types and explanations for conformity Flashcards
(21 cards)
what did helbert kelman (1958) suggest were the three ways in which people conform to the opinion of a majority?
- internalisation
- identification
- compliance
what is internalisation?
- when a person genuinely accepts the group norms
- results in a private and public change of opinions / behaviour
- change is usually permanent as attitudes have been internalised ie. become part of the way the person thinks
- change in opinions / behaviour persists even in the absence of other group members
what is identification?
- conforming to the opinions / behaviour of a group because there is something about that group we value
> we identify with the group, so we want to be part of it - publicly and privately change opinions / behaviour to be accepted by group
- change of belief or behaviour is temporary
- eg. being silly and then acting serious in an office
what is compliance?
- going along with the group to fit in
- conforms publicly but privately disagrees
- behaviour or opinion stops as soon as group pressure stops
what is the two-process theory? (deutsch and gerard 1955)
there are two main reasons people conform:
- need to be right (ISI)
- need to be liked (NSI)
what is informational social influence (ISI)?
an explanation of conformity that says we agree with the opinion of the majority because we believe it is correct
when is ISI most likely to occur?
- when the situation is ambiguous so the right action is unclear
- when we believe others to be experts who know more than us in the situation
- in crisis situations where decisions have to be made quickly so we assume the group is more likely to be right
why does ISI happen?
- because of basic human need to feel confident that their opinions, beliefs and perceptions are correct
- when we are unsure and not confident in our opinions we may seek other people’s opinions or observe their behaviours
what is normative social influence (NSI)?
an explanation of conformity that says we agree with the opinion of the majority because we want to gain social approach and be liked
when is NSI most likely to happen?
- situations with strangers where you may feel concerned about rejection
- without people you know because we are most concerned about the social approval of our friends
- stressful situations, where people have a greater need for social support
why does NSI happen?
- as a social species, humans have a fundamental need for social companionship and fear of rejection
- to gain approval and acceptance by others we may conform to the behaviour of these groups or say that we agree with their viewpoint
- to avoid rejection or disapproval by others we may conform because we do not wish to go against the group’s behaviour or opinions
- we evaluate our behaviours and opinions against others
what type of conformity do NSI and ISI lead to?
- NSI = compliance
- ISI = internalisation
is NSI / ISI cognitive or emotional?
- NSI = emotional because it is about the person not wanting to feel rejected
- ISI = cognitive because it is to do with what you think
evaluation: research support for NSI (asch 1951)
- asked his ps why they conformed; some said they felt self-conscious giving the correct answer and were afraid of disapproval
- when ps wrote their answers down, conformity fell to 12.5%
evaluation: research support for NSI (priebe and spink 2014)
- asked 65 ps to hold a plank for as long as possible
- when half were told that 80% like them could hold for 20% longer, their 2nd attempt was far longer
evaluation: research support for NSI (schultz et al. 2008)
hotel guests who were told ‘75% of guests choose to reuse their towels each day’ had a 25% reduced towel need
evaluation: research support for ISI (lucas et al. 2006)
- ps conformed more often to incorrect answers when they were given difficult maths problems
- ps didn’t want to be wrong so relied on the answers they were given
evaluation: research support for ISI (jenness 1932)
- asked ps to estimate no. of jellybeans in a jar
- ps made their own private estimates and then discussed with group
- individual’s 2nd private estimate shifted to agree with group estimate
evaluation: unclear if NSI or ISI is at work (asch 1955)
- conformity was reduced when there was one other dissenting p
- dissenter could reduce power of NSI as they provide social support. or could reduce power of ISI as they provide an alternative source of info
- hard to separate NSI and ISI; both processes probably operate together in most real-world conformity situations
evaluation: individual differences, NSI does not predict conformity in every case (mcghee and teevan 1967)
- nAffiliators were more likely to conform
- nAffiliators are greatly concerned with being liked by others
- NSI underlies conformity for some people more than it does for others
- individual differences in conformity can’t be fully explained by one general theory of situational pressures
evaluation: NSI/ISI distinction is not useful
- asch’s research demonstrates that both NSI and ISI are reasons for conformity
- eg. in terms of group unanimity, a unanimous group is a powerful source of disapproval (NSI), but also conveys the impression that everyone else knows and you don’t (ISI)
- using two explanations together is a useful way of explaining why people conform
