
Procedure
Recruited 40 American male participants
A confederate was always the ‘learner’ while the true participants was the ‘teacher’.
An ‘experimenter’- another confederate wore a lab coat
The teacher could not see the learner
Teacher had to give the learner an increasingly severe electric ‘shock’ each time they made a mistake on a task.
The shock increased up to 450v.
The shocks were fake but the shock machine was labelled to make them look increasingly severe.
If the teacher wanted to stop, the experimenter gave a verbal ‘prod’ to continue.
