Conformity
Which TYPE of conformity is most likely when a person knows the answer is wrong but still wants social approval
Internalisation
Name the 3 explanations of obedience we have looked at
Situational variables
Agentic state
Authoritarian personality
What is the aim of Asch's study
to examine the extent to which social pressure from a majority, could affect a person to conform.
100% of ppts went to 300v
65% of ppts went to 450v
Ppts were sweating, trembling, some had seizures
According to Moscovici, what characteristic must a minority have to influence the majority?
Consistency
How does normative social influence lead to compliance?
A person knows the answer is wrong but goes along with it as they want social approval
What is the best explanation of obedience
No right or wrong answer, just wanted you to engage in some critical thinking :)
According to Asch, how does group size affect conformity.
As group size increases, as does conformity (to an extent). Once group size reaches 3-4 people, conformity levels off.
Identify and explain one situational variable that affected obedience in Milgram's study.
Uniform (20%)
Proximity (22.5)
Location (45%)
Why is flexibility important for a minority to influence the majority?
Being too rigid can make the minority seem dogmatic; flexibility shows willingness to compromise, making them more persuasive.
Explain the difference between compliance, internalisation, and identification
Compliance is outward agreement but internal disagreement, identification is conforming to fit in with a group, and internalisation is adopting beliefs both publicly and privately.
What is the authoritarian personality, and how is it linked to obedience?
It is a personality type characterized by submissiveness to authority and hostility towards lower-status groups, linked to higher obedience.
Identify and explain 1 ethical issue in Asch's study.
Deception, as participants were misled about the true purpose of the study.
How did some of Milgram's participants show resistance to social influence
Not all participants obeyed and went to 450v
Many ppts wanted to withdraw earlier and required prompts
Many showed visible signs of moral strain
How does Moscovici's research support the idea of minority influence
By showing that consistent, committed, and flexible minorities create social conflict and internal change, he established that they can influence majorities, often causing internal, private, or indirect conversion rather than public conformity
Which type of conformity is most likely to continue after group pressure is removed
Internalisation
Using the agentic state, how can we explain why soldiers obeyed Hitler in WW2?
The soldiers moved from an autonomous state and saw themselves working as an 'agent' for Hitler, therefore passing the blame and reducing any guilt
Which of Asch's variations assesses informational social influence and why?
Task difficulty because the correct answer wasn't obvious so the ppt was unsure which was correct
How can we use Locus of Control to explain why only 65% of Milgram's participant's obeyed
The ppts who went to 450v likely had an external locus of control, therefore didn't take accountability for their actions and were less likely to feel guilt. The people who withdrew from the study likely had an internal locus of control
What is the snowball effect, and how does it relate to minority influence?
It is when a minority gradually gains support until the viewpoint becomes accepted by the majority.
Explain 1 piece of research into conformity we have looked at (you cannot use Asch or any of the variations)
Schultz
Lucas
Explain 1 weakness of the agentic state as an explanation for obedience?
Can be seen as reductionist as it ignores other factors such as personality
How did Asch's study demonstrate high internal validity, but low ecological validity
As it was a lab experiment, Asch had high control over extraneous variables making it have high internal validity. However the environment and task can not be related to real life so lacks ecological validity
Explain two criticisms of Milgram’s research methodology.
Ethical concerns (e.g., deception, stress on participants) and lack of ecological validity as the lab setting might not reflect real-world obedience.
What is the difference between minority influence and conformity
Minority influence leads to internalisation (private change), while conformity often leads to compliance (public change without private agreement).