social psychological explanation: de-individuation AO3

Question 1

evaluation of de-individuation - good-natured and happy crowds (limitation)

Answer 1

• limitation of de-individuation theory is that there is opposing research findings.
  -Postmes & Spears fo (1988) found that deindividuated people are not necessarily aggressive.
• crowds may sometimes be happy and good-natured – for example like at at pop festivals.
• this suggests that the de-individuation theory is a limited explanation.

Question 2

evaluation of de-individuation - separating effects (limitation)

Answer 2

• it is very difficult to separate the effects of de-individuation from other explanations of aggression such as social learning
• some sporting events such as football which attracts huge crowds have had a long history of violence and aggression on the pitch and from the fans. yet sports such as rugby and cricket also attract huge crowds yet have not experienced the problems with antisocial behaviour that football fans have witnessed.
• this may suggest that rather than de-individuation being responsible aggressive crowd behaviour, it may be better explained by cultural factors internalised through the process of social learning

Question 3

evaluation of de-individuation - research support (strength)

Answer 3

• research support for de-individuation
• dodd asked 229 undergraduate psychology students: ‘if you could do anything humanly possible with complete assurance that you would not be held responsible, what would you do?’. 3 independent raters rated the students’ responses into those that were antisocial or not.
• 36% of the responses were antisocial. 26% were criminal (types of responses referring to acts such as ‘robbing a bank’)
• this research demonstrates the connection between de-individuation as a result of anonymity and subsequent aggression

Question 4

evaluation of de-individuation - research support (counterpoint)

Answer 4

• however, there is also evidence that de-individuation does not always lead to aggression.
• in gergen et al’s ‘deviance in the dark’ study, groups of 8 strangers were placed in a completely darkened room for 1 hour. they were told to do whatever they wanted to, they could not identify each other and they would never meet again. they very quickly stopped talking and started touching and kissing each other intimately.
• in a repeat study where participants were told they would come face-to-face afterwards, the amount of touching/kissing was much lower
• therefore, de-individuation may not always lead to aggression