Social Influence - Resistance to Social Influence Flashcards
Factor 1 - Social Support
(Conformity)
Conformity
* Social support can help people resist conformity as the pressure to conform can be reduced if there are other people present who aren’t conforming
* A person not following the majority enables a person to be free to follow their own belief
Example: In Asch’s study, in one variation, when the real P was given support from a truthful partner, the P was less likely to conform - conformity dropped to 5%
Factor 1 - Social Support
(Obedience)
Obedience
* Social support can help people resist obedience because the pressure to obey is reduced if another person who is seen to disobey
* The other person’s disobedience acts as a model for the participant to copy, as it challenges the legitimacy of the authority figure which makes it easier for others to disobey
Example: In Milgram’s study, in one variation, the rate of obedience dropped from 65% to 10% when the genuine P who was the teacher was joined by a disobedient confederate
Factor 2 - Locus of control
The concept of Locus of control: Rotter 1966
Locus of control refers to individual differences in people’s beliefs and expectations about what controls events in their lives
* Internal Locus: People with this believe that what happens to them is a consequence of their own behaviour, a strong internal locus of control is associated with the belief that one can control much of one’s life and succeed in difficult/stressful situations
* External locus: People with this believe that what happens to them is controlled by external factors and agents, they have a sense that things happen to them which are uncontrollable, luck and fate are important factors. People with an external locus tend to face stressful situations with a more passive and fatalistic attitude
What are people with internal and external locuses more likely to do?
Internal Locus
* Less likely to obey or conform
* Less need for social approval - confident
* More likely to resist social influence
External Locus
* More likely to obey and conform
* Need social approval - less confident
* Less likely to resist social influence
