AQA A-level Psychology Psychology Social Influence Essay Plans (16 markers)

Research Into Conformity
AO1
Conformity = tendency to change behaviour or attitudes in response to influence of others or social pressures (real or imagined)
• compliance
• Most superficial + temporary
• Conform publicly continues to privately disagree
• NSI (conform bc majority will approve and accept us)

• identification
• Conform because want to be associated with personal or group
• Changes, views, publicly and privately
• Maybe temporary
• NSI

• internalisation
• Deep + permanent level
• Thinks group is right
• ISI (believe majority is correct)

• NSI
• Conform because we think others will approve and accept us
• More likely lead to compliance

• ISI
• Confirm, because we have desire to be right and look to others, whom we believe to be correct
• lead to internalisation


AO3
S: ASCH
• 37% of people confirmed to an obviously incorrect answer, using an ambiguous task
• NSI + ISI

S: LAB EXPERIMENT
• high levels of control
W: LAB EXP
• artificial setting
W: CULTURE BIAS
• American college students
• Conf rates highest in collectivist cultures
• E.g: Fiji (58%)
• Lower in individualistic cultures
• Results only apply to western idiv cultures

S: PRAC APPL
• SCHULTZ: 75% reused towels
• Pro-social beh

, ASCH Conformity Research
AO1
• lab experiment
• 50 American college students
• Miss formed ps of true aim - study on perc of line length
• Student sat w 6 other confederate
• 2nd to last pos
• Asked which of 3 lines same as the the line shown
• On some critical trails confederates gave wrong answer

• overall conf = 37%
• 25% independent
• 5% conf on every trial




AO3

S: LAB EXPERIMENT
• high levels of control
• Ext vs : group size , task , pos of participant
• C+E
• Inc int val
• Allows replication

W: LAB EXP
• artificial

W: CULTURE BIAS
• American college students
• Indiv + collect cultures

S: PRAC APPLS
• NSI
• SCHULTZ:
• 75% reused towels reduced own usage by 25%