Social Influence

Question 1

what is conformity

Answer 1

when someone changes their behaviour due to real or imagined pressure form a group of people

Question 2

what is minority Influence

Answer 2

When people are influenced by a small number of people in a group

Question 3

What is majority influence

Answer 3

When people are influenced by the majority of people in the group

Question 4

What are the three levels or types of conformity

Answer 4

compliance
identification
internalisation

Question 5

what is compliance

Answer 5

when a person publicly agrees with the group but privately disagrees to avoid social disapproval

Question 6

what is identification

Answer 6

when a person changes both how they act and what they believe, but only because they want to fit in with the group. however this is only tempereroly

Question 7

what is internalisation

Answer 7

when an individual changes their behaviour to fit in with the group publicly while also agreeing with them privately. This is the strongest level of conformity and also permanent.

Question 8

what are the types of social influence

Answer 8

informational and normative

Question 9

what is informational social influence

Answer 9

when we change our behaviour to fit in with others as we don’t know what the correct way to act is

Question 10

what is normative social influence

Answer 10

this is where we change our behaviour to fit in with what others are doing to make sure that we are liked, or to avoid social disapproval by others

Question 11

when was Solomon Asch experiment conducted

Answer 11

1950

Question 12

what was Solomon Asch study

Answer 12

• Tested conformity
  -There was a standard line and a comparison line
  -One line was the same as the standard and the other two where clearly wrong
• the participants were asked which lines matched, but there were also confederants which were told to lie about these results

Question 13

What was the procedure for Solomon Asch experiment

Answer 13

• he deceived participants by saying it was a “visual task”
  -on the first few trial he made the confederates say the correct answers and then the wrong ones
  -All confederates (actors) were told to give the same wrong answer
  -each participant took part in 18 trials and 12 were the confederates giving wrong answers

Question 14

what were the results to Asch’s experiment

Answer 14

• 25%of participants did not conform to any trials
  -75% of participants conformed at least once

Question 15

What are 3 variables affecting conformity and how are each of them investigated in Asch study

Answer 15

-Group size - he varied the number of confederates
- Task difficulty - He made the right answers less obvious
- Unanimity(when everyone in a group agree)- made a confederate give a different answer to group

Question 16

what are the 3 variables that affect conformity

Answer 16

-group size- need at least 3 people to conform
-task ambiguity- more ambiguous the task the higher the conformity
- Group unanimity - the higher the higher the level of conformity

Question 17

what are the negative evaluation points in Asch’s study

Answer 17

-Gender and Culture bias (low generalisability)
-ecological validity (lab experiment)
-temporal validity (1950s America was a conformist era)

Question 18

what was the aim of the Stanford prison experiment

Answer 18

to investigate the effect of conformity of men to the roles of prisoners and guards in a role playing exercise that stimulated prisoner life

Question 19

what was the procedure in the Sandford prison experiment

Answer 19

-They advertised this on the local newspaper
- white American male college students volunteered
-they were screened to ensure they had no psychological disorders and shortlised to 24 of them
-the participants were randomly assigned prisoner and guard roles
prisoners were arrested at there homes, fingerprinted and photographed while guards were given uniform
-weren’t told how to act

Question 20

what was the results of the Stanford prison experiment

Answer 20

• stopped after 6 days when it was planned to be 14 days
  -negative, dehumanising, degrading and etc behaviours to prisoners from guards
  -prisoners suffered depression
  -pathology of power- some guards were angry it stopped

Question 21

what were the strengths of the Stanford prison experiment

Answer 21

-insight into the potential for ordinary individuals to engage in abusive behaviour
- highlighted the significance of situational factors in influencing behaviour
-high ecological validity

Question 22

what were the weaknesses in the Stanford prison experiment

Answer 22

-ethical criticism as it caused participants distress
-lack of clear guidance of the guards resulted in abusive behaviour to the prisoners
-low reliability as it cannot be replicated due to how unethical it is

Question 23

What was the aim of Milgram’s study on obedience (1963)?

Answer 23

Milgram aimed to investigate how far people would go in obeying an authority figure, even when it meant causing harm to others.

Question 24

What was the procedure of Milgram’s experiment?

Answer 24

A: Participants (teachers) were instructed by an authority figure (experimenter) to administer increasingly severe electric shocks to a learner (confederate) for every incorrect answer.

Question 25

What were the results of Milgram's study on obedience?

Answer 25

Milgram found that 65% of participants went up to the maximum shock level of 450 volts, showing high levels of obedience to authority.

Question 26

What is agentic state in Milgram’s theory?

Answer 26

The agentic state occurs when an individual sees themselves as an agent executing the wishes of an authority figure, rather than as an independent actor responsible for their own actions.

Question 27

What factors influenced obedience in Milgram's study?

Answer 27

Factors included: Proximity: Obedience decreased when the learner was in the same room ( proximity to victim). Authority figure: Obedience was higher when the authority figure was seen as legitimate (e.g., wearing a lab coat). Location: Obedience decreased when the experiment was moved from a prestigious institution (Yale) to a less formal setting.

Question 28

How does the concept of authority relate to obedience?

Answer 28

Individuals are more likely to obey authority figures due to socialization and the perception that authority figures have power and control over the situation.

Question 29

What ethical issues were raised by Milgram’s study?

Answer 29

Ethical concerns include: Deception: Participants were misled about the true nature of the study. Lack of informed consent: Participants didn’t know they would be asked to administer shocks. Psychological harm: Participants experienced significant distress.

Question 30

What criticisms did Milgram’s study face?

Answer 30

Low ecological validity: The artificial lab setting may not reflect real-world obedience. Ethical issues: Participants were deceived, and some experienced significant stress. Generalizability: The study was conducted with male participants and may not generalize to women or different cultures.

