Social influence — Edexcel GCSE Psychology
Test yourself on Social influence with PEARSON EDEXCEL GCSE practice questions.
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Social influence explained
Social influence explores how individuals' thoughts and actions are altered by others.
Read the full explanation
Obedience involves following direct orders from a perceived authority figure, such as a student obeying a headteacher. Conformity is yielding to real or imagined group pressure, changing behaviour to fit in with a majority, like adopting a fashion trend. Deindividuation occurs when individuals lose their sense of personal identity and responsibility within a crowd, often leading to uncharacteristic or anti-social behaviour, such as rioting. The bystander effect is the phenomenon where a person is less likely to provide help in an emergency when other people are present, assuming someone else will intervene, such as ignoring a collapsed pedestrian on a busy street.
Your focus
- Define the term obedience in the context of social influence.
- Distinguish between conformity and obedience using appropriate examples.
- Explain the concepts of deindividuation and the bystander effect.
Social influence exam tips
Marking Points
- Define obedience as following direct instructions from an authority figure.
- Define conformity as changing behaviour or beliefs to align with a group majority.
- Define deindividuation as the loss of personal identity and accountability in a group setting.
- Define the bystander effect as the reduced likelihood of helping a victim when others are present.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Use clear, distinct examples for each term to demonstrate your understanding in applied questions.
- 💡When defining conformity, ensure you mention that the pressure can be real or imagined.
- 💡Look out for multiple-choice questions that describe a scenario and ask you to identify which of the four terms is being demonstrated.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing obedience and conformity: Obedience involves a direct order from an authority figure, whereas conformity involves yielding to peer pressure without a direct command.
- Misunderstanding deindividuation: Students often think it just means being in a group, but it specifically requires a loss of personal identity and a reduced sense of individual responsibility.
- Misinterpreting the bystander effect: Assuming it means people never help in crowds; it actually means the probability of any one individual helping decreases as the number of bystanders increases.