Social Influence
Social influence means Changes in a person’s behavior induced by the actions of another
person (Someone else influences your decision).
Conformity (Group Influence in Action)
Conformity is a type of social influence in
which individuals change their attitudes or
behavior in order to adhere to social norms
likewise rules regarding how people are
expected to behave in specific situations.
Children learn by imitating others and
adults follow the most common form of
behaviour in their society. Therefore
conformity becomes common, even in
large groups.
Asch’s Research on Conformity
A famous study about conformity was completed by
Solomon Asch in the 1950’s, Asch had subjects come into a
laboratory setting and give answers to a simple line matching
task.
Participants were asked to indicate which of three lines
matched a standard line in length.
Asch’s Research on Conformity
During the critical trials,
participants had to give their
answers after a unanimous group
gave the wrong answer and results When tested alone (no
were as follow: confederates), subjects got more
• 37% went along with the group on a than 98% of the judgments correct.
majority of the trials
• 24% remained completely independent
• 76% conformed at least once
Factoring Affecting Conformity(variables
determine the extent to which we go along)
Cohesiveness and conformity
The degree of attraction felt by an individual toward an influencing group. As cohesiveness
increases, conformity increases because cohesiveness and the desire to be accepted can be viewed
as factors that intensify the tendency to conform. Greater the cohesiveness higher chances of
changes in attitude and behaviors.
Group size and conformity
As group size increases, conformity increases because larger the group—the greater the number of
people who behave in some specific way—the greater our tendency to conform and “do as they do.”
Factoring Affecting Conformity
Descriptive and Injunctive Social Norms
Descriptive Norms
What most people are doing in given situations, they influence behavior by
informing us about what is generally seen as effective or adaptive in that situation.
Injunctive Norms
What ought to be done in given situation means what is approved or disapproved
behavior in a given situation.
Both can increase conformity.
Factoring Affecting Conformity
The social roots of conformity (why people conform)
People conform because two reasons and this is an especially strong source of conformity
when the task is important and difficulty and uncertainty are high.
Normative social influence
It is based on the desire to be liked or accepted by others.
Informational social influence
It is based on the desire to possess accurate social perceptions.
This is an especially strong source of conformity when the task is important and difficulty and
uncertainty are high.
Factoring Affecting Conformity
Downsized of conformity
Pressures to conform, and our tendency to surrender to such pressures, can sometimes result in very
harmful effects.
Resisting pressure to conform (why sometimes we choose not to go along)
Sometimes people don’t go along with others because of Individuation—people’s need to be
distinguishable from others in some respects. Some people cannot conform due to physical, legal, or
psychological reasons.
Factoring Affecting Conformity
Resisting pressure to conform
Gender difference
Gender differences in conformity are much smaller than was once assumed, and appear to exist
only in very special circumstances. Still very high in our culture. Men tend to hold higher status
jobs and positions in many societies than do women. And there is a relationship between status and
susceptibility to social influence: Lower status leads to greater tendencies to conform .
Minority influence
Minorities can influence majorities when they must be consistent in opposition, flexible, with social
trends. Minorities often must form strong arguments to defend their positions and may overestimate
the support for their views can increase their perseverance and result in large-scale social change
Compliance(To Ask –sometimes- is to Receive
It is a type of social influence involving direct requests from one person to another for
getting others to say yes to your requests.
There are certain principles that underling compliance are as under:
Friendship or liking
Commitment or consistency
Scarcity
Reciprocity
Compliance
Tactics based on friendship or liking (ingratiation)
In this tactics requesters first induce target to like them, use flattery,
improve one’s appearance, emit positive nonverbal cues,
do small favors for target person.
Because through this way people try
to increase the chances they will agree
to request they make.
Compliance
Tactics based on scarcity
Play hard to get
A technique suggesting that a person or
object is scarce and hard to obtain.
Deadlines technique
A technique through which we target
persons that they have only limited
time to take advantage of some offer or to obtain some item.
Compliance
Tactics based on reciprocity
Door-in-the-face technique
A technique through which requesters begin with a large request and then,
when this is refused, retreat to a smaller one.
That’s-not –all approach
A technique I which requesters offer additional benefits to target persons
before they have decided whether to comply with or reject specific requests.
Compliance
Tactics based on commitment and consistency
Foot-in-the-door technique
A technique through which requesters begin with a small request and then, when it is granted,
escalate to a larger one.
Lowball procedure
It is a procedure in which an offer or deal is changed to make it less attractive to the target
person after this person has accepted it.
Symbolic Social Influence(how we are
influence by others even when they’re not there)
Symbolic Social Influence results from the mental representations of others or our
relationships with them. People can be influenced by others even when they are not
physically present.
Obedience to Authority(would you harm an
innocent stranger if order to so?)
Obedience is a form of social influence in which one person simply orders one or more
others to perform some action.
Obedience in the laboratory (Milgram’s Obedience Studies,1963, 1965, 1974)
In a laboratory participants told to deliver increasing levels of shock to a “learner” each time he made
an error on a learning task. 65% obeyed to the fullest extent. Similar findings were found in many
cultures and with adults and children.
Obedience
Destructive obedience (why it occurs)
We know that authority always brings responsibility and its status is evident and reminds people to
obey the social norms. Authority’s commands involve gradual escalation (the foot-in-the-door
compliance technique) and resultantly participants have little time for reflection or systematic
processing and that is destructive obedience occur.
Obedience
Destructive obedience and resisting its effects
To resist the effects of destructive obedience we have to increase participants’ responsibility for any
harm done to others. Indicate that total submission to authority is inappropriate and also provide
disobedient models, question authority’s expertise and motives. Increase awareness of the power of
the situation and some time it important to share the results of research studies on obedience.
• Changing one’s behavior in response to
Conformity real or imagined pressure from others.
• Responding favorably to an explicit
Compliance
Summary request by another person.
• Social influence in which the less powerful
Obedience in an unequal power relationship submits
to the demands of more powerful person.
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