Topic 8 - Conformity and Obedience Flashcards
Is it a few bad apples or is it the barrel that is bad?
Bad barrel created by the system
what’s bad is the barrel (the situation in which the apples are contained)
What is the word meaning difference between Holocaust and Shoah?
Holocaust word original meaning - burnt sacrifice offered to a god; has religious connotations; looks at a wider spread of genocide within Nazi era Germany (including Romani, Slavs, LQBTQ, people with disabilities, and any sort of political opponents)
Ha Shoah - calamity in Hebrew - means destruction and refers to the fate of the Jewish people during the Nazi rule; may be more appropriate than Holocaust
What is the basic difference between conformity and obedience?
Conformity:
- Usually implicit
- Based on implicit norms or subtle social cues
- We start to implicitly conform our behaviour to others without really realizing it
Obedience:
- Responding and obeying to explicit orders, ex. drill sergeant
What is conformity?
a change in one’s behaviour due to the real or imagined presence of other people
Conformity research shows that much of what we do may not be based on logic and may not even be in our best personal interests. We are motivated by social and emotional goals like fitting in, feeling beautiful, looking confident, avoiding rejection, avoiding looking foolish or inferior.
Fashion and beauty trends and the influence of conformity show that conformity is often motivated by what?
often motivated by social and emotional goals
human behaviour that is based largely on conformity - not based on logic, often not even on function or even safety or health
Are Eastern or Western cultures more likely to conform in general, according to social psychology?
Western cultures - claim that we are more individualistic; would think that we would have less pressure to conform and more favourable views on individuality. We like to think that we like to be unique.
We believe that the West is less influenced by conformity, that they don’t care what others think, and we celebrate this rugged individualism.
Eastern cultures - more likely to be influenced by conformity
What are traits of individualistic cultures?
Value uniqueness, autonomy, self-sufficiency, independence
(predominant in Western culture)
Conformity is largely driven by what 2 factors?
1- social ambiguity - informational social influence
2- fear of rejection/diminished status (normative social influence
What is informational social influence and why does it influence conformity?
through informational social influence, we conform because we consider others a valuable source of information to guide our behaviour
we believe that others’ interpretation of an ambiguous situation is more correct than ours and will help us choose an appropriate course of action
results in informational conformity
Does informational social influence imply a lack of critical thinking?
NO
What is the difference between implicit and explicit forms of informational social influence / conformity?
implicit: observing others to better understand the situation
explicit: asking, “what do I do here?”
What is the relationship between informational social influence and private acceptance?
Informational social influence often results in private acceptance: will conform to the behaviour of others because we genuinely do believe that they are right
What is public compliance?
conforming to other people’s behaviour publicly without necessarily believing in what you are doing or saying
What happened in Muzafer Sherif’s study of the autokinetic effect?
Is this due to private acceptance or public conformity?
convergence of estimates as a result of informational social influence
they come to privately accept the wisdom of the group estimate - and actually believe that the group estimate is accurate
In the hotel towel use and water conservation study, what made people more likely to reuse towels?
the more personal the statement was
- first told what most people do
- then said most people who have stayed in this room
What is a bad way of using informational social influence if you don’t want someone to do a certain behaviour?
if you don’t want someone to do a certain behaviour, DO NOT reinforce how many people are doing it - it makes them feel like the behaviour is normal or ok
implicit message people take away is that lots of people are doing it, it is probably okay
How does informational social conformity relate to accuracy?
when perceived importance of accuracy is high, we are more susceptible to informational conformity
Do people conform more in a low-importance or high-importance condition?
people conform more in a high-importance condition/situation
The higher importance things are, the higher rates of social influence, and thus higher rates of misidentification we see in line with confederates
Why do witnesses have to be separated at a crime scene and interviewed separately?
dangers of social influence after crime and people’s memories melding together
even for judgments of the utmost importance, such as when an eyewitness to a crime later tries to identify the culprit, informational social influence shapes our perceptions
What is contagion in the sense of conformity?
the rapid spread of possibly irrational emotions or behaviour through a crowd as a result of informational social contagion
In truly ambiguous situation - people will often rely on the interpretations of others, but others may be no more knowledgeable or accurate than we are
the ‘they must know something I don’t’ phenomenon
When will people conform to informational social influence or be most susceptible to informational conformity and contagion?
