Social Influence - resistance to social influence

Question 1

what is resistance to social influence

Answer 1

ability of people to withstand the social pressure to conform to the majority or to obey authority

Question 2

what is social support

Answer 2

• presence of people who resist pressures to conform or obey can help others to do the same

Question 3

how to resist conformity with social support

Answer 3

• in Asch’s study a dissenting confederate was introduced to disagree with the majority
• shows that the majority is no longer unanimous

Question 4

how to resist obedience with social support

Answer 4

• when joined by a disobedient confederate obedience rates dropped from 65% to 10%
• allows the participant to be free him to act from his own conscience
• disobedience challenges legitimacy of authority

Question 5

how is social support supported

Answer 5

• Susan Albrecht 2006
• evaluated an 8 week programme to gelp pregnant adolescents 14-19 resist peer pressure to smoke
• social support was provided by an older mentor / buddy
• at the end of the programme those with a buddy were less likely to smoke than a control with no buddy
• social support can help young people resist social influence in the real world

Question 6

what is locus of control

Answer 6

• proposed by Rotter 1966
• the sense we have about events in our life

Question 7

what is an internal locus of control

Answer 7

• believe that things that happen to them are largely controlled by themselves

Question 8

what is an external locus of control

Answer 8

• believe the things that happen outside of their control

Question 9

how to resist social influence with locus of control

Answer 9

• high internal locus of control can resist pressures to conform and obey, greater self confidence and intelligence - less need for social approval

Question 10

what is the support for locus of control

Answer 10

• Holland 1967
• repeated Milgram’s study and measured if participants were internals or externals
• 37% of internals didn’t continue to high shock levels
• 23% of externals didn’t continue
• internals showed greater resistance to authority

Question 11

what is the contradictory research for locus of control

Answer 11

• Twenge (2004)
• analysed data from American LOC studies over 40 years
• over time people became more resistant to obedience but more external
• if resistance is linked to LOC we would expect them to be more internal