Social Influence

• What is the main idea behind social influence?

  External social factors alter our behavior
• What are the three types of conformity?

  Internalisation, identification, compliance
• What is informational social influence?

  Conforming because one believes the majority is right
• What is normative social influence?

  Conforming to be liked and accepted by others
• What variables affect conformity according to Asch?

  Group size, unanimity, task difficulty
• Who investigated conformity to social roles?

  Zimbardo
• What is the agentic state in obedience?

  Acting on behalf of an authority figure
• What situational variables affect obedience according to Milgram?

  Proximity, location, uniform
• What is the dispositional explanation for obedience?

  The Authoritarian Personality
• What are explanations of resistance to social influence?

  Social support and locus of control
• What factors contribute to minority influence?

  Consistency, commitment, flexibility
• How does social influence contribute to social change?

  By altering group norms and behaviors
• What is compliance in terms of conformity?

  Changing behavior to fit in with the majority
• What is identification in terms of conformity?

  Conforming to be part of a valued group
• What is internalisation in terms of conformity?

  Accepting majority beliefs as one's own
• What is the Two-Process Theory by Deutsch & Gerard?

  Conformity arises from the need to be right or liked
• What is the motivation behind normative social influence?

  To be liked and accepted by others
• What is the motivation behind informational social influence?

  To be correct and gain accurate information
• What did Lucas et al. (2006) find regarding ISI?

  Students conformed more on difficult problems
• What did McGhee & Teevan (1967) discover about NSI?

  Some individuals have a greater need to be liked
• What did Schultz et al. (2008) demonstrate about normative social influence?

  Guests reused towels to fit in with others
• What did Jenness find regarding ISI?

  Private estimates moved closer to group estimates
• What does the Two-Process Theory suggest about NSI and ISI?

  They can occur independently or together
• What are the three main types of conformity?

  • Compliance: Change behavior to fit in
  • Identification: Conform to be part of a valued group
  • Internalisation: Accept majority beliefs as one's own
• What are the explanations for conformity?

  • Informational Social Influence: Conform to be correct
  • Normative Social Influence: Conform to be liked
• What situational variables affect obedience?

  • Proximity: Closeness to authority
  • Location: Setting of the experiment
  • Uniform: Appearance of authority figure
• What are the explanations of resistance to social influence?

  • Social support: Presence of others who resist
  • Locus of control: Belief in personal control over events
• What is the role of social influence in social change?

  • Alters group norms and behaviors
  • Encourages new social norms to be accepted