Question 31

What was the replication of Milgram’s study in modern times?

Answer 31

Modern replications (e.g., Burger 2009) found similar levels of obedience, suggesting that the findings are still relevant today, though ethical considerations limit direct replication.

Question 32

What was the purpose of Burger’s (2009) replication of Milgram’s study?

Answer 32

Burger aimed to replicate Milgram’s study on obedience while addressing ethical concerns, particularly protecting participants from harm, and to determine if obedience levels had changed since the original study.

Question 33

How did Burger’s (2009) study differ from Milgram’s original study?

Answer 33

Stopped at 150 volts (the point at which participants in Milgram’s study showed signs of distress). Used more stringent ethical guidelines to protect participants, including pre-screening for psychological stability and obtaining informed consent.

Question 34

What was the key finding of Burger’s (2009) study?

Answer 34

Burger found that 70% of participants in his study were willing to go up to 150 volts, which is comparable to Milgram’s findings, suggesting that obedience levels have not significantly changed over time.

Question 35

What ethical considerations did Burger address in his 2009 replication?

Answer 35

Screening participants for psychological stability to ensure they could handle the stress. Giving participants the right to withdraw at any point. Providing a “fully informed consent” process and using a ‘debrief’ procedure that revealed the true nature of the experiment afterward.

Question 36

What is the significance of 150 volts in Burger’s study?

Answer 36

The 150-volt level is significant because it marks the point at which Milgram’s participants began to show significant signs of distress and where many of Milgram’s participants chose to stop administering shocks. This allowed Burger to assess how many people would continue to obey at a key threshold.

Question 37

What were some limitations of Burger’s 2009 study?

Answer 37

Artificiality: Like Milgram’s study, Burger’s experiment took place in a lab setting, which may not fully reflect real-life situations of obedience. Ethical constraints: Stopping the experiment at 150 volts limits the ability to see how far participants would go in a full replication of Milgram’s study. Participant sample: Burger used a convenience sample, which may not be fully representative of the general population.

Question 38

What are some ethical guidelines that modern psychologists must follow when conducting obedience research?

Answer 38

informed consent right to withdraw protection from harm debriefing

Question 39

What is the authoritarian personality

Answer 39

The Authoritarian Personality is a personality type characterized by a high degree of obedience to authority, rigid adherence to conventional values, and a tendency to be prejudiced and submissive to those in power

Question 40

Who developed the concept of the Authoritarian Personality?

Answer 40

The concept of the Authoritarian Personality was developed by Theodor Adorno and his colleagues in the 1950s, as part of their study of the causes of prejudice and obedience.

Question 41

What was the aim of Adorno's (1950) study on the Authoritarian Personality?

Answer 41

Adorno aimed to investigate the personality traits that could explain why individuals were more likely to obey authority figures, particularly in the context of the Holocaust.

Question 42

What was the method used by Adorno to measure the Authoritarian Personality?

Answer 42

Adorno used the F-scale (Fascism scale), a questionnaire designed to measure authoritarian traits, such as conventionalism, submission to authority, and aggression toward outgroups.

Question 43

What are some characteristics of people with an Authoritarian Personality?

Answer 43

High respect for authority and a desire for strong, conventional leaders. Intolerance of ambiguity and rigid thinking. Prejudice and scapegoating of those perceived as different or weaker. Submissiveness to higher authority figures. Aggression towards those seen as lower in status.

Question 44

What does the F-scale measure

Answer 44

The F-scale measures several personality traits linked to the Authoritarian Personality, such as: Conventionalism: Strict adherence to traditional values. Authoritarian submission: A tendency to be submissive to authority figures. Authoritarian aggression: Aggression toward people perceived as different. Superstition and stereotypy: Rigid, dogmatic thinking. Power and toughness: Belief in the need for toughness and strength.

Question 45

How is the Authoritarian Personality linked to obedience?

Answer 45

People with an Authoritarian Personality are more likely to obey authority figures because they are highly respectful of authority, follow rigid rules, and tend to view the world in black-and-white terms, with little tolerance for ambiguity or dissent.

Question 46

What did Adorno and his colleagues find in their study of the Authoritarian Personality?

Answer 46

Adorno found that people who scored high on the F-scale (indicating an authoritarian personality) were more likely to display prejudiced attitudes and were more obedient to authority, especially in situations involving aggression or authority figures.

Question 47

Name three behaviours that enable a minority to influence the majority

Answer 47

-commitment -flexibility -consistency

Question 48

Explain what is meant by locus of control

Answer 48

-Locus of Control is how much a person believes that they have control of what happens in there lives -It is usually measured along a scale with internal control at one end and external control at the other end

Question 49

What is internal locus of control

Answer 49

- People who see that they have a great deal of control over their own behaviour and will take responsibility for their own actions

Question 50

What is external locus of control

Answer 50

-it refers to those who believe that their behaviour is controlled by other forces such as luck and fate

Question 51

Explain how social influence processes contribute to social change

Answer 51

-minority influence becomes the majority influence via them being consistent, committed and flexible --the snowball effect, when smaller group of people change the mindset of others so the group grows -Socio cryptoamnesia -minority influence also uses obedience ( like new laws) and conformity (informational social influence)

Question 52

What are dispositional factors in psychology?

Answer 52

Dispositional factors are internal personality traits or characteristics that influence behavior, like authoritarian personality, confidence, or personal beliefs.

Question 53

What are situational factors in psychology?

Answer 53

Situational factors are external influences that affect behaviour, such as the presence of an authority figure, proximity to the victim, or the setting of the situation.