Types/Explanations Of Conformity

Question 1

What is conformity?

Answer 1

Its a form of social influence that results from exposure to the majority position and leads to compliance with that position.

It is the tendency for people to adopt the behaviour, attitudes and values of other members of a reference group.

Question 2

What are the types of conformity?

Answer 2

Compliance
Identification
Internalisation

Question 3

What is compliance?

Answer 3

Conforming to gain approval.

Occurs when an individual accepts influence becuase they hope to achieve a favourable reaction from those around them.

An attitude or behaviour is adopted not because of its content, but because of the rewards or approval associated with its adoption.

Question 4

What is identification?

Answer 4

Accepting influence because of a desire to be associated with a group.

A form of influence where an individual adopts an attitude or behaviour becuase they want to be associated with a particular person or group.

Question 5

What is internalisation?

Answer 5

Conforming because of an acceptance of their views.

Occurs when an individual accepts influence because of its content of the attitude or behaviour proposed is consistent with their own value system.

Question 6

What are the explanations for conformity?

Answer 6

Normative social influence.

Informational social influence.

Question 7

What is normative social influence?

Answer 7

Conformity based on the desire for approval.

A form of influence whereby an individual conforms with the expectations of the majority in order to gain approval or to avoid social disapproval.

Question 8

What is informational social influence?

Answer 8

Based on an acceptance of information from others as evidence about reality.

A form of influence, which is the result of a desire to be right - looking to others as a way of gaining evidence about reality.

Question 9

When is ISI more likely to happen?

Answer 9

If the situation is ambiguous (the right course of action isn’t clear).

Or where others are experts (we believe others have more knowledge than we have).

Question 10

What does ISI result in?

Answer 10

The individual does not just comply in behaviour alone but also changes their behaviour in line with the group position.

Because this involves changing both public and private attitudes and behaviour, this is an example of internalisation

Question 11

What type of conformity is ISI an example of?

Answer 11

Internalisation

Because this involves changing both public and private attitudes and behaviour, this is an example of internalisation

Question 12

What type of conformity is NI an example of?

Answer 12

Compliance (mainly)

Identification

Question 13

What are the evaluative points?

Answer 13

Difficulties in distinguishing between compliance and internalisation.
Research support for normative influence.
Research support for informational influence.
Normative influence may not be detected.
Informational influence is moderated by type of task.

Question 14

What is meant by difficulties distinguishing between compliance and internalisation?

Answer 14

The relationship between compliance and internalisation is complicated by how we define and measure public compliance and private acceptance.
For example, it is assumed that a person who publicly agrees with a majority yet disagrees with them in private must be demonstrating compliance.

However, it is also possible that acceptance has occurred in public yet dissipates later when in private, because they have forgotten information given by the group or because they have received new information.

It is also assumed that a person who agrees with the group in public and in private must have internalised the views of the group.
However, it is also possible that the individual may actually have been merely complying in public, but as a result of self-perception they come to subsequently accept that position as their own.

Question 15

What is meant by research support for NI?

Answer 15

US research has shown the relationship between people’s normative beliefs and the likelihood of them taking up smoking.

Linkenbach and Perkins (2003) found that adolescents exposed to the simple message that the majority of their age peers did not smoke were subsequently less likely to take up smoking.

NI has also been used successfully to manipulate people to behave more responsibly when it comes to energy conservation.
For example, Schultz (2008) found that hotel guests exposed to the normative message that 75% of guests reused their towels each day reduced their own towel use by 25%.

These studies support the claim that people share their behaviour out of a desire to fit in with their reference group.

Question 16

What is meant by research support for ISI?

Answer 16

Some have demonstrated how exposure to other people’s beliefs has an important influence on social stereotypes.

Wittenbrink and Henley (1996) found that participants exposed to negative information about African Americans (which they were led to believe was the view of the majority) later reported more negative beliefs about a black individual.

Research has also shown how ISI can shape political opinion.

Fein (2007) demonstrated how judgments of candidate performance in US presidential debates could be influenced by knowledge of others reactions.
Participants saw what was supposedly the reaction of their fellow participants on screen during the debate.
This produced large shifts in participants judgments of the candidates performance.

Question 17

What is meant by normative influence may not be detected?

Answer 17

Research on conformity has led to the conclusion that normative influence has a powerful effect on the behaviour of the individual.

However, researchers have started to speculate whether individuals do actually recognise the behaviour of others as a casual factor in their own behaviour.
There is some support for this claim…

Nolan (2008) investigated whether people detected the influence of social norms on their energy conservation behaviour.
When asked about what factors had influenced their own energy conservation, people believed that the behaviour of neighbours has the least impact on their own energy conservation, yet results showed that it had the strongest impact.

This suggest that people rely on beliefs about what should motivate their behaviour, and so under-detect the impact of normative influence.

Question 18

What is meant by ISI is moderated by type of task?

Answer 18

A problem with the informational explanation is that features of the task moderate the impact of majority influence.

For some judgments there are clear non-social criteria for validation, which places this sort of judgement within the realm of physical reality.
For example, deciding whether Bristol is the most highly populated city in the south west can be determined through objective means.

However, other judgments cannot be made using objective criteria because such criteria do not exist.
Instead, these kinds of judgements must be made on the basis of social consensus.
As a result, majorities should exert greater influence on issues of social rather than physical reality, and this is precisely what research tends to show (Laughlin, 1999).