Ego strength and perceived competence as conformity variables.

The basic experimental model for the design of the present investigation was the work done by Asch testing the influence of the judgments of others on S's judgments. In this study judgments were made on the Galton bar. It was hypothesized that the degree to which a person yields to the pressure of others was related to ego strength and the degree to which S feels confident in his judgments. S's susceptibility to group pressure was found to be related to the latter, but not the former. From Psyc Abstracts 36:01:3GE69S. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of perceived dependency relationships upon conformity to group expectations.

The study was designed to test the hypothesis that "group members perceiving themselves as interdependent for their reward attainment become highly motivated toward the group task." Results generally are in accord with several predictions, one of which is that: "Members of groups who are instrumentally interdependent become more highly motivated toward the group task than Ss who can achieve their goals independently of the others in the group." Another prediction supported by results is that: "Under conditions of instrumental independence, Ss who are told that both they and their teammates can attain a valued goal through the group activity become more highly task motivated than Ss who are told either that only S or Ss partner can attain this goal." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Desire for control and academic performance.

Examined the relationship of desire for control (DFC) and academic performance. 65 undergraduates completed the Desirability of Control Scale. The Ss were asked to estimate their grade point average (GPA) for the current quarter and entire academic year, to estimate the number of hours they studied per week, and how important grades were to them. Two years later, the academic records of 54 Ss who gave permission were examined. High DFC Ss had higher grades than low DFC Ss. 84.6% of the students in the sample who achieved a GPA of 3.0 or better during the 2-yr period were high DFC students. High DFC Ss indicated they placed greater importance on grades and studied more per week than did low DFC Ss. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Desire for control and achievement-related behaviors.

Tested a model that describes the relation between individual differences in the general desire to control events and performance in achievement-related tasks in 6 experiments with 304 undergraduates. All Ss were administered a desirability of control scale and this variable was tested in relationship to achievement-related behavior (aspiration level, response to challenge, persistence, and attributions for success and failure) outlined in the model. Results show that Ss high in the desire for control displayed higher levels of aspiration, had higher expectancies for their performances, and were able to set their expectancies in a more realistic manner than were Ss low in the desire for control. Ss high in desire for control were also found to respond to a challenging task with more effort and to persist longer at a difficult task than were Ss low in desire for control. Finally, a pattern of attributions for success and failure was uncovered for Ss high in desire for control that has been associated with high achievement levels. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Informational and normative routes to conformity: The effect of faction size as a function of norm extremity and attention to the stimulus.

Demonstrates that the effect of faction size on conformity depends on the relative importance of normative and informational mechanisms. As the norm changes from one that could be correct to one that is clearly wrong, influence should derive less from informational and more from normative mechanisms. Faction size, norm extremity, and attention to the stimulus were manipulated; conformity, reaction times (RTs), and subsequent private acceptance were measured. When the norm could have been correct (low extremity or low attention), the faction-size effect was marginal, RTs were fast, and the public–private decline in influence was small. When the norm was clearly wrong (high extremity and high attention), there were large effects for faction size, slow RTs, and a substantial public–private decline. Data also support the claim that the influence process does not vary as a function of faction size. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social setting and conformity to a legal requirement.

The study noted "the effect on a subject's behavior of observing others conform or fail to conform to a legal requirement." 4229 male drivers and 1004 female drivers of passenger cars were observed turning during the periods of the study. "Observations made under normal traffic conditions were analyzed to determine the influence on the signalling behavior of automobile drivers of the signalling behavior of other drivers. A weak but significant positive relationship was found between observation of conformity of others to a legal requirement and self-conformity." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Desire for control, felt control, and stress inoculation training during dental treatment.

Coping style research has typically assessed Ss' desire for a coping resource, but ignored whether Ss possess that resource. In this study 110 dental patients were categorized as to their desire for and feelings of control and were randomly assigned, just prior to dental treatment, to a 20 min Stress Inoculation Training (SIT) session or a Filler condition. SIT significantly reduced pain and increased control only for patients who initially reported a high desire for control coupled with low perceived control. This finding supports the view that the discrepancy between high desire for control and low perceived control plays a causal role in the elevated distress and pain initially reported by patients with such control perceptions. These data indicate that consideration of patients' perceived coping resources as well as their coping preferences adds to our ability to predict reactions to stress reduction manipulations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Negative reactions to increases in perceived personal control.

