Conformity, obedience and group processes Flashcards
(27 cards)
theory of cognitive dissonance (festinger)
- inconsistency between beliefs and actions
cognitive dissonance usually arises when a person holds two or more incompatible beliefs simultaneously. This is a normal occurrence since people encounter different situations that invoke conflicting thought sequences
You want to be healthy, but you don’t exercise regularly or eat a nutritious diet
You know that smoking (or drinking too much) is harmful to your health, but you do it anyway.
how does self discrepancy lead to cognitive dissonance
Cognitive dissonance arises when behavior contradicts beliefs. Self-discrepancy theory explains that internal conflict comes from mismatches between the actual self and ideal/ought selves, which can trigger dissonance and emotional discomfort.
You see yourself as environmentally conscious (ideal/ought self), but you buy a gas-guzzling SUV.
This creates a discrepancy (actual ≠ ideal/ought) and dissonance (“I care about the environment” vs. “I drive a polluting car”).
To resolve it, you might:
- Justify the SUV (“I needed it for my kids’ safety”)
-Change behavior (“Next time, I’ll get a hybrid”) - Change belief (“Maybe climate change isn’t that urgent”)
social norms
The implicit or
explicit rules a
group has for the
acceptable
behaviours,
values, and beliefs
of its members
conformity
Changing one’s
behavior due to the
real or imaged
influence of others
Conformity is joining
in the behaviour &
attitudes of a group
informational social influence
We are confirming in
situations of ambiguity,
using others as a source of
social information
influence of others - lead us to conform because we see them as a source of information to guide our behaviour
we conform for accuracy - believe other interpretation is more correct and will help us choose the right course of action
private acceptance
conforming to other peoples norms can lead to private acceptance
- believe what they say or do is right
- results in both attitude and behaviour change
how informational social conformity can backfire
crisis situations
- high uncertainty and ambiguity
lack of knowledge
- people are unsure or ill equipped on how to respond
confirmation bias
- reinterpret conflicting evidence to fit their understanding
Asch’s line experiment
Normative social influence
how social pressure can influence individuals to conform to a groups incorrect judgement - even when the correct answer is obvious
experiment:
- people asked to compare length of lines with a standard line stimuli
- other members were told ot choose the wrong answer to see if person conformed with them - and they did.
Normative social influence
the need to be accepted.
we conform to others in order to be liked and accepted by them
public compliance
- conforming outwardly - even if dont believe
- social pressure
- differs from private acceptance and beliefs
private acceptance
information societal influence
conforming to others behaviour out of genuine belief that what they are doing or saying is right
societal impact theory (latane,1981)
explains how social influence affects individuals based on three key factors: strength, immediacy, and number of sources. It suggests that the impact of social influence is a multiplicative function of these three elements
e.g
A teen is more likely to drink at a party if pressured by many close friends nearby. The influence is strong because the group has high strength (importance), immediacy (physical presence), and number (many people), increasing social impact.
indosyncrasy credits
mental currency that allows you to occasionally deviate from group norms without fear of reprisal
They represent the level of acceptance an individual has within a group, granting them a certain latitude to behave or think uniquely
minority influence
minority of group members influence the behaviour or beliefs of the majority
done through:
- consistency, commitment and unity
minority vs majority influence
majority - easily gain influence through public compliance
minority gain private acceptance because of informal social influence
Hannah Arendt’s concept of “the banality of evil”
suggests that evil acts, like those perpetrated during the Holocaust, are not necessarily committed by inherently evil or monstrous individuals, but rather by ordinary people who lack independent thought and conform to the systems they inhabit
milgram’s obedience study
In Milgram’s 1963 study, participants gave (fake) electric shocks to a person under orders from an authority figure. 65% went up to 450 volts, showing people are highly obedient, even when it causes apparent harm to others.
people obey w information social infleucne when…
situation is ambiguous
situation is a crisis
experimenter/person being an expert
leads to obedience
3 mechanisms facilitating obedience
- adherence to wrong norm
- self justification
- loss of personal responsibility
what is the difference between informational vs normative messaging?
normative social influence, people conform to the group norm to fit in, to feel good, and to be accepted by the group. However, with informational social influence, people conform because they believe the group is competent and has the correct information, particularly when the task or situation is ambiguous
what is a group
Three or more people who
interact and are interdependent
in the sense that their needs
and goals cause them to
influence each other
* Groups tend to attract similar members & tend to operate in ways to encourage similarity in the members
social facilitation
describes the phenomenon where an individual’s performance on a task improves when others are present, especially if the task is well-learned or simple
Conversely, social inhibition occurs when the presence of others impairs performance, particularly on complex or novel tasks.
social facilitation cockroach example
cockroaches are faster with an audience - finding way through maze
however if the maze becomes more complex is novel then performance is impaired
Drive Theory arousal and dominant response
heightened arousal, often induced by the presence of others, leads to the intensification of dominant responses. This means that when individuals are in a state of increased arousal, they are more likely to perform actions that are well-learned and habitual. Specifically, if the dominant response is well-practiced, arousal can improve performance (social facilitation), but if the response is not well-learned, arousal can impair performance.
