Social Influence - Types and Explanations for Conformity

Question 1

What is conformity

Answer 1

A change in a persons behaviour or opinions as a result of real or imagines pressure from a person or group of people

Question 2

Types of influence

Answer 2

Majority (conformity: Being influenced by the views of a larger group
Minority: Being influenced by the views of a smaller group

Question 3

Herbert Kelman - Types of conformity

Answer 3

1. Compliance
2. Identification
3. Internalisation

Question 4

Compliance

Answer 4

• Person conforms publicly with the views or behaviours expressed by others but continues to privately disagree
• Superficial (temporary)
• Shallowest form of conformity
• Doesn’t maintain the views/behaviour when not in the presence of the group

Question 5

Internalisation

Answer 5

• Person takes on the views expressed by others at a deep, personal level, and they become part of that persons own way of viewing/belief system
• Conforms publicly and privately - internalised the views
• Permanent type of conformity
• Deepest form

Question 6

Identification

Answer 6

• An individual might accept influence because they want to be associated with another person/group.
• Adopting the group’s attitudes + behaviours, feel more a part of it
• Accepts the attitudes and behaviours they are adopting but the purpose is to be accepted as a member
• Often temporary - only lasts while we identify with that group

Question 7

Deutsch and Gerald - Two-process theory

Answer 7

• 2 main reasons why people conform:
• Need to be liked (Normative)
• Need to be right (Informational)

Question 8

Normative social influence

Answer 8

• Based on fear of rejection
• Desire to be liked and accepted
• Often leads to compliance
• Temporary and public changes

Question 9

Informational social influence

Answer 9

• Based on desire to be correct
• People rely on others for information
• Often leads to internalisation
• Permanent and private changes

Question 10

Asch’s line experiments - NSI

Answer 10

• Naïve participants gave the wrong answer 36.7% of the time
• 25% of ppts did not conform on any trials, 75% did at least once
• ‘Asch effect’ - extent to which ppts conform even when the situation is non-ambiguous
• Majority of ppts said they conformed to avoid rejection

Question 11

Perrin and Spencer

Answer 11

• Time-temporal validity
• Carried out Asch’s study 25 years later PPT: engineering, mathematics, chem students
  Only 1/396 trials did an observer join the erroneous majority
• In 1950’s US was very conservative, conformity to US values expected but lower conformity rates after.

Question 12

Sherif - ISI

Answer 12

• Used autokinetic effect, still point of light in dark appears to move.
  Ppt’s shown a still point of light in the dark + estimated how far it moved, first on their own then in groups
• When alone, ppts developed their own stable estimates
• In groups, judgements became closer until a group norm developed
• Ppt’s influenced by estimates of other people
• Supports ISI, low ecological validity (artificial), ambiguous task - no correct answer

Question 13

Impact of cultures

Answer 13

• Individualistic: Where people prioritise standing out as an individual over fitting in as a group member
• Collectivist: People prioritise group loyalty, belonging, fitting in over standing out as an individual
• Lowest rate of conformity found in Belgian students (14%), highest with Indian teachers in Fiji (58%)

Question 14

Asch’s variations: Group size

Answer 14

• Conformity tends to increase as the group size increases
• One confederate - 3% conformity
• Two confederates - 13% conformity
• Three or more - 33%
• Little change in conformity once group size reaches 4-5
• 4 = optimal group size for conformity to occur

Question 15

Asch’s variations - Unanimity

Answer 15

• If one person disagrees with majority: conformity dropped from 37% to 25%
• Having an ally reduces pressure to conform
• One confederate instructed to give correct answer - dropped to 5.5%
• One confederate gave a different incorrect answer - dropped to 9%
• If group’s unanimity is broken, conformity is reduced - behave more independently

Question 16

Asch’s variations - Task difficulty

Answer 16

• When comparison lines were made more similar in length - harder to judge correct answer
• Conformity increases when we are uncertain - look to others for conformation
• Testing ISI

Question 17

Evaluating Asch

Answer 17

• Perrin + spencer: repeated study, 1/396 trials conformed - 1950’s conformist time
• Artificial task: ppts knew they were in a study, may have gone along for sake of experiment.
  Groups they were in do not represent real life groups
• Limited application: only men from US were tested
• Situational: people may want to impress strangers by being right
• Ethics: ppts deceived, thought that the confederates were also ppts

Question 18

Real-world applications

Answer 18

• Fashion trends
• Political opinions
• Consumer behaviour
• Classroom dynamics

Question 19

Positive + negative aspects of conformity

Answer 19

Positive:
- Maintaining social norms
- Promoting social cohesion
- Efficiency in decision-making
- Learning from other’s expertise

Negative:
- Suppression of individuality
- Potential for groupthink
- Ignoring personal beliefs or values
- Perpetuating harmful practices

Question 20

Resisting conformity

Answer 20

• Be aware of social influence
• Develop critical thinking skills
• Express dissenting opinions respectfully
• Seek diverse perspectives