Much research and theory suggests that an increase in perceived personal control is preferred and will result in positive reactions, whereas a decrease in personal control is not desired and will result in negative reactions. However, there are many negative as well as positive consequences to changes in personal control that contribute to one's reaction to increases in perceived control. I review research that identifies conditions under which increases in perceived control result in a tendency to relinquish personal control, negative affect, and a poorer performance on subsequent tasks. Three mediators are suggested for these effects. Changes in perceived personal control are said to result in changes in concern for self-presentation, changes in the perceived likelihood of obtaining desired outcomes, and changes in perceived predictability. Under certain conditions, each of these may lead to negative rather than positive reactions to increased control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Student power: Desire for control or desire to learn": Reply.

Suggests that the methodology used by J. F. Voss (1970) to examine graduate students' attitudes toward participation in departmental business raises serious questions about the effects of directly questioning students on their responses, the type of group structure involved, and the implications of the findings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Student power: Desire for control or desire to learn?

Interviews were conducted with 118 graduate students in the department and 30 psychology faculty to examine the extent to which students should participate in departmental decision making. Data show that 90% of the students wanted the opportunity to evaluate course instruction and content. Students with a strong professional identification and close professional contact with at least 1 faculty member felt little or no need to participate in decision making. (0 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A perceived control intervention for at-risk older adults.

Models of event causation and affective processes were used to design an experimental intervention for older adults. Ss were 2 at-risk populations, recently disabled and recently bereaved, each with matched nonrisk controls. Ss were randomly assigned to a placebo-contact group, a no-contact control group, or a 4-session, 10-week intervention focused on enhancing perceived control. Dependent variables assessed were personal mastery, psychological well-being and distress, positive and negative affect, and measures of daily events and activities. The intervention was nested within a 16-month longitudinal assessment of stress and adaptation processes in a large sample of community residents. The intervention had mixed effects on reports of personal mastery, but it significantly increased engagement in desirable activities and significantly decreased psychological distress and negative affect. Effects tended to be short-lived, however. Effects of the intervention tended to be particularly significant for the disabled group. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sphere-specific measures of perceived control.

Proposes that individual differences in perceived control be partitioned into components associated with 3 primary spheres of behavior: (a) personal efficacy (control over the nonsocial environment as in personal achievement), (b) interpersonal control (control over other people in dyads and groups), and (c) sociopolitical control (control over social and political events and institutions). Assessment instruments are presented for measuring perceived control in each of these 3 spheres. Using data from 87 undergraduates, a 3-factor structural model was tested using confirmatory factor analysis, and the results are strongly supportive. The scales have impressive convergent and discriminant validity in relation to other individual difference measures. Evidence from several laboratory and field studies by the author and colleagues (e.g., see record 1981-01340-001) is reviewed to support the predictive validity of the 3 scales. (43 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Long-term antecedents and outcomes of perceived control.

Perceived control plays an important role in shaping development throughout adulthood and old age. Using data from the adult lifespan sample of the national German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP; N > 10,000, covering 25 years of measurement), we explored long-term antecedents, correlates, and outcomes of perceived control and examined if associations differ with age. Targeting correlates and antecedents of control, findings indicated that higher concurrent levels of social participation, life satisfaction, and self-rated health as well as more positive changes in social participation over the preceding 11 years were each predictive of between-person differences in perceived control. Targeting health outcomes of control, survival analyses revealed that perceived control predicted 14-year hazard ratio for disability (n = 996 became disabled) and mortality (n = 1,382 died). The effect for mortality, but not for disability, was independent of sociodemographic and psychosocial factors. Overall, we found very limited support for age-differential associations. Our results provide further impetus to thoroughly examine processes involved in antecedent-consequent relations among perceived control, facets of social life, well-being, and health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

What's in a norm? Sources and processes of norm change.

