Social Influence

Question 1

Conformity

Answer 1

A change in a person‘s behaviour or opinions as a result of real or imagined pressure from a person or group of people

Question 2

Internalisation

Answer 2

A deep type of conformity where we take on the majority view because we accept it as correct
It leads to a far-reaching and permanent change in behaviour, even when the group is absent

Question 3

Identification

Answer 3

A moderate type of conformity where we act in the same way with the group because we value it and want to be part of it. But we don’t necessarily agree with everything the majority believes

Question 4

Compliance

Answer 4

A superficial and temporary type of conformity where we outwardly go along with the majority view, but privately disagree with it. The change in our behaviour only lasts as long as the group is monitoring us

Question 5

Informational social influence

Answer 5

An explanation of conformity that says we agree with the opinions of the majority because we believe it’s correct. We accept it because we want to be correct as well. This may lead to internalisation

Question 6

Normative social influence

Answer 6

An explanation of conformity that says we agree with the opinion of the majority because we want to be accepted, gain social approval and be liked. This may lead to compliance

Question 7

Types of conformity

Answer 7

Internalisation
Identification
Compliance

Question 8

Explanations for conformity

Answer 8

Informational social influence

Normative social influence

Question 9

Conformity: types and explanations evaluation points

Answer 9

Research support for ISI
Individual differences in NSI
ISI and NSI work together

Question 10

Research support for ISI evaluation of explanations for conformity

Answer 10

Lucas asked students to give answers to mathematical problems that were easy or more difficult. There was greater conformity to incorrect answers when they were difficult rather than when they were easier ones. This was most true for students who rated their mathematical ability as poor.
The study shows that people conform in situations where they feel they don’t know the answer, which is exactly the outcome predicted by the ISI explanation. We looked at other people and assume they know better than us and must be right

Question 11

Individual differences in NSI evaluation of explanations for conformity

Answer 11

Some research shows that NSI does not affect everyone’s behaviour in the same way.
For example people who are less concerned with being liked are less affected by NSI than those who care more about being liked. Such people are described as nAffiliators. These are people who have a greater need for affiliation – a need for being in a relationship with others.
For example, McGhee and Teevan found that students high in need of affiliation were more likely to conform
This shows that the desire to be liked underlies conformity for some people more than others. Therefore there are individual differences in the way people respond

Question 12

ISI and NSI work together evaluation of explanations for conformity

Answer 12

The idea of Deutsch and Gerrard’s to process approach is that behaviour is either due to NSI or ISI. But the truth is that, more often, both processes are involved
For example, conformity is reduced when there is one other dissenting participant in the Asch experiment. This dissenter may reduce the power of NSI or may reduce the power of ISI
This shows that it isn’t always possible to be sure whether NSI or ISI is at work. This is the case in lab studies, but is even truer in real life conformity situations outside the lab. This casts serious doubt over the view of ISI and NSI as two processes operating independently in conforming behaviour

Question 13

Group size- Asch’s research

Answer 13

Asch increased the size of the group by adding more Confederates, thus increasing the size of the majority. Conformity increased with group size, but only up to a point, levelling off when the majority was greater than three

Question 14

Unanimity- Asch’s research

Answer 14

The extent to which all the members of the group agree. In Asch’s studies, the majority was unanimous when all the Confederates selected the same comparison line. This produced the greatest degree of conformity in the naive participants

Question 15

Task difficulty –Asch’s research

Answer 15

Asch’s line judging task is more difficult when it becomes harder to work out the correct answer. Conformity increases because naive participants assume that the majority is more likely to be right

Question 16

Asch’s research procedure

Answer 16

He tested conformity by showing participants 2 large white cards at a time. On one card was a standard line and on the other card were three comparison lines. One of the three lines was the same length as the standard and the other two were always substantially different. The participant was asked which of the three lines match the standard.
The participants in the study were 123 American male undergraduates. Each naive participant was tested individually with a group of between six and eight Confederates,. The naive participant was not aware that the others were Confederates
On the first few trials all the Confederates gave the right answers but then they started making errors. All the Confederates are instructed to give the same wrong answer. Altogether each participant took part in 18 trials and on 12 critical trials the Confederates gave the wrong answer. The trial was one occasion identifying the length of the standard line

Question 17

Asch’s research findings

Answer 17

the naive participant gave a wrong answer 36.8% of the time. Overall 25% of the participants did not conform on any trials, which means that 75% conformed at least once. The term Asch effect has been used to describe this result – the extent to which participants conformed even when the situation is unambiguous
when participants were interviewed afterwards most said they conformed to avoid rejection (NSI)

Question 18

Asch’s variations

Answer 18

Group size
Unanimity
Task difficulty

Question 19

Conformity: Asch’s research evaluation points

Answer 19

A child of its time
Artificial simulation and task
Limited application of findings

Question 20

A child of its time evaluation of Asch’s research

Answer 20

Perrin and spencer repeated Asch’s original study with engineering students in the UK. Only one student conformed in a total of 396 trials. It may be that the engineering students felt more confident about measuring lines than the original sample and therefore were less conformist. But it is also possible that the 1950s were an especially conformist time in America, and therefore it made sense to conform to established social norms. But society has changed a great deal since then, and people are possibly less conformist today.
This is a limitation of his research because it means that the Asch effect is not consistent across situations and may not be consistent across time, and so it is not a fundamental feature of human behaviour

