Resistance to SI

• Resisting the pressure to conform can be easier if there are others also resisting the pressure to conform

  • when someone else is also not conforming, this will appear to be social support and allows the person to follow the conscience
• Albrecht et al (2006): Evaluated a programme designed to help pregnant teenagers resist smoking
• Albrecht et al (2006) - procedure:

  • social support was provided to some of the teenagers by an older mentor
  • At the end of the 8 week programme they found the PPs who had a mentor were less likely to smoke than the control group who did not have a mentor
• Albrecht et al (2006) - conclusion:

  Shows that social support can help young people resist social influence
• Locus of control = the extent to which we believe we have control over our own behaviour and life
• External locus of control:

  When a person feels they do not have control over their own lives and believe their life is controlled by external factors
• External Locus of control = behaviour controlled by luck or fate
• Internal locus of control:

  When a person feels they have control over our own life and behaviour
• Internal locus of control - believe that behaviour is caused by own decisions/efforts
• People with high Internal locus of control are believed to be able to resist the pressure to conform and obey

  • tend to be more self-confident, intelligent and have greater resistance to social control
• Resistance to Social influence - PEEL 1:

  Strength - Research support - Holland (1967) - increases the validity of LoC as an explanation for obedience
• Holland (1967):

  • repeated Milgram’s baseline study and measured whether PPs were internal or externals
  • 37% of internals did not continue to highest shock level
  • Only 23% of externals did not continue

  Therefore internals showed greater resistance to authority
• Resistance to Social influence - PEEL 2:

  Weakness - opposing study - Twenge et al (2004) analysed date from American LoC conducted over a 40 year period (1960 to 2002).

  • the data showed that people became more resistant to obedience but also more external ————> Therefore LoC is not a valid explanation
• Resistance to Social influence - PEEL 3:

  Strength - Albrecht et al (2006) - supports the idea of social support so that it has strong practical applications
• Resistance to Social influence - PEEL 4:

  Weakness - Rotter (1982) suggest our locus of control only has influence in new situations

  ———> therefore they have previously obeyed or conformed to a situation, they are likely to do so again