Archive:Social impact theory

Social impact theory-a theory that states the likelihood that you will respond to social influence depending upon three variables:
1. Strength: How important the influencing group is to you.
2. Immediacy: How close the group is to you (whether in space or time) during the attempt to influence you.
3. Number: How many people are in the group.

Introduction

The social impact theory predicts that as strength and immediacy increase within a group conformity will also increase. The more important a group is and the more one is in its presence the more likely it is for one to conform to the groups normative pressures.
As the size of a group increases a single person has less of an effect. Thus, if one feels pressure from a group to conform, adding another person to the minority makes a much greater difference to a small group as opposed to a large group.

History

Bibb Latané, an accomplished professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel HIll, published the theory in 1981. Latané constructed a mathematical model of the effects of strength, immediacy, and number. He has applied this formula to the results of several conformity studies and it has accurately predicted the actual amount of conformity that occurred within groups.

Examples

-Gay men living in communities highly involved in AIDS awareness activities report feeling more social pressure to avoid risky sexual behavior then gay men who live in less involved communities.
-Heterosexual college students reported that the likelihood in engaging in risky sexual behavior was determined by the norms for sexual behavior in their groups of friends.
-Peer pressure and social influence on all levels can be analyzed and quantified by the social impact theory.

Reference

• Social Psychology: Sixth Edition. Aronson, E., Wilson, T., Akert, R. Piarson Prentice Hall., 2007 ISBN: 978-0-13-23-8245-8
• Journal of Applied Social Psychology Fishbein, M., Chan, D., O'Reilly, K., Schnell, D., Wood, R., Beeker, C., & Cohn, C. (1993). Factors influencing gay men's attitudes, subjective norms, and intentions with respect to performing sexual behaviors. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 23, 417-438.
• Health Psychology. Bourgeois, M. J., & Bowen, A. (2001). Self-organization of alcohol-related attitudes and beliefs in a campus housing complex: An initial investigation . Health Psychology, 20, 434-437.
• American Psychologist. Latané, B. (1981). The psychology of social impact. American Psychologist, 36, 343-356.
• Social influence: Direct and indirect processes. Latané, B., & Bourgeois, M. J. (2001). Successfully simulating dynamic social impact: Three levels of prediction, In J. P. Forgas & K.D. Williams (Eds.), Social influence: Direct and indirect processes (pp. 61-76). Philadelphia: Psychology Press.
• Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Latané, B., & L' Herrou, T. (1996). Spatial clustering in the conformity game:Dynamic social impact in electronic games. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70, 1218-1230.
• Journal of Applied Social Psychology. Winslow, R. W., Franzini, L. R., & Hwang, J. (1992). Perceived peer norms, casual sex, and AIDS risk prevention. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 22, 1809-1827.

Jeanaashleigh 04:28, 9 May 2007 (UTC)