Types of conformity

• Kelman suggested there are three ways in which people conform to the opinion of a majority: internalisation, identification and compliance.
• Internalisation = when a person genuinely accepts the group norms, results in a private as well as a public change of opinion, persists even in the absence of other group members.
• Identification = conform to the opinions of a group because there is something about the group that we value, we identify with the group and so want to be a part of it. We publicly change our opinion to achieve the goal even if we don't privately agree with everything the group stands for.
• Compliance = simply 'going along with others' in public but privately not changing personal opinions, results in a superficial change. The particular behaviour/opinion stops as soon as group pressure stops.
• Internalisation = a deep type of conformity where we take on the majority view because we accept it as correct.
• Identification = a moderate type of conformity where we act in the same way with the group because we value it and want to be part of it.
• Compliance = a superficial and temporary type of conformity where we outwardly go along with the majority view but privately disagree with it.
• Deutsch and Gerard developed a two-process theory, arguing that there are two main reasons people conform based on two central human needs: the need to be right (ISI) and the need to be liked (NSI).
• ISI = we agree with the opinion of the majority because we believe it is correct and we want to be correct as well. ISI is most likely to happen in ambiguous situations.
• NSI = we agree with the opinion of the majority because we want to be accepted, gain social approval and be liked.
• NSI:

  • about social norms - what is typical behaviour for a social group
  • emotional rather than cognitive process
• There is evidence to support ISI. Lucas et al. asked students to give answers to maths problems that were easy or more difficult. There was greater conformity to incorrect answers when they were difficult. This was most true for students who rated their maths ability as poor. This shows people conform in situations where they feel they don't know the answer, as predicted by the ISI explanation.
• ISI:

  We look to others and assume they know better than us and must be right.
• However, NSI does not affect everyone's behaviour in the same way. Those who are less concerned with being liked are less affected by NSI than those who care more about being liked (nAffiliators). nAffiliators have a greater need for affiliation-a need for being in a relationship with others. McGhee and Teevan found that students high in need of affiliation were more likely to conform. This shows NSI underlies conformity for some people more than others and there are individual differences in the way people respond.
• The idea to Deutsch and Gerard's two-process theory is that behaviour is either due to ISI or NSI. But more often than not, both processes are involved. For example, conformity is reduced when there is a dissenting participant in the Asch experiment. This dissenter may reduce the power of NSI (because the dissenter provides social support) or they may reduce the power of ISI (because there is an alternate source of information).
• Therefore, it isn't always possible to know whether it is ISI or NSI at work. This casts serious doubts over the view of ISI and NSI as two processes operating independently in conforming behaviour.
• One strength of NSI is evidence that supports it as an explanation for conformity. When Asch interviewed his participants, some said they conformed because they felt self-conscious giving the correct answer and they were afraid of disapproval. When participants wrote their answers down, conformity fell to 12.5% as there was no normative group pressure. This shows at least some conformity is due to a desire not to be rejected by the group for disagreeing with them.