explantations for conformity

• deutsch & gerard 1955?

  • created dual process dependency model to explain compliance & internalisation
  • proposed 2 explanations to why people conform
• name the 2 explanations for conformity?

  1. normative social influence
  2. informational social influence
• explain normative social influence?

  • explains compliance
  • person conforms as its socially rewarding/gain approval
  • group can socially punish through exclusion from group
  • individual changes public behaviour not own private beliefs
  • motivated by need to be liked
• how is nsi shows in aschs study?

  • participants claimed they conformed due to distortion in action only changing their public response
• explain informational social influence?

  • explains internalisation
  • person conforms as they want to gain knowledge/believe someone else is right
  • this is more likely when individual has doubts about their own knowledge/judgements
  • changes public behaviour & private beliefs
  • motivated by need to be right
• how is isi shown in aschs study?

  participants reported distortion in judgement so changed their response to fit majority when unsure of their own judgement
• 2 * for explanations of conformity?

  1. evidence to support nsi from aschs study
  2. evidence to support isi from lucas study
• 2 X for explanations of conformity?

  1. does not account for individual differences
  2. evidence to contradict from abrams study
• * supporting evidence from ashs study?

  • found that participants showed compliance as they has their own private beliefs but changed views publicly to fit in with group
  • after participants said they conformed to gain approval & avoid disapproval
  • valid
  • aschs study provides evidence that people conform due to nsi
  • based on their need to be liked
• * supporting evidence from lucas et all 2006?

  • asked students to answer range of easy/hard math problems
  • found there was more conformity amongst group when answering harder questions compared to easy ones
  • students more likely to conform when they found answer more complex
  • valid
  • shows that isi is accurate as lucas showed that people conform since they doubt their own judgements & believe others to be right
• X ignores individual differences?

  • not everyone will conform due to isi - only explains why people of lower intelligence conform
  • nsi - only explains why people with lower self esteem conform as they may feel need to be accepted, more so than individual with high self esteem
  • ? population
  • suggests people with lower intelligence/self esteem will definitely conform
  • does not explain why everyone conforms so cannot be generalised to wider population
• X contradictory evidence from abrams?

  • other factors such as whether person has things in common with group may play a role in their motivation to conform
  • abrams found there was 7 times as much conformity when other group members were part of participants in group (friend group) rather than out group
  • ? valid
  • fails to consider complexity of conformity suggesting it lacks explanatory power