Question 21

Artificial situation and task evaluation of Asch’s research

Answer 21

Participants knew they were in a research study and may simply have gone along with the demands of the situation (demand characteristics). The task of identifying lines is relatively trivial and therefore there was really no reason not to conform. Also, although the naive participants were members of a group, it didn’t really resemble groups that we are part of in every day life. According to Fiske, Asch’s groups were not very groupy
This is a limitation because it means that the findings do not generalise to every day situations. This is especially true where the consequences of conformity might be more important, and we interact with other people in groups in a much more direct way

Question 22

Limited application of findings evaluation of Asch’s research

Answer 22

Only men were tested. Other research suggests that women might be more conformist, possibly because they are more concerned about social relationships than men. The men in his study were from the United States, an individualist culture i.e. where people are more concerned about themselves rather than the social group.
Similar conformity studies conducted in collectivist cultures (such as China) have found that conformity rates are higher. This makes sense because such cultures are more oriented to group needs
This shows that conformity levels are sometimes even higher than Asch found. His findings may only apply to American men because he didn’t take gender and cultural differences into account

Question 23

Social roles

Answer 23

The parts people play as members of various social groups
Everyday examples include parent, child, student and so on
These are accompanied by expectations we and others have of what is appropriate behaviour in each role, for example caring, obedient etc

Question 24

The Stanford prison experiment procedure

Answer 24

Zimbardo set up a mock prison in the basement of the psychology department at Stanford university. They advertised for students idling to volunteer and selected those they deemed emotionally stable after testing.
The students were randomly assigned roles of guards or prisoners. To heighten the realism of the study, the prisoners were arrested in their homes by the local police and were then delivered to the “prison”. They were blindfolded, strip searched, dell used and issued a uniform and number
The social roles of the prisoners and the guards were strictly divided. The prisoners’ daily routines were heavily regulated. There were 16 rules they had to follow, which were enforced by the guards who worked in shifts, three at a time. The prisoners’ names were never used, only their numbers
The hue arcs, to underline their role, had their own uniform, complete with wooden club, handcuffs, keys and mirror shades. They were told that they had complete power over the prisoners.

Question 25

The Stanford prison experiment findings

Answer 25

After a slow start to the simulation, the guards took up their roles with enthusiasm. Their behaviour became a threat to the prisoners psychological and physical health. The study was stopped after 6 days instead of the intended 14.
Within 2 days the prisoners rebelled against their harsh treatment by the guards. They ripped their uniforms and shouted and swore at the guards, who retaliated with fire extinguishers. The guards employed divide and rule tactics by playing the prisoners off against each other. They harassed the prisoners constantly, to remind them they were being monitored all the time.
After their rebellion was put down, the prisoners became subdued, depressed and anxious. One prisoner was released on the first day because he showed symptoms of psychological disturbance. Two more were released on the fourth day.
One prisoner went on a hunger strike
The guards identified more and more closely with their role. Their behaviour became more brutal and aggressive, with some of them appearing to enjoy the power they had over the prisoners

Question 26

The Stanford prison experiment conclusion

Answer 26

The simulation revealed the power of the situation to influence people’s behaviour. Guards, prisoners and researchers all conformed to their roles within the prison. These roles were very easily taken on by the participants- even volunteers who came in to perform certain functions (such as prison chaplain) found themselves behaving as if they were in prison rather than a psychological study

Question 27

The Stanford prison experiment evaluation points

Answer 27

Control
Lack of realism
Role of dispositional influences

Question 28

The SPE Control evaluation

Answer 28

A strength is that Zimbardo and his colleagues had some control over variables. Like the selection of participants
Emotionally stable individuals were chosen and randomly assigned into the roles of guard and prisoner. This was one way that researchers tried to rule out individual personality differences as an explanation of the findings
If guards and prisoners behaved very differently, but were in those roles only by chance, then their behaviour must have been due to the pressure of the situation
Having such control over variables is a strength because it increases the internal validity of the study. So we can be much more confident in drawing conclusions about the influence of roles n behaviour

Question 29

The SPE lack of realism evaluation

Answer 29

Banuazizi and Mohavedi argued the ps were merely play-acting rather than genuinely conforming to a role. Their performances were based on their stereotypes of how prisoners and guards are supposed to behave.
For example one of the guards claimed he had based his role on a brutal character from the film Cool Hand Luke. This would also explain why the prisoners rioted- because they thought that was what real prisoners did
But Zimbardo pointed to evidence that the situation was very real to the ps. Quantitative data gathered during the procedure showed that 90% of the prisoners’ conversations were about prison life . Prisoner 416 expressed the view that the prison was a real one, but run by psychologists rather than the government . On balance, it seems that the situation was real to the ps, which gives the study a high degree of internal validity

Question 30

The SPE role of dispositional influences evaluation

Answer 30

From accused Zimbardo of exaggerating the power of the situation to influence behaviour, and minimising the role of personality factors (dispositional influences)
For example only a minority’s of the guards (about a third) behaved in a brutal manner. Another third were keen on applying the rules fairly. The rest actively tried to help and support the prisoners, sympathising with them, offering them cigarettes and reinstating privileges
This suggests that Zimbardo’s conclusion - that ps were conforming to social roles- may be over stated. The differences in the guards’ behaviour indicate that they were able to exercise right and wrong choices, despite the situational pressure to conform to a role

Question 31

Obedience

Answer 31

A form of social influence in which an individual follows a direct order. The person issuing the order is usually a figure of authority, who has the power to punish when obedient behaviour is not forthcoming