What is Conformity Flashcards

A change in one's behavior due to the real or imagined influence of other people

1. To fit in
2. To help us decide what to do

1. Obdeience: acting in accord with a direct order
2. Compliance: Conformity that involves publicly acting in accord with social pressure while privately disagreeing
3. Acceptance: Conformity that involves both acting and believing in accord with social pressure

-Seeing others as a source of information to guide our behavior
-We think other people know more than we do so we follow their lead

Study by Sherif (1936)
-People estimated how much a light moved in a dark room by themselves.
-Days later they were asked the same question but with a group of people.
-Results show that the group influenced their estimates
-Public compliance without private acceptance

Conforming to other people's behavior out of genuine belief that what they are doing or saying is right

Conforming to other people's behavior publicly without necessarily believing in what they are doing or saying.

Baron, Vandello, & Brunsman (1996)
People were given $20 to pick out suspects from a police lineup and were very accurate by themselves.
When not alone, they sought info from others and conformed more regardless of accuracy.
**THE MORE IMPORTANT IT IS TO BE RIGHT, THE MORE WE RELY ON OTHERS**

The rapid spread of emotions or behaviors through a crowd.

The occurence, in a group of people, of similiar physical symptoms with no known physical cause.

1. When the situation is ambiguous.
2. When the situation is a crisis.
3. When other people are experts.

-The most crucial variable
-The more unceratin you are, the more you will rely on others

-We need to act immediately
-We we are panicking, it is naturally to see what others are doing
-The ones we rely on might be afraid too, leading them no to act rationally

-The more knowledge a person has, the more trustworthy they are in an ambiguous situation
-Experts are sometimes wrong though

Ask yourself critical questions:
-Do other people know any more about what is going on than I do?
-Is an expert handy who should know more?
-Do the actions of other people or experts seem senesible?
-If I behave the way they do, will it go against my common sense or against my internal moral compass?