Social influence- obedience Flashcards
What is obedience?
Behaviour adopted differs to that of authority figure
Prescription for action is explicit
Occurs within a hierarchy –> person above has position of power
What does disposition mean?
Temperament or personality
What is the authoritarian personality an explanation for?
A dispositional explanation for obedience
Who proposed the idea of the authoritarian personality type (APT) ?
Adorno
What is the authoritarian personality type?
A collection of traits/dispositions that are developed in an individual as a result of strict/rigid parenting
Why does strict/rigid parenting cause the APT?
Teaches a child to obey authority blindly and respect hierarchies
Individual in question was not able to express hostility towards their parents
Person would displace this aggression/hostility onto safer targets
e.g. ethnic minorities
What is an individual with the APT likely to behave like?
Blindly obey authority
Expect others to obey without question
Negative towards those below them
Obedient to those of higher status
See own group as superior
What are the explanations for obedience?
Authoritarian Personality
Agentic State
Legitimacy of authority
What is the autonomous state?
When people direct their own actions
Take responsibility for results of their actions
What is the agentic state?
When people allow others to direct their actions
Pass off responsibility for consequences to person giving orders
Act as agents for another person’s will
What happens when people obey in an agentic state?
Unthinkingly carry out orders due to diffusion of responsibility
What 2 things must be in place for someone to enter the agentic state?
Person giving orders must be perceived to be qualified to direct others’ behaviour –> seen as legitimate, people make judgements about authority figure’s legitimacy based on evidence
Person being ordered about must believe that authority will accept responsibility for actions
What is legitimacy of authority?
Focuses on context/setting and status of authority figure
Someone is obeyed as they are thought to have the right to give the order
What must the people obeying orders believe about the authority in legitimacy of authority?
Believe they have the power to administer sanctions for disobeying
That authority figure holds more knowledge and expertise
Qualified to give orders in particular context
Why does obedience due to legitimacy of authority occur?
When people are socialised to follow orders given by legitimate authority figure due to them having a higher status
Make judgements about someones legitimacy based on evidence available in setting
What are situational factors that affect obedience?
Uniform
Location
Proximity
What are explanations of resistance to social influence (resisting conformity and obedience)?
Social support
Locus of Control
What is social support?
When defiance/non-conformity is more likely if others are seen to resist influence (majority group or authority figure)
Seeing other disobey/not conform gives observer confidence to also resist
Why does social support work in conformity situations?
Less normative influence as less painful to be rejected if not alone and with a group
Breaks unanimity
Why does social support work in obedience situations?
Other disobedient role models challenge legitimacy of authority
If authority figure were truly legitimate then others would not disobey
Who discovered locus of control?
Rotter
What is locus of control?
Extent to which people perceive themselves as being in control of their own lives
Continuum, scale
What is expected of individuals with high internal LOC?
Believe they can affect outcomes of situations
Things happen as a result of their own effort, choices and decisions
Confident, happy, independent
What is expected of individuals with high internal LOC?
Believe they can affect outcomes of situations
Things happen as a result of their own effort, choices and decisions
Confident, happy, independent W
What is expected of individuals with high external LOC?
Believe things turn out a certain way regardless of actions
Things happen as a result of luck, fate and other uncontrollable forces
How is LOC measured?
Via a questionnaire
P’s choose between paired statements
How does being internal LOC lead to resistance?
Makes indivduals more resistant to social influence
People see themselves in control of a situation
More likely to perceive themselves as having a free choice
Less likely to conform or obey
Why will internals conform less than externals?
Rely less on opinions of others
Less informational social influence as rely on own information
Less normative as do not care what others think
Why will internals obey less than externals?
Will remain in autonomous state
Will not become agentic as will not give responsibility to others
What is minority influence?
When people conform to the behaviour of the minority rather than the majority
Normative influence does not have an effect as minority is not large enough to create pressure to fit in
What is necessary for minority influence to occur?
Internalisation via informational social influence
Must take on the beliefs of the minority
What does minority influence bring about in society?
Social change
Minorities can kick start societal changes
Who proposed the Conversion Theory?
Moscovici
What is the basis of the conversion theory?
Based on the assumption that minority influence works to convert people via internalisation
Certain behaviour styles required in individual/minority group for success in enacting social change
What does the Conversion Theory suggest are the 3 clear attributes for successful social change from a minority group?
Consistency
Commitment
Flexibility
What are the extra attributes that a minority may possess for social change?
Persuasiveness
Confidence
Relevance
What are the extra attributes that a minority may possess for social change?
Persuasiveness
Confidence
Relevance
What is commitment?
Minorities can exert influenec by showing dedication
Willing to make sacrifices if necessary
Gives minority’s message credibility as people unlikely to suffer for a cause which is not worthwhile
What are some examples of how commitment can be demonstrated?
Imprisonment
Death for cause
Hunger strikes
What is a real life example of a minority influence who embodies commitment?
Nelson Mandela
Suffragettes/Emily Davison –> hunger strikes, death, emprisoned for cause
What is consistency?
Where a person/minority group maintains a consistent position over time or there is agreement among members of minority group
What is a real life example of a minority influence who embodies consistency?
Greta Thunberg
Nelson Mandela –> imprisoned for 24years but did not change his views
What is flexibility?
Opposite of adopting a rigid position which could lead to perception of minority as being narrow minded
What are some examples of how flexibility can be demonstrated?
Core goal remains but willing to compromise and meet halfway
What is a real life example of a minority influence who embodies flexibility?
Green Party
Greta Thunberg
How is minority influence linked to social change/influence?
Social change occurs when minority view challenges the majority view and is then eventually accepted by the majority
How is minority influence linked to social change/influence?
Social change occurs when minority view challenges the majority view and is then eventually accepted by the majority
What are some alternative explanations of minority influence?
Social cryptoamnesia
The Snowball effect
Social impact theory
What is social cryptoamnesia?
When people know that change occurred but do not remember how it happened
E.g. changing attitudes in relation to recycling and ‘green issues’
What is the snowball effect?
Minority influence initially has a relatively small effect
This then spreads more widely as more and more people consider the issues being promoted
E.g. Martin Luther King, gradual attention of US government changed, laws eventually change
What is social impact theory?
States that there are 3 factors which combine in different ways to result in social influence of any kind : strength, immediacy and number
What does strength refer to?
Power or status, how important an influencing group is
What is immediacy?
Have to feel physically, socially or psychologically close/relevant
What does number refer to?
How many members a group has can increase influence
How does social impact theory link to minority influnece?
For minority influence:
strength and immediacy must be high as number will be low
For minority to bring about social change they must be of high status or power and must be socially, physically and/or psychologically relevant
How does social change link to obedience?
Laws can help speed up promotion of social change
Members of society that have not been convinced by conformity processes have no choice but to accept social change
Have to obey legitimate authority e.g. police, government
What are explanations of obedience as a process of social change?
Society follows orders of authority figures, legitimacy of their authority
People change in response to laws –> socialised into hierarchy
What is required for people to obey and for social change to occur?
Right to give the order –> through election or position
Power to administer sanctions for disobeying
More knowledge and expertise –> qualified to give orders in particular context
How does normative social influence work as a process of social change?
Normative influence can be exploited to create social change
Suggests majority wants change/have already changed
Other people start to conform as do not want to stand out or be rejected
E.g. protests