What is a recent real-world example?
1- when the situation is ambiguous
2- when an apparent crisis is occurring
3- when others are perceived as experts or as having more information
recent real-world example: toilet paper panic during COVID
The Massacre at mY Lai is an example of what type of conformity?
Informational social conformity or informational social influence
roles of ambiguity, apparent crisis, perceived expertise
What is the problem with informational social influence?
The people we imitate may not be doing such things rationally and it can have devastating consequences.
What might informational conformity struggle to explain?
phenomenon that might be risky, dangerous, or maladaptive
What is normative social influence?
conformity so that we will be liked and accepted by others, for a sense of belonging that is important to our well-being
Why are there calls to end solitary confinement?
too painful and hurtful for a social animal
Overwhelming body of evidence shows us that solitary confinement causes extreme and sometimes permanent damage to the individuals who endure it - and to the families and communities to which they will return. Costly and counterproductive and also increases recidivism or recommitting crimes after being released - failing to reduce any sort of prison violence.
What are social norms?
implicit or explicit rules a group has for the acceptable behaviours, values, and beliefs of its members
What often happens to those who do not conform to social norms?
those who do not conform are perceived as different, difficult, and eventually deviant
Deviant members can be ridiculed, punished, or even rejected by other group members
How does normative social influence relate to public compliance and private acceptance?
can result in public compliance without private acceptance of the belief and/or behaviours
What is the North American Myth of radical independence?
Thinking we would resist conformity pressures when it comes to important behaviours such as hurting another person - but really we don’t always resist conformity when it matters and when it doesn’t make sense.
With variations of the Asch Line test, what happened to conformity when participants were asked to write down their answers on the paper (private) rather than say it outloud?
conformity dropped dramatically
What happened to conformity as the task became more important?
more important decision = increased compliance because it was ambiguous
What happens when it becomes more important for people to be accurate?
more likely to engage in informational conformity
less likely to engage in normative conformity
When conforming vs. not conforming, what is happening to brain activation according to fMRI?
When participants conformed to a group’s wrong answers, fMRI’s showed brain activity in areas responsible for vision and perception. When they chose to give the right answer and disagree with the group, areas of the brain that become active are much different. We see activation in the amygdala (devoted to negative emotions), and activation in the right caudate nucleus (devoted to modulating social behaviours). Your brain says you are risking your social standing.
According to the social impact theory, what does conformity depend on and when will people conform to normative social influence?
social impact theory: conforming to social influence depends on group
- strength - importance of group to person
- immediacy - closeness of others in time and space
- size - number of people in the group
How does the size of the group impact conformity to normative pressures?
There is increasing conformity to normative pressures as the group gets larger, but only up to about 4. Past that, 5 isn’t much different as having 100 people.
How does immediacy impact conformity?
closeness in time and space when we are making these decisions or deciding whether to conform or go against the group
- increased immediacy, increased conformity
How does group strength impact conformity?
Groups that we like/value and that we strongly identify with (high cohesiveness) - exert more normative influence on us
What happens to conformity when there is an ally present? (ex. 6 out of 7 confederates select incorrect line)
Given an ally - more comfortable, typically deny that the ally had any effect on their decision
Conformity then dropped to about 6% of the trials as opposed to 32%.
Having an ally can make others feel safe acting against the group - because at least someone else is doing it.
What is the least common decision ratio among the US Supreme Court?
8-1 (single dissenter)
This accounts for only 10% of the decisions over 48 years
What is the most common decision ratio in the US Supreme Court?
unanimous, 9-0 vote
Does culture play a role in conformity?
yes, greater conformity in collectivist cultures
(viewed as a valued trait)
What are the 2 motivations or needs that cause conformity?
informational needs
social needs
What are the factors for informational conformity?
importance of accuracy
other expertise
ambiguity
perceived crisis
What are the factors for social conformity?
group strength, immediacy, number
importance of accuracy
allies
culture
What is the idea of minority influence?
