psychology social influence (AQA A-LEVEL)

• What is the definition of conformity in psychology?

  Conformity is defined as yielding to group pressures.
• How is conformity defined in terms of behavior or opinion change?


  It is a change in a person’s behavior or opinion as a result of real or imagined pressure from a person or group.
• What is the difference between real and imagined pressure in conformity?

  Real pressure involves consequences for not conforming, while imagined pressure does not.
• Who proposed the three types of conformity?

  Kelman proposed the three types of conformity.
• What are the three types of conformity proposed by Kelman?

  • Internalisation: Permanent change of beliefs and values.
  • Identification: Temporary change in behavior and beliefs in the presence of a group.
  • Compliance: Temporary change to gain approval or avoid disapproval.
• What is internalisation in the context of conformity?

  Internalisation is making the beliefs, values, attitude, and behavior of the group your own, resulting in a permanent change.
• What is an example of internalisation?

  An example of internalisation is becoming religious after being brought up in a religious household.
• What is identification in conformity?


  Identification is a temporary change of behavior and beliefs only in the presence of a group.
• Provide an example of identification.

  An example of identification is acting more professional when arriving at the office.
• What does compliance mean in the context of conformity?

  Compliance means to follow others' ideas to gain approval or avoid disapproval, resulting in a temporary change.
• What is an example of compliance?


  An example of compliance is drinking alcohol when pressured by friends, despite not wanting to.
• What is informational social influence?

  Informational social influence occurs when someone conforms because they want to be right and look to others for information.
• In what situations does informational social influence typically occur?


  It usually occurs in situations where a person is uncertain or lacks knowledge.
• What evidence supports informational social influence?


  Fein et al. found that participants changed their vote after seeing others vote for a different candidate.
• What is normative social influence?


  Normative social influence occurs when someone conforms to be liked and accepted by a group.
• Provide an example of normative social influence.

  An example of normative social influence is starting to smoke because friends smoke.
• What evidence supports the link between normative social influence and bullying?


  Garandeau and Cillissen found that a boy can be manipulated by a bully to victimize another child to avoid disapproval from friends.
• What did Lucas et al. find regarding conformity and task difficulty?


  Lucas et al. found that conformity increased when the task was more difficult and participants rated their math ability unfavorably.
• How do NSI and ISI interact according to Deutsch and Gerrard’s Two Process Model?

  NSI and ISI may not be completely exclusive; a dissenting confederate can provide social support and alternative information.
• What was the aim of Asch's study?

  The aim was to investigate conformity and majority influence.
• Describe the procedure of Asch's study.

  Participants were presented with four lines and asked to state which of three lines matched the length of a standard line, with confederates giving incorrect answers.
• What percentage of participants conformed in Asch's study?

  36.8% of participants conformed.
• What was the control trial result in Asch's study?

  In a control trial, only 1% of responses were incorrect, indicating high validity of the findings.
• How does group size affect conformity according to Asch's findings?

  An individual is more likely to conform in a larger group, with conformity rising by 30% when the group size exceeds three.
• What is the optimal group size for conformity according to Asch's study?

  The optimal group size for conformity is considered to be four.
• How does unanimity affect conformity?

  An individual is more likely to conform when the group is unanimous in their answers.
• What evidence supports the effect of unanimity on conformity?

  When joined by another participant giving the correct answer, conformity fell from 32% to 5.5%.
• How does task difficulty influence conformity?

  An individual is more likely to conform when the task is difficult, as uncertainty increases.
• What did Asch find when he made the comparison lines more similar in length?

  Conformity increased when the comparison lines were made more similar in length.
• What does the evaluation of Asch's study suggest about its internal validity?

  Asch's study has high internal validity due to strict control over extraneous variables.
• Why is the lab experiment design of Asch's study significant?

  The lab experiment design allows for easy replication, increasing the reliability of the findings.
• What ethical issues were raised in Asch's study?

  Asch's study breached the BPS ethical guideline of deception and informed consent.
• How did participants respond regarding normative social influence in Asch's study?

  Participants reported conforming to fit in with the group, supporting the idea of normative influence.
• What is a weakness of Asch's study regarding ecological validity?

  It lacks ecological validity as it does not reflect the complexity of real-life conformity situations.
• What is a weakness of Asch's study regarding population validity?

  It lacks population validity due to sampling issues, as it only included American male undergraduates.
• What ethical issues were present in Asch's study?

  There was deception regarding the true nature of the study and potential psychological harm to participants.
• What did Perrin and Spencer criticize about Asch's study?

  Perrin and Spencer criticized the study for lacking temporal validity due to the social context of the 1950s.
• What was the aim of Zimbardo's study?

  The aim was to investigate how readily people would conform to social roles in a simulated environment.
• Describe the procedure of Zimbardo's study.

  Participants were randomly assigned roles of guard or prisoner in a simulated prison environment.
• What were the findings of Zimbardo's study regarding role adoption?

  Identification occurred rapidly, with guards harassing prisoners and prisoners internalizing their roles.