Social Influence Flashcards

Question

Another weakness of Asch's research

Answer 1

It is culturally and gender biased as all ppt were American males. America is known as an individualist culture (they are more concerned about themselves than their social groups). Bond and Smith (1996) carried out similar conformist studies in collectivist cultures and found that conformity rates are higher. Neto (1995) suggests that females are more conformist than males possibly because they are more concerned about social relationships than men are. This means that Asch's findings may be only generalisable to American men as he did not take culture and gender factors into account.

Answer 2

They are behaviours, responsibilities and expectations associated with a particular position in society

Answer 3

He was concerned about the intense aggression within the US prison system and thought the reason for the aggression was not dispositional(the personality of the guards and prisoners) but situational, the environment of the prison itself and conformity to the social roles created by the prison environment

Answer 4

Procedure: An observational study of 24 male US students who volunteered to participate in a 7-14 week study, receiving $15 per day. After extensive psychological assessment to ensure they were stable and healthy, ppt were randomly assigned to either the role of a guard or prisoner.

Answer 5

The prisoners experienced unexpected arrests at home, were deloused, given prison uniforms and ID numbers and three prisoners were placed in each small mock prison cell they were given a list of rules to follow and limited rights such as three meals a day, supervised toilet trips and visit from their families. The prison guards were given uniforms, wooden clubs, handcuffs and keys to establish authority and were told they had complete power over the prisoners. The guards worked 8 hr shifts and we're allowed to leave the site after

Answer 6

Ppt had quickly lost their sense of identity and adapted to their assigned roles. Prisoners after an initial failed attempt at resistance, showed signs of stress, anxiety and discomfort; some were released early after showing signs of emotional breakdowns and psychological disturbance. Guards empowered by their uniforms and anonymity displayed sadistic aggression and domineering behaviour. The study was halted after just six days due to the ethical concerns raised by the intense reactions

Answer 7

His research suggested that situational factors rather than individual personality traits can drive behaviour as ppt who were considered "normal" and "healthy" engaged in aggressive or submissive behaviours as a result of their assigned social roles and the prison experiment

Answer 8

Control over variables: Zimbardo carefully selected ppt using psychological screening to ensure they were healthy, psychologically stable and without criminal records. The roles of guards and prisoners were also randomly assigned and this was an attempt to rule out individual personality differences as an explanation of the findings. Having such control over variables is a strength because it increases the internal validity of the study

Answer 9

From(1973) accused Zimbardo of exaggerating the power of situation to influence behaviour, and minimising the role of dispositional factors. For example, only a minority of the guards (about ⅓) behaved in a brutal manner. Another third was keen on applying the rules fairly while the rest tried to help and support the prisoners. This suggests that Zimbardo's conclusion- that ppt were conforming due to social roles may be over stated. The difference in the guards behaviour indicate that they were able to exercise right and wrong choices, despite the situational pressure to conform to their roles.

Answer 10

Ethical issues: The ppt experienced significant psychological harm; Zimbardo's decision to continue the experiment despite signs of emotional breakdown and the extreme reactions of both guards and prisoners demonstrates the need for strict ethical controls in psychological experiments, especially those that may put participants in distressing situations

Answer 11

It is a form of social influence in which an individual follows a direct order being issued by an authority figure who has the power to punish when obedient behaviour is not forthcoming

Answer 12

He sought an answer to the question of why such a high proportion of the German people supported Hitler's plan to slaughter over 6 million Jews in the Holocaust as well as 5 million Romani homosexuals, poles and members of other social groups during the second world war.

Answer 13

Milgram recruited 40 male volunteers aged 20-50 from various occupations ranging from unskilled to professional through newspaper adverts. The advert said that they were going to take part in a study on learning and memory. When participants arrived at Yale's university, they were assigned their roles but unknown to them, the selection process was rigged as the Confederate always ended up as the "learner" while the true participants ended up as the "teacher". There was also an "experimenter" who was also a confederate dressed in a lab coat. The learner was strapped to a chair and wired with electrodes and the teacher was required to give the learner increasingly severe electric shocks ranging from 15V - 450V each time a mistake was made. The shocks were not real but the participants believed they were because at the onset of the experiment, the shocks were demonstrated on the participants. If the teacher hesitated, the experiment gave a sequence of standard prods which were "Pleas continue", "the experiment requires that you continue", "it is absolutely essential that you continue ", and "you have no other choice, you must go on"

Answer 14

• 100% of the ppt shocked up to 300 volts, 12.5% of the ppt stopped at 300V and 65% continued to the highest level of 450 volts. • Qualitative data was also collected and many of them were seen to show signs of extreme tension and three of the participants even had "full blown uncontrollable seizures"

Answer 15

These findings suggest that the majority of ppl will follow the orders of an authority figure even if that order goes against their personal morals.

