PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 1 AQA | STUDY
GUIDE AND EXAM REVISION | PRACTICE
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,Conformity A change in behaviour or beliefs due to real or imagined group pressure.
Kelman's three types of conformity Compliance, Identification, and Internalisation.
Compliance Public change only, private beliefs unchanged; stops when group pressure ends.
Identification Temporary change in beliefs and behaviour to be accepted by a group.
Internalisation Deep, permanent change in beliefs because the person accepts the group's views as
correct.
Normative social influence (NSI) Conforming to be liked, accepted, or to avoid social rejection.
Informational social influence (ISI) Conforming because others are believed to have more accurate information.
When is ISI more likely to occur? Ambiguous situations, crisis situations, or when others are experts.
When is NSI more likely to occur? When a person wants approval or fears rejection.
Evaluate Kelman's types of conformity (strength) Useful distinction that explains different levels of conformity used in research.
Evaluate Kelman's types of conformity (limitation) May oversimplify conformity - real behaviour may not fit exact categories.
Strength of NSI Supported by Asch - participants conformed to avoid rejection.
Limitation of NSI Does not explain conformity when responses are anonymous - pressure to be liked
removed.
Strength of ISI Supported by Lucas et al. - more conformity on difficult maths problems.
Limitation of ISI Individual differences - Perrin & Spencer found little conformity in science students.
General limitation of ISI vs NSI distinction Both often work together, not separately - difficult to isolate in real life.
, Asch's conformity study (procedure) 123 male US students, line-judging task; naive participant with 6-8 confederates giving
wrong answers.
Asch's findings 37% conformity rate; 75% conformed at least once; 25% never conformed.
Variables manipulated by Asch Group size, unanimity, task difficulty.
Effect of a dissenter in Asch's study Conformity dropped from 37% to 5%.
Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment (SPE) Mock prison, students randomly assigned prisoner or guard; guards became abusive,
prisoners passive; study stopped after 6 days.
Zimbardo's SPE findings People conform strongly to social roles; behaviour influenced by situational factors.
Milgram's obedience study (procedure) Participant = teacher, confederate = learner; shocks increased up to 450V for wrong
answers.
Milgram's findings 65% obeyed to 450V; all obeyed to 300V; participants showed signs of distress.
Agentic state When a person sees themselves as an agent of authority and does not feel personal
responsibility.
Agentic shift Movement from autonomous state to agentic state when following authority.
Situational factor affecting obedience Proximity - obedience dropped when teacher and learner were in the same room.
Authoritarian personality Personality type characterised by obedience to authority, hostility to lower-status groups,
and rigid thinking (Adorno et al. 1950).
Strength of Asch's study High control → reliable results.
Limitation of Asch's study Artificial task → low ecological validity; androcentric and ethnocentric sample.
Strength of Zimbardo's SPE Demonstrates power of social roles and situational factors in behaviour.
Limitation of Zimbardo's SPE Ethical issues - psychological harm, lack of full consent; possible demand characteristics.
GUIDE AND EXAM REVISION | PRACTICE
MATERIALS | 100% VERIFIED | A+
GUARANTEE
Updated Questions and Answers | 100% Verified Exam Prep
,Conformity A change in behaviour or beliefs due to real or imagined group pressure.
Kelman's three types of conformity Compliance, Identification, and Internalisation.
Compliance Public change only, private beliefs unchanged; stops when group pressure ends.
Identification Temporary change in beliefs and behaviour to be accepted by a group.
Internalisation Deep, permanent change in beliefs because the person accepts the group's views as
correct.
Normative social influence (NSI) Conforming to be liked, accepted, or to avoid social rejection.
Informational social influence (ISI) Conforming because others are believed to have more accurate information.
When is ISI more likely to occur? Ambiguous situations, crisis situations, or when others are experts.
When is NSI more likely to occur? When a person wants approval or fears rejection.
Evaluate Kelman's types of conformity (strength) Useful distinction that explains different levels of conformity used in research.
Evaluate Kelman's types of conformity (limitation) May oversimplify conformity - real behaviour may not fit exact categories.
Strength of NSI Supported by Asch - participants conformed to avoid rejection.
Limitation of NSI Does not explain conformity when responses are anonymous - pressure to be liked
removed.
Strength of ISI Supported by Lucas et al. - more conformity on difficult maths problems.
Limitation of ISI Individual differences - Perrin & Spencer found little conformity in science students.
General limitation of ISI vs NSI distinction Both often work together, not separately - difficult to isolate in real life.
, Asch's conformity study (procedure) 123 male US students, line-judging task; naive participant with 6-8 confederates giving
wrong answers.
Asch's findings 37% conformity rate; 75% conformed at least once; 25% never conformed.
Variables manipulated by Asch Group size, unanimity, task difficulty.
Effect of a dissenter in Asch's study Conformity dropped from 37% to 5%.
Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment (SPE) Mock prison, students randomly assigned prisoner or guard; guards became abusive,
prisoners passive; study stopped after 6 days.
Zimbardo's SPE findings People conform strongly to social roles; behaviour influenced by situational factors.
Milgram's obedience study (procedure) Participant = teacher, confederate = learner; shocks increased up to 450V for wrong
answers.
Milgram's findings 65% obeyed to 450V; all obeyed to 300V; participants showed signs of distress.
Agentic state When a person sees themselves as an agent of authority and does not feel personal
responsibility.
Agentic shift Movement from autonomous state to agentic state when following authority.
Situational factor affecting obedience Proximity - obedience dropped when teacher and learner were in the same room.
Authoritarian personality Personality type characterised by obedience to authority, hostility to lower-status groups,
and rigid thinking (Adorno et al. 1950).
Strength of Asch's study High control → reliable results.
Limitation of Asch's study Artificial task → low ecological validity; androcentric and ethnocentric sample.
Strength of Zimbardo's SPE Demonstrates power of social roles and situational factors in behaviour.
Limitation of Zimbardo's SPE Ethical issues - psychological harm, lack of full consent; possible demand characteristics.
