Social psychology examines how individuals are influenced by their social environment and other people. Key topics covered include conformity to social norms, obedience to authority figures as shown in Milgram's experiment, how people attribute causes to behaviors, the fundamental attribution error, attraction and love in relationships, and biases that affect social judgments. The document provides an overview of these core concepts in social psychology.

1. Social Psychology
Slides By Rana Usman Sattar
Student Of BBA(Hons)
PMAS Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi
Gmail: ranaa.usman@gmail.com
Facebook: usman.shan86@yahoo.com

2. Social Psychology
Conformity and
Obedience
Attribution
Attraction

3. What is social
psychology?
• Social psychology: The interaction
between the individual and his/her social
world.
• “The purpose of psychology is to give us a
completely different idea of the things we
know best.”

4. Why study it?
• To understand history
– World War two
• To be less naive.
– Conformity
– Obedience
– How products are sold
• To understand love.

5. Questions to answer
• How does the social situation affect our
behavior?
• What influences the judgment of others?
• What are the roots of violence and
terrorism?

6. Yielding to Others
• Conformity: A change of beliefs in order to
follow a groups norms
1. Informational social influence: Conform
because other’s view and behaviors seem to
be correct.
a) Ambiguous
b) Crisis
c) Others are experts
*Social comparison theory (Festinger): All people
are driven to evaluate their abilities and opinions.

7. Conformity
• Normative social influence: When we
conform due to wanting to be liked or
thought of positively.
1) Solomon Ash experiment (1951) »

8. Asch experiment
• Used 7-9 people, only one a real subject
• Had people judging line lengths
• At first confederates told the truth
• Then they all began giving the same wrong
answer (12/18 times)
• 123 subjects agreed with 36.8% of the
erroneous selections.

9. Conformity

10. Conformity by Group
Size

11. Proportion conforming

12. Conformity increases
when:
• People are unsure of a situation
• People are of low group status
• People lack information
• The behavior is public

13. Conformity and
Compliance
• Reduced conformity: Writing answers (98%
correct) and social support.
• Compliance: Change in behavior prompted by
direct request. Six principles (Cialdini, 1994).
– Friendship/liking
– Commitment/consistency
– Scarcity
– Reciprocity
– Social validation
– Authority

14. Compliance (and selling
products)
• Foot-in-the-door technique: Insignificant request
is followed by a larger request.
– Lottery example
– Car dealership example
• Lowball technique: Get someone to make an
agreement then increase the cost.
– Selling houses, cars
• Door-in-the-face technique: Make a larger
request (denied) then a smaller one.
– Reciprocity principle
• Girl scout leader example
• Political sign example

15. Obedience
Milgram’s experiment (1963)
Design:
• 40 Naive subjects agree to participate in a
“learning experiment” at Yale.
• An impassive, stern “experimenter”
• “Victim:” mild mannered 47 year old man.
• Subject was instructed to shock the learner each
time he gives a wrong response to a paired-
associate learning task.
• Four experimental “prods”

16. Obedience
• Instrument panel has 30 switches, ranging
from 15-450 volts.
– Labeled slight to extreme shock.
• 15 volt increment from one switch to next.
• After a preliminary run w/the word list,
subject instructed to start with 15 volts and
go up a level w/each missed word.
• Predetermined set of responses

17. Obedience
• Nothing is heard from the “learner” until
the 300 shock level is reached.
• At 300 volts, learner pounds on the wall.
– No answers from this point.
• Subject ordered to treat no response as
wrong answer.
• Learner’s pounding is repeated at 315
volts, nothing further.

18. Milgram
Findings:
• 14 Yale seniors predicted that only 0-3%
would go to the most potent shock (450
volts). Colleagues of Milgram agreed.
• Subjects showed signs of extreme
tension
– Sweat, tremble, nervous laughter
• No one stopped prior to 300 volts
• 5/40 refused to go beyond 300

19. Milgram, findings con’t
• 4/40 administered 1 shock beyond 300
• 2/40 broke off at 330 volts
• 1 subject each broke off at 345, 360, and 375
• 26/40 (65%) obeyed orders until reaching the
most potent shock
Why did this happen? Ideas?

20. Milgram
• Similar results were found with women, people
from Jordan, Germany, and Australia
• Why?
– Foot-in-door
– Situational demands
– Vague expectations and limits
– Experiment was for a “worthy purpose.”
– Perception that “victim” and subject both entered
experiment willingly.
– Can’t win: Either please experimenter or victim
– Film clip
• What reduces conformity? »

21. What reduces
conformity?
• Closer proximity to learner
• Type of experimenter
– College student: only 20%
• Proximity to experimenter
– Phone in commands: only 21%

22. Attribution: Making
sense of events
• Attribution: Explanation for the cause of an
event or a behavior. Two types:
– Internal: Explanation focuses on person’s beliefs,
goals, preferences, or other characteristics.
– External: Explanation focuses on the situation.
• Mental illness
• Poor grades
• Homeless
⇓
• Attributional biases: Are cognitive “shortcuts”

23. Attributional biases
• Fundamental attribution error: Strong tendency
to attribute other people’s behavior as due to
internal causes.
– E.g. bad driver, homeless people
• Self-serving bias: Attribute own failures to
external causes and success to internal causes,
and the opposite for others.
• The belief in a just world: Assume people get
what they deserve….blaming the victim.
– Is NOT about not taking responsibility when

24. Next, love
• Do opposites attract?
• What are “ideal” characteristics in a
partner?
• Can we define love? Are there different
types?
• What types of personality characteristics
do most people seek in a romantic
partner?

25. Love - Ending on a good
note!
• Why are you attracted?
– Repeated contact
– Similarity
• Opposites attract not supported by research
– Physical attraction
• People are happiest with partners who are
agreeable, conscientious, and emotionally
stable.
• What is love? Sternberg again! 

26. Love - Ending on a good
note.
• Is a qualitatively different feeling than liking.
– Passionate love: An intense feeling that
involves sexual attraction, a desire for mutual
love and physical closeness, arousal, and a
fear the relationship will end.
– Compassionate love: Very close friendship,
mutual caring, liking, respect, attraction.
So, how do these combine?