Social Influence

• What is conformity?

  a type of social influence where there is a change in persons behaviour or opinions as a result of pressure from a person or a group
• what is a naive participant?


  a real participant who is unaware of the experiment
• what is a confederate?

  a person who is aware of the experiment, an actor
• What are the 3 variations to Asch,s study?

  • group size
  • unanimity
  • Task difficulty
• What was the conclusion to each variation?

  • Group size = 3-7 confederates increased conformity up to 38%
  • task difficulty = the more difficult the task the higher conformity was
  • Unanimity = a dissenting confederate reduced conformity as they served as an ally
• What is asch’s aim in this study?

  to see If the minority will conform to the majority especially in situations where the correct answer is unclear
• What was the sample size of asch’s study?


  123 American males
• Weaknesses of Asch’s study ?

  • low ecological validity
  • lacks generalisability
  • Temporal validity
• What is a strength of Asch’s study?

  high internal validity
• What are the 3 types of conformity ?

  • compliance
  • indentification
  • internalisation
• What is compliance ?

  when the individual changes their behaviour to fit in with the group

  temporary form of social influence

  does not change their internal beliefs
• what is identification?

  when an individual values/ Identifies with a group and they want them to be apart of it

  so there is a public change in behaviour
• what is internalisation?

  when a behaviour or belief is accepted by the majority so it becomes part of individuals belief system

  a permanent form of conformity
• What is informational social influence?

  informational social influence is a type of SI where an individual conforms as they have a need to be right

  Most likely in situations where the answer isn’t clear
• what is normative social influence ?

  a type of social influence where an individual conforms to the majority as they want to be liked
• what is the research support for NSI?

  • Asch’s research

  when participants were interviewed they said they conformed because they were afraid of disapproval

  when answers were written down, conformity fell to 12.5%
• What is a limitation of NSI?

  • cannot account for individual differences

  Mcgee and Teevan found those who are greatly concerned with being liked - naffiliators are more likely to conform opposed to those who are not naffiliators

  NSI cannot explain conforming for those who do not care about being liked
• What is the research evidence for ISI?

  • Lucas et al research

  he found that when pp’s were given difficult maths questions, conformity was greater as the answer was unclear and pp’s looked to others for guidance as they have a desire to be right
• What is a counterpoint research evidence for ISI?


  unclear as to which type of SI is at play as Asch’s study concluded when there was a dissenting confederate the NP conformed but it is unclear whether this was because the dissenter offered social support or an alternative source information
• What is meant by informed consent ?

  pp’s have the right to be given comprehensive information regarding the nature and purpose of the research

  in order to make an decision whether to participate
• What is deception?

  where a participant is not told the true aims of the study and thus cannot truly give consent
• What is right to withdraw ?

  participants should have the right to withdraw if they feel uncomfortable
• what Is protection from harm ?

  participants should not experience negative physical or ppsychological effects
• what is debriefing ?

  when participants are informed of the true aims of the research study after it has taken place
• What is Zimbardo’s aim ?

  to study whether people conform to their social roles in a prison setting
• Strengths of Zimbardo’s experiment ?

  • high internal validity
  • Realism
• how does Zimbardos experiment demonstrate high internal validity ?

  • highly controlled

  By randomly assigning roles of prisoners and guards

  Choosing volunteers based on the emotional stability

  rules out individual differences
• What is situational roles?

  zimbardo believed that people conformed to social roles they identified with In their current situation
• what is dispositional factors?

  how an individual personality determines their engagement in aggressive behaviour
• what are three variations to milligrams study ?

  • proximity
  • uniform
  • location
• what were the results from the three variations of milgrams study?

  • location = where experiment took place in abandoned building, obedience dropped from 65% to 48%
  • uniform = when experiment wore ordinary clothes instead of a lab coat, obedience dropped from 65% to 20%
• How did proximity variation take place?

  • teacher and learner were placed in the same room, obedience dropped from 65% to 40%
  • experimenter forcefully placed teachers hand on electroshock plate, obedience dropped to 30%
  • Experimenter gave instructions over the phone, obedience dropped to 20.5%
• Strengths of milgrams study?

  • bickmans research support showing uniform to heavily impact obedience
  • high ecological validity
• What is Agentic state?

  A psychological state where we feel no personal responsibility for our actions as we believe to be acting for an authority figure
• What Is legitimacy for authority?

  an explanation for obedience which suggests we are more likely to obey those who we believe have authority over us
• what Is binding factors?

  aspects of a situation which allow as person to ignore the damaging effects of their behaviour thus reducing their moral strain allowing them to continue
• What is autonomous state?

  when an Individual is independent/ free to behave according to their own principles

  they believe they responsible for their own actions
• What is authoritarian personality?

  a type of personality where individuals are extremely susceptible to the presence of an authority figure

  they are deemed inferior and heavily submissive
• What is minority influence?

  Those who are in the minority in a group persuade people in the majority to change their views
• What is LOC?

  A person’s belief about personal control over their own behaviour and the events in their lives