Deindividuation
What Deindividuation means in Psychology GCSE, as defined for AQA, Pearson Edexcel.
Definitions of Deindividuation
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Reference: Pearson Edexcel
A key psychological mechanism where anonymity reduces personal responsibility and causes a loss of personal identity, altering individual behaviour within a crowd.
Losing one's sense of personal identity and responsibility within a crowd, often leading to uncharacteristic or anti-social behaviour, such as rioting.
Loss of personal identity and accountability in a crowd, which can release antisocial acts but can also fuel prosocial action such as mass fundraising.
A reduced sense of personal identity, brought about by uniforms, mirrored sunglasses and assigned ID numbers.
Topics that use Deindividuation
- Social influence (AQA GCSE)
- Social influence (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
- Topic 5: Social influence - 5.2 Studies (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
Related terms
- Bystander intervention
- Adorno's theory of the authoritarian personality
- Authoritarian personality
- Authority
- Bystander effect
- Characteristics and link to obedience
- Collective behaviour
- Conformity
Using Deindividuation in the exam
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