Chapter 8

• Status is a person's position within the hierarchy of a group
• Power is the amount of influence that an individual can exert over another person
• High status = high power
• Reward power

  Reward a person who complies with good behaviour

  • Teacher - good grade
  • Boss - bonus
• Coercive power

  Punish a person for failure to comply

  • Police - imprisonment or fine
  • Teacher - detention
• Legitimate power

  Our acceptance of a person as being part of an established social order

  • Prime ministers
  • Doctors
• Referent power

  Idolise and want to be like this person

  • Celebrity
• Expert power

  Recognise a person has knowledge or expertise in a specific field because of their training and experience

  • Lawyer
• Obedience occurs in situations which people change their behaviour in response to direct commands from others
• Conformity occurs in situations in which individuals change their behaviour as a result of real or implied pressure from others
• Factors affecting obedience

  Social proximity

  The further the victim is from the perpetrator, the more likely the perpetrator was to obey the authority figure
• Factors affecting conformity

  Normative influence

  Influenced by the established behaviour of the group
• Factors affecting conformity

  Informational influence

  Using the behaviour of others to guide you - when you require information
• Factors affecting conformity

  Unanimity

  Unanimous behaviour makes us more likely to conform
• Factors affecting conformity

  Group size

  Conformity increases when group size increases from 2-4 people - stays the same up to a group of 8
• Factors affecting conformity

  Deindividuation

  If we feel anonymous - more likely to act in ways we usually wouldn't
• Groupthink occurs when the members of a group prioritise the strong bonds of the group over clear decision-making
• Symptoms of groupthink

  Invulnerability - feeling unable to be harmed

  Rationale - rationalising reasons and downplaying negative feedback for a course of action

  Morality - distinguishing between right and wrong

  Stereotyping - applying widely held, over-simplified views about a particular group

  Pressure - using persuasion and coercion

  Self-censorship - remaining quiet to avoid criticism

  Unanimity - expecting agreement by all people involved

  Mind guards - filtering out any negative information
• Ways to prevent groupthink

  • Pros and cons list - objections and doubts
  • Devils advocate - play the opposing side
• Group shift is the tendency for group members discussing an issue or dilemma to adopt a more extreme position than their individual position before the discussion
• Causes of group shift

  Social comparison theory - to be accepted we behave in a way we think fits in with the group norm (peer pressure)

  Persuasive argument theory - as the members generate more arguments in favour of their overall approach, the position of the group tends to become more extreme

  Social decision schemes - strategies used by groups to select one approach from various approaches
• Social connection refers to the belief that we belong to a group and generally feel close to other people
• Strong social connections:

  • Foster empathy
  • Higher self-esteem
  • Development of trusting relationships
  • More likely to participate in social activites
• Weak social connections:

  • Tend to feel misunderstood
  • Have difficulty relating to others
  • See themselves as outsiders
  • Higher levels of anger and anxiety
• Anti-conformity is a deliberate refusal to comply with group norms
• Anti-conformity

  • Not a genuine attempt to express ideas or perspective
  • Stubborn or rebellious
  • Disagreeing with the group, even if the individual agrees privately
• Factors that affect obedience

  Group pressure

  An individual is more likely to be obedient when there is little or no group resistance to the authority figure
• Factors affecting obedience

  Legitimacy of authority figures

  An individual is more likely to be obedient when the authority figure is perceived as having legitimate power