psychology

• what is conformity

  a change in a persons behavior or opinions due to real or imagined pressure.
• aschs aim


  to what extent will people conform to the opinion of others
• variables investigated by Asch

  1. group size- he varied the group size from 2-16 people, one being the naive participant. conformity grew with group size. with three confederates the conformity rate was 31.8%. suggesting that people are very sensitive to the views of others
  2. unanimity- presence of a non-conforming person. the genuine participant conformed less when there was a dissenter involved.
  3. task difficulty- he increased the difficulty of the tasks. making the lines closer together in length. conformity grew
• evaluation points for Asch's lines

  • one limitation of Asch's research is that the task and situation was artificial. people may have known they were in a experiment and that may cause demand characteristics. Meaning the results don't generalise to the real world.
• limited application- Asch's lines evaluations

  • another limitation is that Asch's participants were all american men. other research suggest that women may be more conformist (Neto 1995). individualist cultures conformity is lower that collectivist cultures. (Bond and Smith 1996). tells us little about how women and different cultures conform
• research support for Asch's lines evaluation point

  one positive is there is research support for task difficulty being a variable for conformity. Todd Lucas et al (2006) asked participant to solve 'easy' and 'hard' math problems. participants conformed more when the problems were harder. However, people with high confidence on their math skills conformed less
• Herbett Kelman (1958)-suggested that there was three ways in which people conform to the opinions of others
• compliance- agreeing with someone else because we want them to like us or avoid conflict
• internalisation- agreeing with someone elses opinion because we believe its right
• identification- agreeing with someone elses opinion because it makes us feel good about ourselves
• compliance - change in public behavior only

  identification- change in public and private, short term

  internalization - change in public and private behavior, long term
• Morton Deutsch and Harold Gerald (1955) - developed a two-process theory. Arguing that there are two main reasons why people conform. NSI and ISI.
• informational social influence is when we conform to the opinion of others because we want to be right. this is a cognitive process. Ambiguous situations.
• normative social influence is when we conform to the opinions of others because we want to fit in. This is an emotional process. Unambiguous situation.
• research support for NSI

  one strength of NSI is that it has explanation for conformity. Asch interviewed his participant and they had said they conformed because they felt self conscious and that they were afraid of disapproval. When the participants wrote the answer down, conformity dropped down to 12.5%. This is private, so they aren't afraid of disapproval (no normative social influence). this shows that at least some conformity is due to the desire to be liked.
• research support for ISI

  Another strength is that there is research support for ISI by Todd Lucas et el (2006). Lucas found that people conformed more when they were unsure of the answer or when the maths problem is hard, this was because it was easy and they could think there own mind. they were unclear on the answer so they relied on the answers given. this shows that ISI is a valid explanation for conformity.
• counterpoint for research support for ISI, NSI and ISI unclear what is at work in these studies. Asch found that conformity fell when another non-conforming participant was present. But with social support so there is unsurety about what is at work.
• individual differences in NSI

  a limitation of NSI is that it doesn't predict conformity in every case. Some people are more concerned with how people think of them- nAffiliators - they have a strong need to be liked, therefore will conform more
• In the 1970s, Philip Zimbardo and his colleagues conducted one of the most memorable studies in psychology. there had been many prison riots in the US. and Zimbardo wanted to know why the guards acted brutally. Was it because of there sadistic personalities or was it because of their social roles that created such behaviour.
• zimbardo set up a mock prison in the basement of Stanford University. they selected 21 men (student volunteer) who tested as emotionally stable. Prisoners and guards were encouraged to conform
• The guards took up their role with enthusiasm and treated the prisoners harshly
• Within two days, the prisoners rebelled by ripping their uniforms, shouting, and swearing at the guards
• The guards retaliated with fire extinguishers
• Guards used "divide and conquer" tactics by playing prisoners off against each other
• Constant harassment of prisoners to remind them of their powerlessness and role, including conducting frequent head counts, sometimes at night
• Guards highlighted differences in social roles by creating opportunities to enforce rules and intended punishment
• After the rebellion was put down, prisoners became subdued, depressed, and anxious
• One prisoner was released due to showing signs of psychological disturbances
• Two more prisoners were released on the fourth day
• One prisoner went on a hunger strike, and guards tried to force-feed him, then punished him by putting him in a "hole" - a tiny dark closet
• Guards identified more closely with their role, leading to more brutal and aggressive behavior, with some even enjoying the control they had over the prisoners
• CONCLUSIONS ON SOCIAL ROLES

  social roles have a strong influence on behavior. The guards became brutal and the prisoners became submissive. Such roles were taken on easily. Even the volunteers who came in to perform specific functions ended up acting like their were in a real prison
• Bowlby(1969)

  attachment is characterized by specific behaviors in children, such as seeking proximity with the attachment figure when upset
• Ainsworth(1973)

  attachment is a deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space
• Shaffer(1993)

  emotional relationship between two persons, characterized by mutual affection and desire to maintain proximity
• what characterizes attachment:

  • two way emotional bond
  • 2 individuals
  • few months to develop
• what forms an attachment:

  • proximity- the need to stay physically close to those we are attached to
  • separation anxiety- the anxiety/distress one feels when away from the person they are attached to
  • secure base behaviour- tend to make regular contact with the attached figure
• reciprocity

  caregivers and baby responds to each others signals and each elicit response from each other

  helps facilitate an attachment. starts from birth. Mothers spend most of in intense and highly pleasurable interaction. "turn-taking" essential part of any conversation.

  alert phases- babies have alert phases and signals- varies according to the skill of the mother an external factors such as stress. Mothers usually pick up on and respond to alertness 2 thirds of the time->Feldman and eildman(2007
• active involvement-from 3+ months interaction tends to be more frequent. involving close attention to teach others verbal signals and facial expressions (feldman- 2007)
• brazelton et al. (1975)-described interaction as a dance as it goes back and forth from each partner.