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Conformity and obedience in society
Conformity and obedience in society
Conformity as a type of social influence
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Conformity is the result of social influences and is the action of changing one’s behavior to align them with the behaviors of the people around them. While conformity is a tool of social interaction, there are positives and negatives outcomes that come with it. What is not widely discussed is the positive and negatives effects that conformity has on employees. There are numerous studies on conformity, most of which discusses memory conformity, academic conformity, and even the effects of conformity on innovation. However, at the same time, there is minimal empirical research pertaining specifically to conformity in the work environment and how employees of different ages will react when presented with the opportunity to conform to their coworkers. Also, there is minimal research about whether or not the experience level of the employee in various age groups has any effect on the rate of conformity in the work environment. All of the previous conducted research will lay a good foundation to …show more content…
Of all the forms of conformity, memory conformity is the most widely researched and discussed due to its applicability to the legal system. Witnesses are great for testifying against crimes. However, their memories are easily susceptible to another persons’ side of the stories due to informational influences, which are based on a need to be accurate, and normative influences, which are motivated by the necessity for maximum positive social outcomes. As well as normative and informational influences, the social and personal power that one person has over another also leads to memory conformity (Carol, Carlucci, Eaton, & Wright, 2013; Williamson, Weber, & Robertson, 2013). In a study done by Carol et. al. (2013), the social power roles between confederates and subjects were manipulated in three different arrangements with three different independent variables, and the study found that, in a workplace,
What Psychological Research Has Told Us about the Accuracy of Eyewitness Testimony L and P = Loftus and Palmer Pps = Participants EWT = Eyewitness testimony Despite the considerable importance juror’s place on EWT, psychological research has shown that EWT tends to be unreliable. This unreliability can be explained in terms of the reconstructive nature of memory (schema theory).
The novel, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley first published in 1932, presents a very bleak out look of what future society will be like. The novel presents a future of where almost total conformity is a carefully guarded aspect of society. Even before one is "decanted" they are conditioned to fill a specific roll and to act a certain way.
Law And Human Behavior, 35(6), 452-465. doi:10.1007/s10979-010-9257-x. Persistent link to this record : http://search.ebscohost.com.unh-proxy01.newhaven.edu:2048/login.aspx?direct=true&db=pdh&AN=2011-19356-003&site=ehost-live&scope=site Newring, K. B., & O'Donohue, W. (2008). False confessions and influenced witnesses. Applied Psychology in Criminal Justice, 4(1), 81-107. Persistent link to this record.
In society, it's difficult to go against the norm. Individuals are compelled to act a specific way, or look a specific way in order to be accepted. For instance, teenagers may encounter pressure from their peers to partake in specific exercises that may not be moral, since they feel the need to fit in. This weight of conformity isn't just present in reality; it can be found in literature as well. The story "St. Lucy’s Home For Girls Raised by Wolves" by Karen Russell depicts that in order to conform to society, individuals abandon their selflessness and compassion and become selfish and apathetic.
Pursuing a personal desire and choosing to conform to societal expectations is a challenging decision to make. A person must decide if their personal desire is worth risking the shame and judgment of others or is conforming the route to take because it is easier. When pursuing a personal desire one must ask itself if it is worth the hardship to accomplish one's desire or if it is best left alone and repressed, in hopes of finding comfort in conformity. John Laroche from The Orchid Thief expresses his personal desire without a care for conformity or societal expectations. Nevertheless, Laroche never stopped being strange as he grew up with fascinations of many objects such as orchids, turtles, old mirrors and fish tanks.
The Conformist directed by Bernardo Bertolucci follows the rise and fall of Italian Fascism, but tells it through the perspective of one man, Marcello Clerici. The narrative of the film is told through several non-sequential flashbacks that take place while Clerici and his chauffeur are driving to assassinate Professor Luca Quadri, a former professor of Clerici who is an exiled fascist. Clerici is a man of a troubled past and an uncertain future. He joined the Fascist secret police even though he doesn’t seem to really believe in Fascism and he’s marrying a woman that he doesn’t necessarily seem to love. All to have a life that appears normal. Marcello Clerici is a man imprisoned by his need to fit in, to appear socially and politically normal.