Minority influence can drive cultural change - can influence the behaviour and beliefs of the majority
What are the important factors for minority influence to drive cultural change?
consistency of messaging (express same view over time)
internal agreement (agree with one another)
What are conformity or compliance tactics to influencing others?
maintain social order
promote public health and well-being
extract resources from others
What is the difference between injunctive norms and descriptive norms?
injunctive norms: people’s perceptions of what behaviours are approved or disapproved of by others
- what should I do in this situation?
descriptive norms: people’s perceptions of how people actually behave in given situations, regardless of whether the behaviour is thought to be generally approved or disapproved of by others
- What do most people actually do?
What was the effect of injunctive and descriptive norms on littering?
When do we see the least littering?
In descriptive norm condition - littering decreases significantly only in the clean environment. If they see someone littering and it is dirty already, we don’t see much impact - 1/3 litter.
When seeing someone litter in a clean environment, they are really focused on the fact that most people don’t litter. So, we see significant reduction in littering behaviour.
When they see the confederate picking up someone else’s litter, this invokes this injunctive norm. in both clean and littered environments we see the lowest amount of littering in the study when the confederate is picking up garbage.
Are injunctive or descriptive norms more consistently effective in changing behaviour?
injunctive norms are more consistently effective in changing behaviour. If we want people to refrain from littering everywhere, where it is dirty or clean, we need to remind them that it is wrong and socially disapproved of. Anything that highlights these moral norms can be used to enforce positive behavioural change. This ties in to the broken window theory.
What is the broken window theory?
criminology/urban development theory that states that visible signs of crime, anti-social behaviour, and civil disorder create an environment that encourages further crime and disorder
more crimes - acts as descriptive norms
When low visibility of crime and anti-social behaviour, it gives us a sense that this is a lawful low-crime area and we find that crime and anti-social behaviour become more rare in these settings.
What are the problems associated with the broken window theory?
There are problems with this theory - policing became a little bit associated with controversial practices by police.
Associated with stop and frisk by police - certain minority groups were more heavily targeted. Requires training, regulations, and a strong relationship with communities.
What is the boomerang effect?
A persuasive message can produce attitude changes in the direction opposite of what was intended
What norms should be used to change behaviour most effectively?
invoking descriptive AND injunctive norms. Clarify not just what others are doing, but adding in an injunctive norm (why is this good or bad).
What are other tactics of social influence other than norms that can be used to change other people’s behaviour?
compliance techniques such as:
foot-in-the-door
door-in-the-face
propaganda
What is the foot-in-the-door technique?
Getting people to agree first to a small request makes them more likely to agree to a second, larger request.
What is the door-in-the-face technique?
First, asking people for a large request that they will probably refuse makes them more likely to agree later to a second, smaller request.
Feel bad at having said no, so more likely to say yes to a smaller request
How is the door-in-the-face technique related to relative acceptability?
Tied to relative acceptability of the second request - seems much more acceptable to the initial demand we are comparing it to.
What is propaganda?
A deliberate, systematic attempt to advance a cause by manipulating mass attitudes and behaviours, often through misleading or emotionally charged information.
How is propaganda different in target or technique compared to foot-in-the-door and door-in-the-face techniques?
Foot in door and door in face are usually used one by one, whereas propaganda is used as a mass manipulation technique (at level of country, nation, or continent)
Is wartime propaganda a universal phenomenon?
Yes. It is a deliberate systematic attempt to shape perceptions, manipulate cognitions, and direct behaviour to achieve a response that furthers the war efforts.
How does propaganda relate to dehumanization?
At core of propaganda machine - glorification of people, dehumanization of others.
Dehumanization: process by which certain other people or groups are depicted as less than human, as non-comparable in humanity or personal dignity to those who do the labeling.
Central process of the transformation of ordinary, normal people into indifferent or even wanting perpetrators of evil.
What documentary-style film glorified Hitler and the Nazi party?
