Essay On Conformity

Essay about On Conformity and Obedience
Conformity and Obedience People have been changing their behavior or obeying someone else's
commands for years. This continues today in our everyday lives. Conformity and obedience
seem similar but differ in several ways. Conformity is defined by psychologists as a change in
behavior or belief to accord with others. Similar to this, is obedience. Obedience is defined acting
in accordance with a direct order or command. Normally people conform to reap a reward or to
avoid punishment. If we comply with a direct order or command it is considered obedience. Most
of the time when people comply, it is to be accepted among others so they are not seen as outsiders.
On the other hand, when we obey, we are obeying a command an authority figure...show more
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This allowed him to gain their obedience; they knew that they had to obey him to avoid
punishment. There was no way to escape Jones, he seemed to be everywhere. He had them
spying on one another and anything not acceptable would be immediately reported to Jones. He
also had loud speakers everywhere that he would send messages through, this let the followers
know that he was everywhere no matter what they were doing. Because everyone was obedient
and thankful to Jones it was difficult to think he was wrong. In 1972 he staged his own death to
sow panic then relief among his followers; he also staged attacks on his temple to further heighten
fear, this also increased solidarity (Russell, pg 40). Jones also had his followers practice suicide
drills and stated that "the proper thing to do was to kill yourself before they get you"(paraphrase
article). The mass suicide/murder that happened on November 18, 1978 consisted of about 1,000
people drinking lethal cyanide punch. This included small children, women, and men; a total of
912 people died. Both obedience and conformity played a role in this tragedy. If they did not obey
his command of drinking it then they would be shot in the head. Others complied with the drinking
of the poison because they had to believe what was in accordance with others including Jones.
Prisons are also similar to cults, they include obedience and compliance.
A great example is the
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Conformity and Obedience Essay
Conformity and Obedience Task: outline and evaluate findings from conformity and obedience
research and consider explanations for conformity (and non–conformity), as well as evaluating
Milgram's studies of obedience (including ethical issues). The following essay will be about
understanding what is meant by and distinguishing the differences between the terms conformity
and obedience. It will show the evaluation of two key psychological studies which seek to explain
why people do and do not conform, also with explanations of minority influence. Whilst seeking to
understand the reasons why people obey authority, it will show an evaluation of Milgram's study of
obedience, discussing the ethical issues raised from the research and...show more content...
Over time these thought become part of our own cognitive world. When a person wants to be
associated with a group accepting and believing the groups view this is called identification. A
person may desire to be like another person, which may involve adopting the characters of the
person (or group). This may not necessarily be to bring us rewards but because we find it
satisfying to be like those, who we are identifying with. According to Cardwell (1996) obedience
is a type of social influence whereby somebody acts in response to a direct order from another
person. There is an implication the actor is made to respond in a way that they wouldn't have
otherwise done without the order. You are in no doubt when you are obeying an order (explicit).
It is obvious when you are following an order and you won't change your attitudes as you are
behaving as instructed. We will always find ourselves in situations in which we are told to do
things by other people, for example boss or supervisor at work. Within society we work in a
hierarchy. We may disagree or resent the orders we are given even when they are legitimate. It is
unlikely we will be given an order or instruction that goes against our conscience or involves us
inflicting serious harm on another person. So why do we conform? Gross. R, et al (2000) in '2nd
edition psychology a new

Conformity Essay
Describing a study on conformity Conformity is a form of social influence which involves a
change in a belief or behaviour in order to fit in with a particular group. This change is in
response to real (involving the physical presence of others) or imagined (involving the pressure of
social norms / expectations) group pressure. SHERIF Muzafer Sherif (1935) conducted a lab
experiment study on conformity in 1935. Sherif conducted this study by putting participants in a
dark room and told them to watch a pinpoint of light and report how far it moved. However
psychologists had discovered that a small, still light in a dark room often appeared to be moving and
this was known as the autokinetic effect. The autokinetic effect is an...show more content...
The study therefore rejects the dispositional hypothesis. The experiment had to be stopped after
just six days instead of the planned 14 days, mainly because of the pathological reactions of the
participants. Five prisoners had to be released even earlier because of extreme emotional
depression. As a result of this is that even though the simulation was finished after only six days
instead of the projected fourteen days all of the remaining prisoners were happy by the news, but
most of the guards seemed to be distressed by the early end to the study and this showed that they
had become too involved in their role that they now enjoyed the extreme control and power which
they put into effect. Zimbardo referred to this as the 'pathology of power'. In conclusion to his
study, he found that people will willingly conform to the social roles that they are expected to play,
especially if the roles are as strongly stereotyped as those of the prison guards. The "prison"
environment was an important factor in creating the guards' violent behaviour (however none of the
participants who acted as guards showed cruel behaviour/ mentality before the study). Therefore, this
means that the roles that people play can shape their behaviour and attitudes. ASCH Asch conducted
a study to investigate the question of