This reply to the commentary by E. Staub and L. A. Pearlman (2009) revisits the field experimental results of E. L. Paluck (2009). It introduces further evidence and theoretical elaboration supporting Paluck's conclusion that exposure to a reconciliation-themed radio soap opera changed perceptions of social norms and behaviors, not beliefs. Experimental and longitudinal survey evidence reinforces the finding that the radio program affected socially shared perceptions of typical or prescribed behavior—that is, social norms. Specifically, measurements of perceptions of social norms called into question by Staub and Pearlman are shown to correlate with perceptions of public opinion and public, not private, behaviors. Although measurement issues and the mechanisms of the radio program's influence merit further testing, theory and evidence point to social interactions and emotional engagement, not individual education, as the likely mechanisms of change. The present exchange makes salient what is at stake in this debate: a model of change based on learning and personal beliefs versus a model based on group influence and social norms. These theoretical models recommend very different strategies for prejudice and conflict reduction. Future field experiments should attempt to adjudicate between these models by testing relevant policies in real-world settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Egocentrism, conformity, and agreeing to disagree.

The development of strategies for resolving peer disputes was studied by presenting 22 kindergartners and 22 2nd graders with self–peer disagreements, which varied on 2 factors: whether self and/or a peer had access to more valid information and whether the disagreement was about objective perceptions or subjective preferences. The self-valid and other-valid problems were accurately resolved by the youngest Ss. The both-valid problem was accurately resolved (evaluating both positions as right) both as a function of age and of the objectivity of the disagreement. It is concluded that the ability to differentiate the perceptual from the evaluative judgment was critical in distinguishing between egocentric/conforming Ss and nonegocentric independent/cooperative Ss. The finding that motivational factors increased conformity in older Ss is explained in terms of social comparison processes rather than in terms of the need of peer approval. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developmental changes in conformity to peers and parents.

Investigated developmental changes in conformity to parents and peers and relations between parent and peer conformity. In Study 1, 251 children in the 3rd, 6th, 9th, 11th, or 12th grade responded to hypothetical situations in which peers urged the child to perform either antisocial, prosocial, or neutral behaviors. For all types of behavior, the age trends for conformity were curvilinear, and peer conformity peaked in the 6th or 9th grade. In Study 2, 273 children in the 3rd, 6th, 9th, 11th, or 12th grades responded to situations testing conformity to peers on antisocial and prosocial behavior and conformity to parents on prosocial and neutral behavior. For antisocial behavior, a peak in peer conformity was found at the 9th grade. Significant age changes were not found for prosocial behavior. Conformity to parents on both types of behavior decreased steadily with age. With some but not all measures, conformity to parents and conformity to peers were negatively correlated. In addition, the relations between parents and peer conformity changed with age. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Youth crowds and substance use: The impact of perceived group norm and multiple group identification.

The impact of group identity on adolescent tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use was examined through a postal survey. The study included adolescents who identified with 1 subgroup (n = 1425) as well as adolescents who identified with 2 (n = 895) or 3 (n = 339) subgroups. The results showed that identification with the pop, skate/hip-hop, techno, and hippie subgroups was associated with higher risks of substance use, whereas identification with the sporty, quiet, computer nerd, and religious subgroups was associated with lower risks. Perceived group norm mediated the group identity-substance use relationship. Furthermore, identification with multiple groups with corresponding norm increased norm-consistent substance use, whereas identification with multiple groups with opposing norms reduced normative behavior. Implications for health promotion are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Status and conformity to pressures in informal groups.

Effect of group status on patterns of conformity was measured. Psychophysical judgments were made under varying conditions, one involving verbal suggestions. The least conforming were the high and low status individuals in the group; the 2nd-from-the-top status man was most conforming to judgments of others. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Group participation and conformity.

Contends that the mass media perceive the treat of subliminal perception as a way psychologists are considered engineers of conformity. Psychologists who work with problems of groups and group development have received particular attention in this regard. In general the kinds of experience which people undergo in group training laboratories and in sensitivity training are said to make for slavish adhesion to the group. The author discusses conducting a 2-day group training laboratory for leaders of student organizations at a small college. Small groups with the trainer were thrown upon their own resources and allowed to work on the problems they chose. Intermittently the trainer interpreted what was going on in the way of group process. There were reports of a good bit of subjective involvement on the part of the student leaders who participated. The purpose of the training laboratory was to determine whether there were attitude changes concurrent with the training. It is concluded that this kind of group experience which is designed to open people's receptors to the reactions of others may actually make the persons more independent in their attitudes. Perhaps it was that these young people, who were all social acquaintances of each other, had enough doubt about where they stood with each other to inhibit the frankest kind of interaction. Once they developed more sensitivity to each other and clearer perceptions of other's feelings, their attitudes changed to favor franker and freer self-expression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)