Social Impact Theory

• Social Impact Theory


  Theory developed by Bib Latane and Wolf
• 3 elements of Social Impact Theory


  • Social Forces
  • Psychosocial Law (diminishing returns)
  • Multiplication vs division of impact
• Social Forces


  • Strength
  • Number
  • Immediacy
• Strength


  Importance of the person giving the orders, determined by age, status, gender
• Number


  Message is stronger if given by a lot of people who are in agreement
• Immediacy


  Message will have more impact if it comes from someone in close proximity
• Psychosocial law


  As the number of people increases, so does the social influence, but at a diminishing rate
• Multiplication vs division of impact


  The larger the audience, the smaller the social impact (it gets divided)
• Social Impact Theory


  Theory that explains how the presence of others influences an individual's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
• Supporting evidence for Social Impact Theory

  • ASCH lab experiment - 32% conformed and gave incorrect answer, 75% conformed at least once
  • Milgram and Bickman field experiment - increasing number of confederates increases number of passers-by, but with diminishing rate
• Social Impact Theory


  • Sees individuals as passive receivers of social impact
  • Suggests individuals have no control over their actions
  • Oversimplifies the nature of human interactions and differences
•  Supporting evidence ASCH 


   lab experiment to ask a ppant in a group with 7 confederates to state out loud which line on a paper was most like the target line. The confederates all gave incorrect answers, and the ppant was asked last. On average, 32% conformed+gave incorrect answer, and in 12 clinical trials, 75% conformed atleast once. T/f supports social forces of number and immediacy, increasing validity of SIT​
• Supporting evidence Milgram and Bickman


  field experiment, 1-15 confederates congregated on street and looked up at the 6th floor of a uni building. Milgram was recording from the 6th floor and the vid was analysed + number of passerbys counted. Found that although increasing the number of confederated increases the number of passers stopping by, the number grew smaller relative to the size of the confederate groups. T/f supporting psychosocial law as the social influence had a diminishing rate
• Reductionist 


  sees individuals as passive recievers of social impact, suggesting that an individual has no control over their actions, so oversimplifies the nature of human interactions and differences between us. T/f not sufficient theory as doesn’t consider the complexity of human behaviour, tf limited in explaining obedience​
•  Descriptive rather than explanatory


  doesn’t explain cognition behind why people are influence by others , just under what conditions they are likely to be influenced. T/f reductionist and simplistic theory of obedience​