Social influence

Three main types of social influence• Compliance – behavior change based on a request• Conformity – behavior change based on social pressure• Obedience – behavior change based on instruction from an authority

Compliance

Q: How do we convince people to comply with our requests?

A: Ask for a small favor, before asking for the big favor you really want

Franklin was annoyed by a political opponent in the Pennsylvania state legislature. He thus set out to win him over, as described in one of his books:

I did not ... aim at gaining his favour by paying any servile respect to him but, after some time, took this other method. Having heard that he had in his library a certain very scarce and curious book I wrote a note to him expressing my desire of perusing that book and requesting he would do me the favour of lending it to me for a few days. He sent it immediately and I returned it in about a week with another note expressing strongly my sense of the favour. When we next met in the House he spoke to me (which he had never done before), and with great civility; and he ever after manifested a readiness to serve me on all occasions, so that we became great friends and our frendship continued to his death. This is another instance of the truth of an old maxim I had learned, which says, "He that has once done you a kindness will be more ready to do you another than he whom you yourself has obliged."

http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~wwu/psychology/persuasion.shtml

Why does it work?

Cognitive dissonance • Contradictions feel uncomfortable. Thus,• People aim to reduce their contradicting feelings

How do we reduce our contradicting feelings?• Change our behavior (“Franklin, gimme back my book, you asshole!”): hard • Change our attitude: “Benny is ok”. Much easier

Other examples of cognitive dissonance• Hazing: lots of effort to get there, I’d better like it.

– Fraternities– Military

Experimental evidence:- If I have a compelling reason for my effort (‘they paid me a shitload of $”)

- there is no dissonance => I judge the event accurately (‘it was hell’)

Other cases of cognitive dissonance

COUNTER-ATTITUDINAL ADVOCACY: when we state opinions we don't believe, we start to believe them (Festinger, 1959, Aronson 1991: aids speech)

LABELING: When told something is certain way, we modify our behavior to match that description (trash collection by 5th graders)

Compliance:

foot-in-the-door: If you agree to a small request, you are more likely to agree to a larger request

Charities: “contribute even if it is $1”

Experimental evidence (Freedman & Fraser, 1966);- control condition:

post an ugly sign ‘drive carefully’: 17% agreed- experimental group:

sign petition about driving safely promotionpost an ugly sign ‘drive carefully’: 76% agreed

door-in-the-face: If you decline a large request, you are more likely to agree to a small request

Compliance:

That’s-not-all: you are more likely to comply if you give them something in addition to the initial offer:

NPR drive: “donate;you’ll also get a DVD of The American Experience”

Bait-and-switch: Once you made a commitment, you are unlikely to back out when the conditions change

Cosmopolitan, Sports Illustrated: FREE! For six months!

Conformity: behavior change because of social pressure

Which line is the same length as the target? (Asch, 1950s)

Target A B C

Conformity

Subjects were tested in groups: - only one ‘real’ subject, the rest are confederates- For the first few trials, everyone answers correctly- Then, confederates start giving the same wrong answer

(uniformity)

Results: the subject often conformed with the group

Factors that reduce conformity:• A dissenting confederate

• Answer privately

Factors that increase conformity:- Situation is ambiguous- Situation is a crisis

Conformity influences on helping behavior

diffusion of responsibility - reduction in perceived individual responsibility, due to presence of other people.

2 reasons: - self-serving interests

- informational component

normative influence- desire to be liked, accepted and approved of

informational influence- desire to be correct, and understand how best to behave.

Factors affecting likelihood of conformity:

- Size of the group

(3 is the magic number!)

- Importance of the group

- Unanimity of the group

                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Milgram’s experiment:When shocked, the confederate gives the following standard response

voltage confederate response

75 grunts

120 shouts in pain

150 says that he refuses to continue with this experiment

200 blood-curdling screams

300refuses to answer, mumbles something about a heart

condition

+330 silence

objection milgram's response

first "He's fine. go on."

second "The experiment requires you to go on."

third "It is absolutely essential to go on."

fourth "You have no choice. You must go on."

When teacher (subject) objects, Milgram responds:

                                                                                                                    

                                                                                     

Obedience: What can we learn from Milgram’s experiment?

• The power of Situations. behavior is not just a function of personality, but also a function of the situation

• Gradual Commitment > It is just a little more than the previous one

– Politicians & corruption

– Truman & nuclear bombs in WWII

• Influence of Authority > – ‘Science’ authority (white coat, Yale U., do it in the pursuit of science) .

Manipulating Obedience: What Does Work

• Reduce Legitimacy of Authority Figure (20%) > Milgram has an ‘assitant’, and it is the ‘assistant’ who, soon after Milgram leaves, says I have a great idea: let's shock the learner when he gets things wrong! (only 20% go to max V, a 48% drop)

• Increase Distance From Authority (20%) > When Milgram instructs via a phone,

• Decrease Distance From Victim (30%) > When participants are required to put the learner's hands on the shock plates,

• Add Dissenting Voices (37.5%) > Two confederates assist the participant, but quit at 150 V mark and at 210 V mark.. 25/40 participants leave at this point.

Manipulating Obedience: What Doesn't Work

• Reduce Prestige > Replicated at a less prestigious (fake) school named Bridgeport (48% went to max V)

• Soften Personality of Authority Figure > Replicated with nicer experimenter (not so stern) (50% went to max V)

•

How can you live with yourself, after doing that?

• Transfer of responsibilities: – “I was just following orders” Abu Graib, Argentina’s ‘dirty war’

• Cognitive reinterpretation– Dehumanize the victim (“it’s his fault”) “he must have done something”