Depth Study - Social Conformity and Non-Conformity

Conformity

• Conformity is change that happens as a consequence of group expectations and pressure.

• This can be either real (explicit) or perceived, and usually involves an individual shifting their behaviour to better align with the majority.

• Conformity comes in 2 variants: informational and normative.

  • Informational conformity results from agreement with the status quo; in other words, you believe/agree with the behaviour of the larger group, and therefore participate in it voluntarily.
  • Normative conformity results from wanting to be percieved as normal; this stems from a fundamental fear of exclusion and rejection, and is the foundation of principles like peer pressure.

  Factors Affecting Conformity

• Age is a major factor, especially during adolescent and adult years.

  • As a child, fitting into society is less of a concern for the individual.
  • However, teenage years typically involve seeking approval from one’s peers, and therefore results in an increased interest in conforming to the collective behaviour of one’s age group.
  • In a similar manner, employment and being a functional adult requires a significant amount of conformity to societal norms.

• Culture is also a significant factor, composed of religion, ethnic, national and regional traditions, customs, and expectations.

• The size of the group also affects conformity. Larger groups tend to have shared moral values and are more difficult to reject (e.g. Australian Culture, religion)

Obedience

• Obedience is typically a consequence of normative conformity.
• It is usually described as an individual’s willingness to change their behaviour on the command of an authority.
• An individual’s obedience is directly related to the influence of the authority and the respective imbalance of power between them.
• Typically, social groups will expect obedience to an internal authority, although the levels vary wildly between groups.
  • For example, obedience to the government (through the law) is almost universally expected, while more informal social norms are malleable on an individual basis.
• The authority may not necessarily be a person: in religious communities, sacred texts are often treated as an authority which should be obeyed.

Factors Affecting Obedience

Sources of Influence and Authority

Forms of Obedience

De-Individuation

• De-individuation is the theory that as a member of a group, a person inherently becomes more anonymous and loses their sense of self-awareness.
• People will experience a lack of restraint, loss of personal identity, and diminished sense of responsibility.
• This often leads to anti-social and aggressive behaviour.
• This theory has been heavily criticised since the 1990s, and alternative theories have become increasingly popular in recent decades.

Causes of De-Individuation

• Being a part of a group is the fundamental driver of de-individuation.
• The theory states that because people want to fit in with the group, they adopt the behavioural patterns that are common to all members.
• As such, there are increasingly minute differences between group members, which causes them to only be able to function as a member of the group.
• The anti-social and aggressive behaviour is a consequence of being removed from the individual’s comfort zone (i.e. the group). This is effectively a reaction to percieved hostility.
• Additionally, the loss of identity means that the individual expects the backing of the group when committing to a course of action, whether or not this is explicitly provided.

Effects of De-Individuation

• Rise in aggression and crime (i.e. looting during riots)
• Heightened emotions
• Impulsive and irrational behaviour - A 2003 study¹ found that 206 of 500 violent attacks in Northern Ireland were carried out by offenders who disguised their identities.
• Dehumanisation of victims - This is one of the main components of “institutionalised” or “systemic” racism/sexism/homophobia (i.e. “they shouldn’t have been wearing that” or “they shouldn’t choose to be gay”).
• Lack of personal responsibility - Easiest example is “keyboard warriors” who will happily argue with people online but are completely placid in person.

Non-Conformity

• Non-conformity is any deviation from social norms.

• This typically involved violating the rules or expectations of a group.

• Society is based on the consensus of the majority, and as a consequence, foundational principles will often be challenged by minority groups.

• “Social cues” are designed to bring awareness to inappropriate behaviours.

• Social norms indicate what is considered “appropriate” behaviour by members of a society.

  • These can take the form of legal, moral, or religious norms.

• Non-conformant behaviour is often described as “deviancy”.

Costs and Benefits of Non-Conformity

What are attitudes?

• Positive or negative view of something
• Involves evaluation of issues
• Ambivalence also considered an attitude → formed by 
individuals/groups experience for the past in addition to current 
circumstances 


What is agenda setting? 


• Related to media and its ability to manipulate public perception of issues by concentrating on just a few key issues and topic
• Agenda setting in media is about harnessing power of people to influence public opinion
• Able to use public opinion to influence public policy
• Achieved through frequent and prominent coverage of news items, therefore their audiences come to regard issue as important

Consequences of agenda setting

• Particular groups in society may be unfairly targeted and portrayed in unjustifiably positive/negative light

• Creates need for social and cultural literacy when approaching media

• Demonstration or dehumanization of some groups

• People tend to immediately form opinion about group rather than adopt neutral position and therefore do not engage in comprehensive analysis but rely on manipulated information

  • This is called ‘priming’, and is a tactic used in relation to sensitive political issues 


• Salience of issues influence observable group behaviours 


• Strength of public opinion increases as news coverage does 


• Framing stories takes place at micro and macro levels
necessary tool for relaying complex issues 🡪 journalists present stories that resonate with public and influences perception by using anecdotes and stereotypes 


Influence of Non-Conformity on Social Change

• Nonconformist groups extremely important in instigating social change
• Groups draw attention to current inequalities
• Positive social change takes place when authorities alter practices and 
policies
• Well-represented nonconformist groups have been solely responsible 
for improving life chances of people at macro, meso and micro levels 


Citations and Useful Sources