Answer 16

One limitation of Milgram's research is that it may lack internal validity. This means the study might not have accurately measured what it intended to measure- real obedience to authority. For example, Orne and Holland (1968) argued that many participants did not believe the electric shocks were real and were simply acting to please the experimenter. If the ppt were not truly convinced that they were harming someone, then their behaviour may not reflect genuine obedience but rather demand characteristics. This challenges the validity of Milgram's conclusions, as the high levels of obedience might be exaggerated and not a true reflection of how people behave under real moral pressure. However, Milgram defended his findings by citing research from Sheridan and King(1972) who conducted a similar study using real shocks on a puppy. Despite the shocks being real, 54% of the male ppt and 100% of the female ppt delivered what they thought was a fatal shock to the puppies. This suggests that Milgram's results were valid and that people do obey authority figures even when it causes distress to others.

Answer 17

One major criticism of Milgram’s research is the presence of serious ethical issues. The study involved deception, as participants were misled about the type of study they were taking part in, the "random" allocation of roles and they also thought they were delivering real electric shocks. Additionally, participants were exposed to psychological harm, showing visible signs of stress such as sweating, trembling with some having full blown seizures. This raises concerns about the lack of informed consent and the potential for long-term emotional effects. Although Milgram debriefed participants afterward, and many reported they were glad to have taken part, these ethical breaches have helped shape modern ethical standards in psychology and also our understanding of obedience to authority figures.

Answer 18

The variations to the situational variables that might affect obedience were **proximity, location and uniform **

Answer 19

Proximity variation #1: The teacher and the learner were kept in the same room. In this condition, obedience rate dropped from 65% to 40% Proximity variation #2: The experimenter left the room and gave instructions to the teacher by telephone. This increased proximity decreased obedience rate from 65% to 20.5% Proximity variation #3: In an even more dramatic variation l, the teacher had to force the learner's hand onto an "electroshock plate" when he refused to answer a question. In this touch proximity condition, the obedience rate dropped further to 30%

Answer 20

Milgram argued that due to the increased distance, ppt were less likely to remain in an "agentic state" and more likely to return to an "autonomous state"

Answer 21

In this variation, Milgram changed the location of the study from the prestigious Yale university setting to a rundown building. The obedience rate dropped to 47.5%. This is still a quite high level of obedience but it is less than the baseline 65%.

Answer 22

This is because the low status run down building reduced the legitimacy of authority of the setting and the experimenter so they felt less pressured to obey.

Answer 23

In the baseline study, the experimenter wore a grey lab coat as a symbol of his authority, but in this variation the experimenter was replaced by an "ordinary member of the public" played by a confederate who was in everyday clothes rather than a lab coat. The obedience rate dropped to 20%

Answer 24

One strength of Milgram's variations is that there is supporting research evidence. For example Bickman(1974) conducted a field experiment in New York where confederates dressed as either a civilian, milkman or security guard and asked passersby to follow simple instructions like picking up litter or giving money for parking. The study found that people were twice as likely to obey the person in a guard's uniform compared to the other outfits. This supports Milgram's finding that uniform acts as a powerful symbol of authority, which increases obedience. Because Bickman's study took place in a natural setting, it also adds ecological validity to Milgram's conclusions, showing that the effect of situational variables like uniform is not just limited to lab conditions but applies to everyday behaviour

Answer 25

One limitation of Milgram's variations and original baseline study is that they may suffer from cultural bias. His studies were conducted in the United States during the 1960s, a time and place known for high respect for authority, especially in formal institutions like universities. This raises concerns about whether the findings can be generalised to other cultures. However, there have been cross-cultural replications where their findings have been generally supportive of Milgram. Miranda et al(1981) found an obedience rate of over 90% among Spanish students supporting the idea that Milgram's conclusions about obedience are not limited to one culture but are valid across cultures and apply to females too.

Answer 26

1. Agentic state and; 2. Legitimacy of authority

Answer 27

This is a mental state where we feel no personal responsibility for our behaviour because we believe ourselves to be acting for an authority figure, i.e. as their agent. This frees us from the demands of our conscience as we feel that the responsibility lies with the authority figure that gave the order.

