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Social influence Flashcards

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1
Q

What is social influence?

A

The efforts of others to change our attitudes, beliefs, perceptions or behaviours OR our efforts to change other people’s

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2
Q

What types of social influence are there?

A
  • conformity
  • compliance
  • obedience
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3
Q

What is conformity?

A

The change in response to real/imagined pressure from others

The change in a person’s behaviour/beliefs as a result of real/imagined group norms

Adopting behaviours, attitudes & values of other members of a reference group

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4
Q

What is compliance?

A

The change in response to implicit/explicit requests

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5
Q

What is obedience?

A

The change in response to an order from someone perceived as being in a position of authority

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6
Q

What are norms?

A

Explicit/implicit rules created by a group to regulate the behaviour of its members

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7
Q

What types of norms can you get?

A
  • descriptive norms

- injunctive norms

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8
Q

What are descriptive norms?

A

Perceptions of which behaviours are typically performed - the perception of others’ behaviour

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9
Q

What are injunctive norms?

A

Perceptions of which behaviours are approved/disapproved by the group - assist an individual in determining what is acceptable & unacceptable in social behaviour

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10
Q

When does informational influence occur?

A

Occurs in ambiguous situations when we are uncertain of the correct response or how to behave

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11
Q

Informational influence is about the need to…

A

…know what is ‘right’

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12
Q

When does normative influence occur?

A

When we want to avoid punishment (disapproval) or receive a reward (praise) from another person/the group

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13
Q

Normative influence is about the need to…

A

…be liked & accepted

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14
Q

Does informational influence lead to cognitive change?

A

We believe that others are better informed –> follow their lead –> change our attitudes &/or behaviour in ambiguous situations

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15
Q

Does normative influence lead to cognitive change?

A

We may not believe that others are correct but we conform anyway

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16
Q

What type of compliance can normative influence lead to?

A

Normative influence can lead to public compliance without private compliance (no cognitive change)

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17
Q

What types of feelings can occur as a result of normative influence?

A

Negative arousal & discomfort

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18
Q

Asch (1951, 1956) had pps judge which of 3 lines another line matched to. Confederates in the group gave a unanimous wrong answer on 2/3 trials. What percentage of pps conformed at least once?

A

75% pps conformed at least once

Average conformity rate - 33%

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19
Q

What type of influence did Asch’s (1951, 1956) line study demonstrate?

A

Demonstrates normative rather than informational influence

- when control pps did the task in the absence of confederates, they achieved almost 100% accuracy

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20
Q

How did group size affect conformity rates in Asch’s (1951, 1956) study?

A

1-2 confederates = low conformity

3-5 confederates = high conformity

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21
Q

When confederates did not give unanimous answers in Asch’s (1951, 1956) study, what happened to the results?

A

Pps were less likely to conform when they were supported by another ‘deviant’ pp

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22
Q

What are the typical personality traits of people who conform?

A
  • authoritarian
  • low self-esteem
  • high need for social support/approval
  • low IQ
  • high anxiety
  • feelings of self-blame, inferiority, low status & insecurity in the group
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23
Q

What types of factors might be more important - external (situation) or internal (disposition) factors?

A

Situational factors may be more important

A person who conforms in one situation may not conform in another situation

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24
Q

How might gender affect conformity rates?

