Social Impact Theory

• What are the 3 aspects of obedience in SIT?

  Strength, immediacy and number
• Strength

  The amount of authority and status the source has
• Immediacy

  The proximity of the source to the target/how recent the order

  Split into 3:

  • Physical - proximity
  • Temporal - time
  • Emotional - meaning
• Number

  The ratio of sources to targets, (more sources and less targets = more impact)
• What does SIT explain that agency theory does not?

  Milgram's follow up studies where obedience changed in situation
• What can SIT apply to?

  Conformity and social influence in real life settings, eg policemen
• What does SIT not explain?

  Individual differences
• What are the people involved in obedience referred to as in SIT?

  Target - Person being obedient

  Source - Person causing the obedience
• Proposed by Bibb Latané in 1981
• Sedikides and Jackson (1990)

  • field experiment at bronx zoo
  • a confederate: don't lean on the railings
  • visitors observed to see if they obeyed
  • STRENGTH: when in uniform, obedience rates were 58%. when dressed casually, obedience rates were 35%
  • IMMEDIACY: when up close, obedience rates were 61%, when far away, obedience rates were 7%
• Bickman and Milgram (1969)

  • 1-15 confederates congregated on street and looked up
  • number of passers by that also stopped and looked up was counted
  • increasing number of confederates looking up increased the number of passers by looking up
• Against Social Impact Theory

  • describes obedience and the factors but doesn't explain why obedience is a thing
  • doesn't explain individual differences
  • Hofling (1966) the doctor giving the order wasn't present yet 21/22 nurses still obeyed, going against the idea of immediacy