Many people assume that being a conformist is fine because you fit in into groups. Even though being a conformist might be okay have you ever thought about being an individual ? Quit being a follower and start being a leader. Think about it if you were in a classroom and all of a sudden there is an earthquake but you see no-one moving, what do you do ? do you move for your safety or do you stay so that you won't look like a fool.
As we grow up we are told to be individuals, but once we grow up we obey authority figures and change our beliefs to fit in with others. No matter what age we are we will always comply to a behavior or belief to fit in with a group different than ours or to be liked. We do not like to be judged or looked at as an outsider; this will remain the same in which ever situation we find ourselves in. Whether it be in a professional setting such as work or a social setting with friends. When thinking of conformity and obedience we mostly think of cults and prisons but it is not always the case.
Conformity and Obedience in Society The desire to be accepted and belong to a group is an undeniable human need. But how does this need affect an individual? Social psychologists have conducted numerous experiments and concluded that, through various forms of social influence, groups can change their members’ thoughts, feelings, and behavior. In her essay “Group Minds,” Doris Lessing discusses our paradoxical ability to call ourselves individuals and our inability to realize that groups define and influence us.
Elliot Aronson (2012) provides a definition of conformity, two social psychological processes that underlie a conformity and cited examples of reasons why people conform in the book, The Social Animal. Aronson (2012) defines a conformity as “a change in a person’s behavior or opinion as a result of real or imagined pressure from a person or group of people” (p.19). In accordance with Aronson’s (2012) definition of conformity, people do conform owing to the social influence, which are two main social psychological processes: belonging and getting information.
Conformity, or going along with the crowd, is a unique phenomenon that manifests itself in our thoughts and behaviors. It’s quite simple to identify countless examples of the power of conformity in virtually all aspects of social life. Conformity influences our opinions and relationships with others, often to a higher extent than we realize. It is posited that people generally conform to the group in order to fit in and avoid rejection or because they truly believe the group is more knowledgeable than they are. After analyzing numerous studies and experiments on the nature of conformity, one will find that the motive of social acceptance is the greatest driver of conformity.
A group is defined as two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who have come together to achieve particular objectives (Robbins & Judge, 2009). At some point in all of our careers, we will be tasked with working within a group setting. This discussion board will focus on conformity and deviant workplace behavior, and how each can negatively affect the outcome of working within a group setting.
Eyewitness testimony has long been prized as the highest form of evidence in a courtroom, placing enormous value on the memory of a witness. After all, if someone has observed a crime, the details must be engrained in their memory, right? Well, not exactly. Unlike a fixed and pristine record of time, memory is a complex cognitive process which is not only determined by variables surrounding the actual event, but is also heavily influenced by the perceptions, interpretations, and emotions of the individual (Zaragoza & Mitchell, 1996). In fact, evidence suggests that the simple act of retelling a story alters the original memory, and that the power of suggestion can lead people to not only change the details of an incident, but in many cases,
Conformity, compliance and obedience are behavioural consequences of social influence (real or imagined social pressure) that occur in the presence of a group or other individuals (Elsenbroich & Xenitidou, 2012). Often these concepts are misinterpreted as being the same or even synonymous and while they do have similarities they are also very dissimilar. In social psychology conformity, compliance and obedience are distinct concepts that coincide due to their effect on behaviour in the presence of others. Pascual, Line Felonneau, Guéguen & Lafaille (2013) define conformity as an altering of behaviour and beliefs in an individual in order to reflect the behaviour and beliefs of the group that holds influence, though Myers (2014) emphasises that
So why do people conform? Psychologists believe there are two main reasons: normative influence and informative influence. Kaplan and Miller define normative influence as conforming due to “concerns about the group and one’s position in it,” and informative influence as conforming due to “concerns about being accurate and arriving at correct solutions” (Kaplan and Miller, 1987).