Answer 28

It is when an individual is free to behave according to their own principles and therefore feels a sense of responsibility for their own actions.

Answer 29

This is when an individual shifts from their "autonomous state" to their "agentic state".

Answer 30

Milgram (1974) suggested that this occurs when a person perceives someone else as a figure of authority with them having greater power because of their position in a social hierarchy.

Answer 31

They are aspects of the situation that allows a person to ignore or minimise the damaging effect of their behaviour and thus reduce the "moral strain" they are feeling.

Answer 32

It is an explanation which suggests that we are more likely to obey people who we perceive to have authority over us with this authority being justified by the individual's position of power within a social hierarchy.

Answer 33

A strength of the legitimacy of authority explanation is that it is a useful account of cultural differences in obedience. Many studies show that countries differ in the degree to which people are traditionally obedient to authority. Kilham and Mann(1944) replicated Milgram's procedure in Australia and found that only 16% of the ppt went to 450V whereas Ma tell(1971) found that 85% of German participants had gone all the way to 450V. This shows that in some cultures authority is more likely to be accepted as legitimate and entitled to demand obedience from individuals and such supportive findings from cross-cultural research increase the validity of the explanation.

Answer 34

One major strength of the legitimacy of authority explanation is its ability to explain real-world obedience, especially in military and political settings. For example, during the My Lai Massacre in the Vietnam war, American soldiers followed orders to kill hundreds of unarmed civilians. Research suggests they obeyed because they saw the commanding officer as a legitimate authority, operating within a recognised military hierarchy which supports the theory that individuals often defer responsibility to someone they perceive as having legal or institutional power.

Answer 35

The theory does not explain why some people resist obedience even when an authority figure is legitimate. This is evident from Milgram's research as 35% of the participants disobeyed and didn't give shocks up to 450V. This behaviour cannot be explained by the situation alone and so the theory may be too simplistic, ignoring factors like ppt having an Authoritarian personality which influences obedience.

Answer 36

This is the type of personality that Adorno argued was especially susceptible to obeying people in authority. They have an extreme respect for authority and submissiveness to them, contempt for people they perceive as having inferior social status to them, and have a "black and white views" believing everything is either right or wrong.

Answer 37

Adorno et al identified the origins of an Authoritarian personality from childhood due to harsh parenting. The features of the parenting style identified were strict discipline, impossibly high standards, an expectation of absolute loyalty and conditional love which is when the parents love and affection for their child depends entirely on how they behave. He further argued that these experiences create resentment and hostility in the child, but the child cannot express these feelings directly against their parents so their fears are displaced onto others who are perceived to be weaker.

Answer 38

Adorno et al (1950) investigated the causes of the obedient personality in a study of more than 2000 middle class, white Americans and their unconscious attitudes towards other racial groups. They developed the Fascism scale which is used to measure authoritarian personality

Answer 39

People with authoritarian leanings (i.e.those who scored higher on the F-Scale) identified with "strong" people and were generally contemptuous of the "weak". They were very conscious of their own and others status showing excessive respect, servility and deference to those of higher status. Adorno et al also found that Authoritarian people had a cognitive style where there was no "fuzziness" between categories of people with fixed and distinctive stereotypes about other groups showing a strong positive correlation between authoritarianism and prejudice.

Answer 40

A strength of Adorno's theory is that there is supporting research evidence. Elms and Milgram (1966) took 40 ppt from Milgram's research; 20 of which had disobeyed and the other 20 who obeyed. All the ppt completed a series of questionnaires that were designed to measure their personality which includes their relationships with their relationship with their parents as well as the Fascism scale. They found that the ppt who had obeyed scored higher on the F scale and were less close to their fathers which shows a link between authoritarianism and obedience to authority. However, this link is merely a correlation between two measured variables which makes it impossible to draw the conclusion that Authoritarian personality causes obedience. It may be that a "third factor" is involved. for example Hyman and Sheatsley (1954) found that both obedience and authoritarian personality may be associated with a lower level of education.

Answer 41

It explains individual differences as it accounts for why some people disobeyed in Milgram's research even tho the authority was legitimate. This adds depth to our understanding of obedience

Answer 42

It is the ability of people to withstand social pressure to conform to the majority or obey authority.

Answer 43

1. Social support and; 2. Locus of control

Answer 44

This is how the presence of other people who resist can help you do the same as they act as models showing that resistance is possible.