Essay on Conformity and Rebellion
"Lead or Follow" Should I conform? Should I rebel? This has and always will be, a constant battle
struggled individually, or as a society. A certain amount of conformity needs to exist in life in
order to avoid disorder. This is the reason we have laws. Take those laws, rules, control, or even
expectations, to an extreme, and some form of rebellion is probable. Struggle with these opposites,
and you have a catalyst for war, or perhaps, being fired from a job. Literature represents life, and
this theme can be found at the root of many literary works. "The Lottery," by Shirley Jackson,
reflects blind conformity by the villagers with a hint of rebellion. Every June 27th the lottery takes
place; the prize for winning is death. The...show more content...
Jing–Mei feels differently though, "Unlike my mother, I did not believe I could be anything I
wanted to. I could only be me," (359/80) and she was correct for she had no natural musical talent.
Jing–Mei has a desire to please her mother, but an even stronger one to choose her own life. She
pacifies her mother by going to piano lessons but puts in no effort. Jing–Mei is "...determined to put
a stop to her blind foolishness," (356/48) but her mother's desire to create a prodigy to compete with
Aunt Lindo's daughter, keeps her focused on the impossible. That is, until Jing–Mei escalates this
conflict to its breaking point in rebellion. Stunning her mother, she shouts "Then I wish I'd never
been born! I wish I were dead! Like them," (359/77) referring to the twin daughters her mother lost
in China. Sadly, the mother's desire to have Jing–Mei conform to her expectations creates a constant
battle between mother and daughter, and, in rejecting those expectations, seeing disappointment in
her mother's face all too often causes Jing–Mei to feel, "something inside me began to die" (353/18).
In Hanan Mikha'il 'Ashrawi's poem, "Night Patrol" we get a more subtle view of conformity and
rebellion. It is of a soldier's inner battle to adhere to his duties, against his desire to be elsewhere.
The soldier finds himself in the "depths of confrontation I/ never dared to

Theories Of Conformity
group a relevant guide for behavior, as they are more likely to conform to the group's norms.
Finally, recognizing multiple motives for norm conformity offers opportunities for research
precluded by theories that either do not differentiate among motives for norm conformity or that do
not distinguish the norm from the motives for conforming to it. First, a multiple–motive
conceptualization allows researchers to explore conflict between motives for conforming to social
norms. It is possible that in many contexts people's motives for norm conformity may not be in
agreement. By considering self–related, other–related, and accuracy motives as separate constructs,
researchers can investigate this potential for conflict in future studies. In addition,

Conformity Essay
According to Leon Mann, conformity means 'yielding to group pressures'. Everyone is a
member of one group or another and everyone expects members of these groups to behave in certain
ways. If you are a member of an identifiable group you are expected to behave appropriately to it. If
you don't confirm and behave appropriately you are likely to be rejected by the group.
Like stereotypes, conforming and expecting others to conform maintains cognitive balance.
There are several kinds of conformity. Many studies of conformity took place in the 1950's which led
Kelman to distinguish between compliance, internalisation and identification. Compliance is the
type of conformity where the subject goes along with the group view, but privately...show more
content...
During the group sessions it became apparent that the subjects reports strarted to converge much
nearer to an average of what their individual reports had been. If a subject who had said that the
light didn't move very far when tested individually said 'I think it is moving 2 inches to the left' then
another who had reported movement of 4 inches, when tested individually, might say 'I think it may
have been 3 inches'.
As the number of reported movements continued the more the members of the group conformed to
each others reports. This spot of light was in fact stationary so whatever reports were made was the
consequence of the subject imagining they saw something happen. So they were not certain about
the movement they observed and so would not feel confident about insisting that their observations
were wholly correct. When they heard other reported judgements they may have decided to go along
with them.
The problem with this study, for understanding of conformity, as one aspect of social psychology is
that it is a total artifical experimental situation – there isn't even a right answer. Requested reports of
imaginary movements of a stationary spot of light in a darkened room when alone, or with two
others, hardly reflects situations we come accross in our every day

Essay On Conformity Profile
My conformed profile is " ISFP " this means that in academic; I learn most effectively through
practical application and hands–on experience. I Struggle with traditional teaching that focuses on
theory or abstract thinking. I Prefer adaptable professors that present material in a clear manner. I
Prefer a quiet study environment. And in business; my personality type will always bring something
new to the table. Creative, energetic, and eager to learn, this personality will thrive in workplaces
which allow me to explore other options than the status quo. Require freedom and autonomy to
complete tasks. Support the goals of the organization. Identify the organizations current needs and
respond accordingly. Respond well in situations that require...show more content...
He has the ability to focus on the main task and ignore any distractions. In his dealings with the
outside world, he has two situations. The first case is internal and through it he uses logic and
reason to deal with things. The second is external where the choice between things using intuition.
Yaman sees his life full of possibilities and responsibilities that must be controlled and managed,
and he consider himself as the primary responsible for doing that job. In social life, he is talkative
and love to be in social environments, he has some strengths in social life such as, great interest in
people's ideas and way of thinking, takes his commitments seriously, has the ability to speak fluently,
he can terminate his personal relationship without hesitation or retreat. On the other hand, he often
finds it difficult to discover the emotional needs of those around him, and this is also true on his
wife. tends to not accept opinions and attitudes that do not match his point of view, and he finds it
difficult to express his

Essay On Conformity

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