Definitions of Conformity

• Kerman proposed three types of conformity in 1958.
• Compliance - changing behaviour publicly but privately harbouring a different view.
• Internalisation - Adopting a view both publicly and privately.
• Identification - Conforming publicly and privately to impress a group WHILE you are with that group.
• Normative Social Influence - Desire to be liked (links to compliance and identification).
• Informational Social Influence - Desire to be right (links to internalisation).
• Difficulties between compliance and internalisation happen as someone may publicly band privately disagree with something but then change their mind when they are alone.
• Linkenbach and Perkins found that adolescents exposed to the message that the majority of their peers didn’t smoke, were less likely to smoke (NSI).
• Schultz et al found that hotel guests who were told that 75% guests reused their towels reduced their towel usage by 25%.
• Jenness 1932

  • Filled a glass bottle full of jelly beans and asked 101 students to guess how many were in there.
  • After their original guess they were divided into groups of three to discuss.
  • Once they had finished they were asked to guess again.
  • Jenner’s found nearly all participants changed their original answer.
• Individual differences play a role in NSI. For example there are some people who care more about being liked than others called nAffiliators.