Conformity: types and explanations

• Conformity


  A person's behavioral change or their opinions will change due to pressure from other people, which can be real or imagined
• Levels of conformity (Kelman)

  • Shallow (compliance)
  • Intermediate (identification)
  • Deep (internalization)
• Compliance


  Going along with a group, but keeping personal opinions
• Identification


  Valuing being a member of a group, so conforming to their behavior and ideas even if not fully agreeing
• Internalization


  Changing opinions or behavior to match the group, resulting in a permanent change in beliefs
• Informational social influence


  Conforming to the correct behavior by looking at what others are doing, leading to internalization
• Normative social influence


  Conforming to appear normal and be approved by the majority, leading to compliance
• Asch's study


  • Participants placed in a room with confederates, who gave incorrect answers, leading participants to also give incorrect answers to fit in
• The Asch study task lacks mundane realism as it is an unusual task, so conformity may work differently in real-life situations
• Jenness' study


  • Participants first guessed the number of jelly beans individually, then discussed as a group, then guessed individually again - their individual guesses moved closer to the group's
• Jenness' task also lacks mundane realism as it is an unusual task
• Some people are able to resist conformity pressure more than others, so the theories of informational and normative social influence do not fully explain conformity