Social Influence

Question 1

What does the term “Social Influence” mean?

Answer 1

It is the process of a group of people or 1 particular person, forming and/or changing another person/s behaviour and opinions.

Question 2

Define “Conformity”.

Answer 2

The idea of which a person changes their behaviour, thoughts and attitudes to match a larger group of people.

Question 3

What are “Social Norms”?

Answer 3

They are a set of standards in society which labels certain behaviour as normal and not normal.

Question 4

According to Asch, how can group size affect conformity to an individual?

Answer 4

Asch stated that the larger the group, the more likely that conformity will take place in an individual.

Question 5

There are 2 ways of how a person can conform. State and define them.

Answer 5

Normative Influence: Conforming to be liked and accepted by others.

Informational influence: Conforming because of beliefs that the larger group are experts.

Question 6

What is the difference between public conforming and private conforming.

Answer 6

Studies show that conformation is more likely to happen in public scenarios rather in private scenarios, this is because

Question 7

Does Asch find independence or conformity “better”? Why?

Answer 7

He states that independence must be prioritised more, this is because he found that people who went through peer-pressure by group, exhibited conformity mindlessly.

Question 8

Properties that affects conformity are:

Answer 8

• Size of group
• Amount of supporters to the individual
• Type of culture (Individualistic/Collectivistic)

Question 9

According to Asch, does conformity happen more in collectivistic or individualistic cultures? Why?

Answer 9

Collectivistic cultures, because people who live in collectivistic cultures prioritise “groupings”, so individuals want to be like their family.

Question 10

Define “Compliance”.

Answer 10

The influence of the majority to the minority which depends on the majority’s authority and power.

Question 11

Define “Conversion”.

Answer 11

The influence majority get from the minority.

Question 12

According to David and Turner, for a minority to influence a majority, this happens on when the minority is perceived as…

Answer 12

a part of the majority’s group.

Question 13

Moscovici and Perez distinguished 2 type on minorities, what are they?

Answer 13

Active minorities - Minorities which actively create argument and conflicts with the majority

Victimised minorities - Minorities who create guilt in majorities.

Question 14

How do victimised and active minorities affect the majority? (Views/Behaviour)

Answer 14

• Victimised minorities tend to affect the majority’s behaviour.
• Active minorities tend to affect the majority’s views.

Question 15

When it comes to listening to authorities, ________ happens in an individual.

Answer 15

When it comes to listening to authorities, Conformity happens in an individual.

Question 16

There are 2 ways of which a person can decrease their obey to authority. Mention the 2 ways.

Answer 16

1) Realising and noticing how bad the learner’s plight is.
2) Reducing the authority and influence of the experimenter.

Question 17

If victims in the Milgram’s experiment, increased the realisation of their plight and increased the experimenter’s authority, will this lead to more or less obeying?

Answer 17

More obeying

Question 18

Why are group much more cautious when it comes to decision making than a sole individual.

Answer 18

Because a group of people need make a decision where every group member is satisfied with, and that the decision highlights everyone’s values.

Question 19

How does ability and motivation affect a person’s processing to other ideas given by other group members?

Answer 19

People high in ability tend to think and try reasoning the ideas given by other members, although on the other hand, people who are low in ability tend to not process other members’ suggestions.

Question 20

Define “Groupthink”.

Answer 20

The process of finding agreement within every member of the group.

Question 21

Define “Group Polarisation”

Answer 21

It os the tendency for a group to take matters to the extreme, much more before the discussion was being discussed.

Question 22

Name 5 factors of which helps groupthink occur.

Answer 22

• Cohesive group
• Limited Options
• Persuasive leader
• Isolation from outside information
• Stress

Question 23

State 5 Symptoms of groupthink.

Answer 23

• Creates excessive optimism which may lead to risky steps. (Illusion of invulnerability)
• Fear to go against the group’s choice / views (Direct Pressure on Dissenters)
• Doubts regarding to the final decision which was mad by the whole group (Self-censorship)
  -Members do not consider the warnings of their decisions (Collective rationalisation)
• Members protect the group from making bad decisions and having bad views. (Self-appointed ‘Mindguards’).

Question 24

Describe what was he Stanford prison experiment about.

Answer 24

This experiment included students who volunteered to “roleplay” as either prisoners or guards in a mock prison. this experiment was done to study how social roles can affect someone’s behaviour, emotions and thought process. This experiment was held by Zimbardo.

Question 25

Why do people do more bad wen part of a group rather than alone?

Answer 25

• The sharing of guilt and responsibility
• People feel less identifiable in groups
• A collective mindset is created within the group.

Question 26

How can identity and a crowd go together?

Answer 26

A crowd of people may have 1 identity, for example: If an emergency happens, solidarity is shown by the individuals in the crowd.

Question 27

Define “Deindividuation”, and state how this works in such scenarios, ex: protests.

Answer 27

Deindividuation is the temporal loss of self, self-awareness, responsibility and evaluation apprehension. This usually happens when the self is immersed in a group. For example in protests, since everyone is acting violently, the self may imitate the others because of the “loss of self”.