Answer 45

Social support is visible in Asch's unanimity research where he introduced a dissenter who broke the group's unanimity by responding correctly. Conformity rate reduced by 5.5% as this shows that the presence of a dissenter enabled the ppt to behave more independently and conform less.

Answer 46

It refers to the amount of control we perceive to have over situations in our lives.

Answer 47

Internal locus of control and External locus of control

Answer 48

They believe that they are mostly responsible for what happens to them.

Answer 49

Externals believe that they have no control over what happens to them and it's only a matter of luck or other outside factors

Answer 50

People who have an internal LOC are more likely to be able to resist pressures to conform or obey. This is because they are more likely to base their decisions on their own beliefs and thus resists pressures from others. People with a higher internal LOC also tend to be more self-confident, more achievement-oriented, have higher intelligence and have less need for social approval which leads to greater resistance to social pressure.

Answer 51

There is research evidence to support the role of a dissenting peer in resisting conformity. Allen and Levine (1971) found that conformity decreased when there was one dissenter in an Asch-type conformity study. This occurred even if the dissenter wore thick glasses and said he had difficulty with his vision so he was clearly in no position to judge the length of the lines. This supports the view that resistance is not just motivated by following what someone says but it enables someone to be free of the pressure from the group.

Answer 52

There is also research evidence supporting the link between LOC and resistance to obedience. Holland (1967) repeated Milgram's baseline study and measured whether ppt were internals or externals. He found that 37% of internals did not continue to the highest shock level- they showed some resistance whereas only 23% of externals did not continue - they showed lesser resistance to authority. Research evidence of this nature increases the validity of the LOC explanation

Answer 53

It is a form of social influence in which a minority of people (sometimes just a person) persuade others to adopt their beliefs, attitudes or behaviours.

Answer 54

It is most likely to lead to internalisation as both public and private beliefs are changed by the process.

Answer 55

1. Commitment 2. Consistency and; 3. Flexibility

Answer 56

This is when the minority demonstrates dedication to their positions by engaging in activities that are at risk to the minority e.g. by making personal sacrifices. This is effective because it causes the majority to pay even more attention as it shows that the minority are not acting out of self interest.

Answer 57

This is when the minority keeps the same beliefs over a long time or between individuals that make up the minority group. This draws attention to their beliefs and creates uncertainty in the mind of the majority.

Answer 58

Nemeth (1986) argued that consistency is not the only important facts in minority influence because it can be interpreted negatively; the minority group can be seen as rigid, dogmatic and inflexible which is unlikely to result in any influence. Instead, members of the minority need to be prepared to adapt their point of view and accept reasonable and valid counter arguments.

Answer 59

Moscovici et al (1969) demonstrated minority influence in a study where a group of six people was asked to view a set of 36 coloured slides that varied in intensity and then stated whether the slides were blue or green. In one of the groups, there were two confederates who consistently said all 36 slides were green and in the other group, the two confederates were inconsistent with their answers.

Answer 60

In the group with consistent confederates, 8% of the ppt also said the slides were green whereas in the group with the inconsistent confederates, only 1% of ppt said the slides were green. Even though 8% is not huge, it does contrast significantly with only 1% when inconsistent and this supports the idea of consistency in minority influence.

Answer 61

A limitation of minority influence research is that the tasks involved such as identifying the colour of a slide was artificial and unrelated to real-life minority influence situations like political activism or social justice movements. This means findings of minority influence such as Moscovici et al.are lacking in external validity and are limited in what they can tell us about how minority influence worlds in real-life social situations

Answer 62

Use the research by Moscovici to evaluate!! Talk about how his study clearly showed that a consistent minority has a greater impact on the majority than an inconsistent one which supports the theory that consistency is a key gavros in successful minority influence

Answer 63

This occurs when a while society adopts a new belief or behaviour that then becomes widely accepted as the norm.

Answer 64

1. Drawing attention 2. Cognitive conflict 3. Argumentation principles 4. Snowball effect 5. Social cryptomnesia

Answer 65

Minorities can bring about social change by drawing the majority's attention to an issue

Answer 66

Cognitive conflict: The minority creates a conflict between what the majority currently believes and the position of the minority. This makes the majority think more deeply about the issues being challenged

Answer 67

This is when a minority appears willing to suffer for their views so they are seen are more committed and so are taken more seriously by the majority

Answer 68

This is when there are small effects at first but the effect then spreads until it reaches a tipping point at which it leads to wide scale social change

Answer 69

This is when people have a memory that changes have occurred but don't remember how it happens.

Social Influence Flashcards

(93 cards)