Social Influence - Resistance to social influence Flashcards
Social support
Presence of people who resist pressures to conform or obey helps others do the same
Social support & conformity
Follow own conscience -> confidence in their own opinions & reject majority
Social support & obedience
Reduces legitimacy of authority -> more likely to resist pressure to obey
Locus of control
Extent to which a person thinks/feels in control of what happens to them (internal or external)
Internal locus of control
Individual has control of events & takes responsibility for actions
External locus of control
Events are caused by other factors, such as fate
LOC & conformity/obedience
Strong external -> lack of responsibility & want approval = more likely to obey & conform
LOC & resistance
Strong internals -> confident & independent = resist
Strengths of social support
Research evidence (Albrecht et al -> Teen Fresh Start & resisting pressure to smoking -> those teens partnered with a buddy were significantly less likely to smoke -> ecological validity)
Resistance to group influence (Allen & Levine -> Asch-type study showed conformity decreased with dissenter [64% resistance] -> shows being free to give own opinion)
Limitation of social support
Dependent on context (Allen & Levine -> if dissenter had poor vision & thick glasses, resistance was only 36% as they deemed them an inaccurate judge -> depends on the circumstances of the situation not just presence)
Strength of LOC
Supporting evidence (Holland -> repeated Milgram’s baseline study & measured if people were internal/external LOC -> 37% of internals did not continue to highest shock, 23% of externals -> internal LOC showed greater resistance -> validity)
Limitation of LOC
Contradictory evidence (Twenge et al -> analysed data from American studies over 40 years -> more resistance to obedience but more external LOCs -> opposes idea that an internal LOC makes us more likely to resist obedience -> not valid explanation)
