temporaily conforming to the opinions/behaviours of a group because there is something about that group we value
results of identification
a public change in opinions and behaviours
superficial and temporary change
don't agree if everything the group believes
what is compliance
a type of conformity that involves 'going along with others' publicly
no change to private opinions/ behaviours
results of compliance
superficial change
the particular behaviours stop as soon as group pressure stops
no change to private behaviours
who proposed the explanations for conformity
Deutsch and Gerald (1955)
two reasons why people conform
informative social influence
normative social influence
what is informative social influence(ISI)
the need to be right
who has the better information - you or the rest of the group
cognitive process
when does ISI happen
occurs when the individual looks to the group for guidance
takes place when the individual is unsure and/ or lacks knowledge about what to do
occurs in crisis situations where decisions have to be made quickly
impact of ISI
permanent change in option/behaviour (internalisation)
strength of ISI
research evidence (Lucas et al- task difficulty, pps gave wrong answer due to fear of being wrong)
limitations of ISI
difficult to separate the effects of ISI and NSI as both processes operate together in real life (e.g Asch)
what is normative social influence
agreeing with the option of the majority to gain approval to be liked
emotional process
following the 'norms' of a social group
when does NSI occur
in situations with strangers where you may feel concerned about rejection
wanting to gain social approval from friends
strengths of NSI
research support (Asch- interviewed his pps after and found some conformed due to fear of disapproval, when asked to write their answers down conformity fell to 12.5%)
limitations of NSI
does not predict conformity in every case (McGhee and Teevan found that students who were nAffilators were more likely to conform)
definition of NSI
agreeing with the opinion of the majority to gain social approval and to be liked
may lead to compliance
definition of ISI
agreeing with the opinion of the majority because we believe it to be correct