Social influence and conformity are key concepts in psychology that explore how individuals change their behavior or beliefs due to group pressure. This summary examines types of conformity, explanations for conformity, and famous experiments like Asch's conformity study. It provides an in-depth look at how social influence impacts decision-making and behavior in various contexts.
Key points:
• Conformity involves yielding to majority influence and aligning with social norms
• Three main types: compliance, identification, and internalization
• Explanations include normative and informational social influence
• Asch's classic experiment demonstrated conformity to unanimous majority in unambiguous situations
• Understanding conformity has implications for social psychology, education, and organizational behavior