Psychology (9218) | Social influences

Study Notes: Social Influences (Psychology 9218)

Welcome to the Social Influence Chapter!

Hey there! This chapter is super exciting because it explores how the people around us—our friends, family, and society—change what we think and how we act. You'll learn why you sometimes agree with a group even when you know they are wrong, and why people follow orders, even dangerous ones.

Understanding Social Influence is key to understanding the entire "Social Context and Behaviour" section. It's all about the power of the group!

Section 1: The Power of the Crowd – Conformity

What is Conformity?

Conformity is simply changing your behaviour or beliefs to fit in with a group or society's norms (rules). We often do this automatically without even thinking about it!

Why Do We Conform? Two Main Explanations

Psychologists suggest there are two main reasons we follow the crowd. It’s important to keep these two reasons separate!

1. Informational Social Influence (ISI)

   We conform because we genuinely believe the group is right and we are wrong. We look to others for information, especially when a situation is ambiguous (unclear).
   Example: You are in a new city and don't know which bus to take. You follow the crowd that looks like they know where they are going.

2. Normative Social Influence (NSI)

   We conform to be accepted, liked, and avoid looking foolish or being rejected. We follow the 'norms' of the group. We might disagree privately, but we agree publicly.
   Example: Everyone in your class wears a specific brand of trainers. You wear them too, even if you don't think they are the best, just so you don't stand out.

Memory Tip: ISI = Need for Information (to be right). NSI = Need to be accepted (to be liked/have No trouble).

The Key Study on Conformity: Asch (1951)

The most famous study on conformity was conducted by Solomon Asch. It showed just how easily people cave to group pressure, even when the answer is obvious!

Procedure (Simplified)

1. Participants (7-9 people) were shown two cards: one with a Standard Line and one with three Comparison Lines (A, B, C).
2. In each trial, they had to say which comparison line matched the standard line. The answer was always clearly obvious.
3. Only one person was the true participant; the rest were confederates (actors working for the experimenter).
4. In certain "critical trials," the confederates deliberately gave the wrong, unanimous answer.

Key Findings

• About 32% of the participants conformed and gave the wrong answer in the critical trials.
• About 75% of participants conformed at least once.

Conclusion

Asch concluded that people often conform due to Normative Social Influence (NSI) – they knew the answer was wrong, but they changed their public response to avoid social discomfort and rejection.

Quick Review: Asch showed that group size and the presence of a dissenter (someone who disagrees) significantly affects conformity levels.

Section 2: Following Orders – Obedience

What is Obedience?

Obedience is when we follow the direct command or instruction of an authority figure. This person has a higher status than us (e.g., a teacher, a police officer, a boss).
Don't confuse obedience with conformity! Conformity is pressure from peers; Obedience is pressure from someone 'above' you.

The Key Study on Obedience: Milgram (1963)

Stanley Milgram wanted to understand why people follow destructive orders, particularly in historical events like the Holocaust.

Procedure (Simplified)

Milgram recruited participants for what they thought was a study on "memory and learning."

1. Two participants arrived: the real participant (the Teacher) and a confederate (the Learner). The Teacher was told to administer electric shocks to the Learner every time they made a mistake.
2. The Learner was strapped into a chair in another room (the shocks were fake, but the Teacher believed they were real).
3. The shock machine went from 15 volts (Slight Shock) up to 450 volts (Danger: Severe Shock).
4. If the Teacher hesitated, the Experimenter (the authority figure, wearing a white lab coat) gave verbal prods (commands), such as "Please continue," or "You have no choice, you must go on."

Key Findings (Shocking Results!)

• Every single participant (100%) went up to 300 volts (Intense Shock).
• A shocking 65% of participants went all the way to the maximum 450 volts.
• Participants showed extreme distress (sweating, trembling), but they continued because the authority figure told them to.

Conclusion

Milgram concluded that people are highly obedient to authority, even if the actions go against their personal conscience. The Experimenter's presence and perceived legitimacy played a huge role.

Why Were Participants So Obedient?

Milgram suggested people enter an Agentic State.

• Autonomous State: This is when you feel responsible for your own actions and act according to your own free will.
• Agentic State: This is when you give up your responsibility and see yourself as an "agent" carrying out the orders of someone else (the authority figure). You feel less guilt because you believe the authority figure is responsible.

Factors Affecting Obedience (Situational Variables)

Milgram varied his procedure to see what changed obedience rates:

1. Proximity (Closeness): When the Teacher and Learner were in the same room, obedience dropped (from 65% to 40%). When the Experimenter gave instructions via telephone, obedience dropped even lower (to 20.5%).
2. Location: When the study was moved from the prestigious Yale University to a run-down office building, obedience dropped (the perceived authority of the location was lower).

Key Takeaway: Obedience is high when the authority figure is perceived as legitimate, and when the victim is psychologically distant.

Section 3: The Problem of Silence – Bystander Behaviour

Have you ever seen an accident and hesitated to help, maybe waiting for someone else to step in? That hesitation is often explained by Bystander Behaviour.

The Bystander Effect

The Bystander Effect describes the psychological phenomenon where individuals are less likely to offer help to a victim when other people are present. The more people there are, the less likely anyone is to help!

Did you know? The concept was heavily researched following the horrific murder of Kitty Genovese in New York in 1964, where reports suggested 38 neighbours watched or heard the attack but failed to intervene or call the police promptly.

Explaining the Bystander Effect

1. Diffusion of Responsibility

This is the main explanation for the Bystander Effect. When many people are present, the responsibility for helping is "diffused" (spread out) among the group.

• You think: "Someone else will surely call the emergency services," or "I don't need to do anything, that person looks like they are already helping."
• The feeling of personal obligation to help decreases as the number of witnesses increases.

2. Pluralistic Ignorance

This occurs when witnesses look at each other to define the situation. If no one else is reacting, we assume the situation is not truly an emergency.

Example Analogy: Imagine smoke is filling a room. You look around. If everyone else is calm and ignores the smoke, you assume it must be harmless smoke (like steam), and you don't panic or react, even if it is a real fire.

Latané and Darley (1968)

These researchers demonstrated the Bystander Effect using laboratory experiments, such as the "Smoke-filled Room Study" and the "Seizure Study" (where a participant pretended to have an epileptic fit).

Findings: In both studies, when the participant was alone, they helped very quickly. When they were in a group (especially if the group were confederates trained not to react), they took much longer to help or did not help at all.

Key Takeaway: The presence of others delays or prevents helping behaviour due to diffusion of responsibility and pluralistic ignorance.

Summary of Key Concepts

Don't worry if this seems tricky at first! Remember these studies and explanations are about the powerful influence social situations have on us—it proves we aren't always in control of our own actions! Keep practising defining the key terms!