Triumph of the Will, 1934 during Nazi party congress rally
What are characteristics of propaganda?
Ideological and persuasive
Emotionally evocative
High volume, mass media
Creates sense of conflict
Uses ethically suspect methods
Institutionalized
Simplistic messaging and symbols
Scapegoating
Common propaganda techniques: plain folks appeal, testimonials, bandwagon, card-stacking, transfer, glittering generalities, name calling
Is propaganda limited to war, to historical past, or to certain countries?
No. Since ~2015, across Europe and USA, rise of anti-Muslim and anti-refugee movements or riots, including propaganda use to support this.
What is the Identitarian Movement within Canada?
post-WWI European far-right political ideology asserting the right of people of European descent to culture and territory which are claimed to belong exclusively to people defined as European. Spread to Canada through other movements like ID CANADA.
What is obedience?
a change in behaviour due to the direct influence of an authority figure
is obedience a social norm?
yes, it is universally valued and necessary at some level for social order
What is internalized obedience?
Obey even if authority figure is not present
How can obedience to authority also cause some tragic consequences?
Ex. 20th century marked by repeated atrocities and genocides in Germany and the rest of Europe during the Holocaust, but also in Rwanda, Cambodia, Bosnia, Sudan, and elsewhere.
What is the most famous series of studies in social psychology?
Milgram’s investigations of obedience
Key question asks: are historical atrocities caused solely by evil, psychopathic individuals or by powerful social forces that can successfully operate on all kinds of people?
What ratio of subjects administered the highest voltage of shock in Milgram’s study?
2/3
62.5%
Is Milgram’s study still relevant today?
Yes.
What is the role of normative social influence in Milgram’s studies?
do not want to disappoint experimenter
experimenter actively tried to get people to conform
What happened in variations of Milgram’s experiment when there were confederate allies?
Result of this variation was that seeing peers disobey made it much easier for the actual participant to disobey too. Only about 10% of participants gave the maximum level of shock in this version of the study.
Normative social influence in play as well, because it is highly impacted by the presence of an ally or another dissenter.
Informational social influence is most powerful under what conditions?
1- ambiguous situation
2- situation is a crisis
3- other people in the situation believed to have expertise
In variation of Milgram’s study, what happened to the level of conformity when the expert was no longer in the room?
20% gave maximum shock even when the expert wasn’t in the room, when it was just a non-expert
When very confused - we may look to ANYONE for a guide
In variation of Milgram’s study, what happened to the level of conformity when the experts stage a disagreement?
everyone stops giving the shock
Informational influence and obedience to authority totally drops off.
- Need clear agreement from authorities and others we may look to for guidance
In the many versions of Milgram’s studies, did anything change when the victim did something?
Nothing that victims do will make any difference in the sort of treatment they may be subjected to by people in positions of authority or power.
beyond informational and normative social influence, what are other reasons we might obey?
conforming to inappropriate/wrong norm
self-justification effect
loss of personal responsibility
Even though it gave good contributions to psychology, why do many consider Milgram’s study procedures to be unethical?
involved deception
lacked fully informed consent
psychological distress
not made clear that participants could withdraw from study
experienced inflicted insight
For contemporary research on obedience studies, what has changed?
- Women added to the participant pool
- Less voltage
- Recruited through newspaper and flyer advertisements
- Ranged in age from ~20-81, purposefully more ethically diverse, more highly educated
○ 40% had college degrees
○ 20% had advanced degrees - could also just be due to change in times - Excluded people who had taken more than 2 college-level psych classes
- 120 volts was the point of “no return” basically; if you gave the 150V shock level where there is strong protest; almost for sure going to keep going if you gave the 150 level - could extrapolate past that
- Clinical pre-screening to ensure that no one was experiencing high levels of psychological or emotional distress
- Explicitly and repeatedly told participants and learner that they could leave at any time
Do new studies have statistically significant different findings compared to Milgram’s studies?
no any differences were not statistically significant
Are males or females more likely to continue to go to the highest shock in obedience experiments?
We find that women are actually more likely to continue to go to the highest shock
- lack of personal responsibility plays a role here