Study These Flashcards
A

Women typically conform more than men

25
What are limitations of studies that measure differences between male & female conformity rates?
Women are often unfamiliar/not experts at tasks in these studies, so have more uncertainty --> more likely to use informational influence than normative influence
26
Researcher/s looked at how males & females conformed when stimuli were traditionally masculine/feminine. Who did this study & what did they find?
Sistrunk & McDavid (1971) - when stimuli was traditionally masculine (type of wrench), women conformed more - when stimuli was traditionally feminine (type of needlework), men conformed more - when stimuli was neutral (popular rock stars), conformity was equal
27
How might cultural norms affect conformity rates?
Smith et al. (2006) - conformity is higher amongst people from collectivist cultures Markus & Kitayama (1991) - conformity is more favourable in collectivist countries People who score highly on the Collectivism Scale conform more than people who score lowly
28
What are 'social rules'?
The behaviour that is expected of people in certain positions in society (e.g. students, nurses, mothers, etc.)
29
What study did Zimbardo (1971) do that looked at conformity?
He randomly assigned male students to the role of prisoner/guard - guards wore uniforms, glasses, handcuffs & a whistle - prisoners were arrested at their homes & taken to 'prison' Within hours, the guards started harassing the prisoners Prisoners adopted prisoner-like behaviours --> increased their submission --> guards increased their aggression People readily conform to social roles (especially if roles are strongly stereotyped)
30
When does obedience increase?
When in the presence of others who obey
31
When does obedience decrease?
If the authority figure is more distant
32
What are the sources of authority?
- coercive - reward - expert - legitimate - referent
33
What is coercive authority?
Have the ability to punish/remove positive consequences
34
What is reward authority?
The ability to provide consequences/remove negative consequences
35
What is expert authority?
The person has expertise (knowledge) that isn't widely available
36
What is legitimate authority?
The person has influence because of their social role
37
What is referent authority?
Other people identify with/want to be like the authority figure
38
What study did Milgram (1963, 1974) do on obedience?
Pps were given the role of ‘teacher’ (read a list of paired words) The confederate was the ‘learner’ (tried to remember the word pairs) - if wrong, the teacher gave them a shock (15-450V), increased V with every wrong answer Conducted the study in Germany & USA Experimenter requested obedience if pps became unsure
39
What percentage of pps gave 'very strong' shocks, & what percentage continued to the end in Milgram's (1963, 1974) study?
100% pps gave 'very strong' shocks | 62.5% continued to the end (complete obedience)
40
Why did pps obey in Milgram's (1963, 1974) study?
- experimenter said he was responsible (removes individual responsibility) - commands were gradual (gradually increasing V), when do you stop? - little time to reflect - experimenter was perceived as an authority figure (pps believed that he had the power to influence & control their behaviour)
41
Which factors might influence obedience?
- gender | - ethnicity
42
Milgram (1963, 1974) found that gender could influence obedience. What did they find?
In 17/18 experiments, pps were 20-50 y/o males from different socioeconomic background 1 study used only females --> found the same obedience levels
43
In which country - USA or Germany - did Milgram expect obedience to be higher in?
Germany
44
Which researcher/s found that obedience levels were similar in other countries (similar to levels found in Milgram's study?
Smith et al. (2006) - Italy, UK, Austria
45
Which researcher/s found that obedience levels were lower in some countries (compared to levels found in Milgram's study)?
Kilham & Mann (1974) - Australia
46
Which researcher/s found that obedience levels were higher in some countries (compared to levels found in Milgram's study)?
Meeus & Jaaijmakers (1986) - Spain, the Netherlands
47
How did the immediacy of the learner affect complete obedience levels (Milgram, 1963, 1974)?
If the learner was in a separate room (original study) --> 62.5% If the learner was not seen/heard --> 100% If the learner was in the same room --> 40% If the learner held hands with the questioner (pp) --> 30%
48
How did the proximity of the authority figure affect complete obedience levels (Milgram, 1963, 1974)?
If the authority figure was in the same room --> 62.5% If the authority figure gave orders via the telephone (i.e. absent from the room) --> 20.5% If the authority figure didn't give any orders --> 2.5%
49
How did group pressure affect complete obedience levels (Milgram, 1963, 1974)?
If there were no other peers present --> 62.5% If there were 2 other obedient peers --> 92.5% If there were 2 disobedient peers --> 10%
50
What type of control do minorities NOT have over the majority?
Minorities have no NORMATIVE control over the majority but minority influence is still possible
51
When is minority influence most influential?
When it is consistent & they maintain the same viewpoint over time
52
Moscovici (1980) proposed the Model of Influence. What does minority influence result in?
Minority influence results in conversion Informational influence (new info is added) People believe in private = cognitive change
53
Moscovici (1980) proposed the Model of Influence. What does majority influence result in?
Majority influence results in compliance Normative influence People alter their expressed attitudes/behaviours in public but don't believe them in private = no cognitive change
54
If the minority opposes the majority, it may allow for more meaningful social change. What will information influence result in?
Informational influence will result in private acceptance
55
If the minority opposes the majority, it may allow for more meaningful social change. What will normative influence result in?
Normative influence is more superficial - it will result in public acceptance but not private acceptance
56
Who does minority influence support?
Minority influence can provide support for others who may want to deviate from the majority group
57
What happens to obedience & conformity levels when numerous people are willing to defy the majority group?
There is less conformity & obedience when others are willing to defying the majority group
58
Asch (1952) found that the minority can influence the majority by gaining support & growing in numbers. What happens in a group if there is 1 deviant? What happens in a group with a minority of 9 deviants?
1 deviant --> ridiculed for their incorrect response 9 deviants --> taken more seriously

Personality & social (12 decks)

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