A clear and visual summary of Social Influence for AQA AS and A Level Psychology. These notes helped me to achieve an A in A Level Psychology. It includes everying in the Social Influence topic, as well as definitions (in bold) and evaluation points laid out in PEE format for longer answer question...
AQA A-Level Psychology Topic One: Social Influence
Conformity
Types of conformity:
Compliance - agreement in public to gain group approval, but
disagreement in private. It’s short term and ends as soon as group
pressure stops
Identification - agreement in public because of a want to be a part of or
admire a group, but privately disagree. Their views do not change, there is
no time frame.
Internalisation - agreement and change in behaviour in public as well as
privately as the individual has accepted the group’s beliefs. Their private
beliefs have changed and it is long-term.
Asch (1951)
Aimed to see if participants would conform to unambiguous tasks
Procedure Results
Showed participants a standard Incorrect answer given 36.8% of
line and comparison lines the time
Asked participant and 25% of participants did not
confederates to state which line conform in any of the trials
matched the standard line (75% conformed at least once)
Each participant tested with 6-8 In interviews, participants
confederates admitted to Normative Social
The confederates began by Influence
giving the correct answer, then
began saying the incorrect
answer
Evaluation
Lacks historical Androcentric Ethnocentric
validity P – Only men were P – Only Americans
P – Lacks historical tested. were tested, an
validity as society has E – Neto (1995) individualistic culture
changed since 1950s suggested that women E – Bond and Smith
America may be more (1996) repeated the
E – Perrin and Spencer conformist. study in collectivist
(1980) repeated the E – This suggests that cultures, e.g. China,
study in the UK with Asch’s research may were conformity rates
engineering students. not be applicable to were higher
1/396 conformed women, limiting its E – This suggests that
E – This suggests that usefulness Asch’s research can
the study is not only be applied to
consistent across time. individualistic cultures,
, AQA A-Level Psychology Topic One: Social Influence
limiting its usefulness
Asch’s variations
Group size Unanimity Task Anonymity
difficulty
Variation Decreased One Made the Participant
group size to confederate lines more wrote
3 went against similar in answers down
confederates the majority, length on paper as
and one sometimes opposed to
participant getting the saying it
answer right aloud
and
sometimes
wrong
Result Conformity Conformity Conformity Conformity
decreased to dropped by a increased dropped
31.8% quarter significantly
Barely
changes
regardless of
how many
more
confederates
added
Conclusion a majority of Easier for the Due to Due to
drawn three needed participant to informational pressure to
to make avoid social conform
someone conformity to influence being
conform the majority lessened due
to anonymity
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