Week 6 Flashcards
What is the key idea behind authority and compliance?
People are more likely to comply with requests from perceived authorities due to a heuristic that assumes they are knowledgeable.
What factors influence perceived authority?
Professional status, affiliation, clothing, and body language.
What did Wilson (1968) find about perceived authority?
A speaker introduced as a professor was rated 2.5 inches taller than when introduced as a student.
How does winning an election affect perceived height?
Politicians are perceived as taller after winning (Higham & Carment, 1992).
What did Peters & Ceci (1982) discover about academic authority?
Previously published articles were rejected 8/9 times when resubmitted under low-status affiliations.
How does advertising use authority?
By showing actors as doctors or scientists and emphasizing company expertise.
What did Bickman (1974) find about uniform and compliance?
People complied more with a security guard (92%) than with someone in street clothes (42%).
How does clothing affect jaywalking influence?
3.5x more people followed a jaywalker in a business suit vs. casual clothes (Lefkowitz et al., 1955).
What did Hofling et al. (1966) find about nurses and authority?
95% of nurses complied with a doctor’s potentially dangerous request.
What was Pascual et al. (2014) studying?
How authority and descriptive norms influence cigarette butt disposal.
What increased proper cigarette disposal in Pascual et al. (2014)?
Descriptive norms (e.g., “Yesterday, X smokers used this ashtray”).
Authority presence (greater compliance in government buildings than malls).
What are the limitations of research on authority and compliance?
What are the limitations of research on authority and compliance?
