Our social interactions shape us in ways that we cannot even imagine. As humans, it comes naturally relying on other people when we must express our opinion, especially when it involves an ambiguous situation or a topic that we have little knowledge of. However, we get influenced even in unequivocal situations when other opinions should not have an impact on us, and it mainly happens when we are part of a group. Even being part of a small group can sometimes cause a change in our behaviour. This change of attitude and behaviour is called Social Conformity, described as:
the process whereby people change their beliefs, attitudes, actions, or perceptions to more closely match those held by groups to which they belong or want to belong or by groups whose approval they desire (Levine, J.M., 2020). This change usually happens in response to real or imagined pressure by the group itself.
Since social conformity is such a widespread phenomenon, it has been the focus of many studies in psychology for decades. The first scholars who carried out experiments on conformity were Arthur Jenness, in his paper The Role of Discussion in Changing Opinion Regarding a Matter of Fact (1932), Muzafer Sherif in 1935, and Solomon Asch in 1951. All three noticed the tendency to conform to the perceptions and opinions of the majority, even in case of obvious errors.
Different types of conformity
Herbert Kelman, psychologist and Professor of Social Ethics at Harvard University argued that the change in our attitudes and behaviours in groups occurs on different levels. Therefore, in his paper Compliance, Identification, and Internalization Three processes of Attitude Change he identified three different types of conformity, based on the level of influence that a group has on us.
- The first level is Compliance, also referred to as Group Acceptance. It happens “when an individual accepts influence because he hopes to achieve a favorable reaction from another person or group. He adopts the induced behavior because he expects to gain specific rewards or approval and avoid specific punishment or disapproval by conformity. Thus the satisfaction derived from compliance is due to the social effect of accepting influence” (Kelman, 1958, p. 53).
This type of behaviour implies that individuals conform to the group even though they do not agree with it, but it changes as soon as there is no group to conform to.
- The second level is Identification, also referred to as Group Membership. It happens “when an individual accepts influence because he wants to establish or maintain a satisfying self-defining relationship to another person or group. […] The individual actually believes in the responses which he adopts through identification, but their specific content is more or less irrelevant. He adopts the induced behaviour because it is associated with the desired relationship. Thus the satisfaction derived from identification is due to the act of conforming as such” (Kelman, 1958, p. 53).
This type of behaviour implies that individuals conform to the expectations of a social role.
- The third level is It happens “when an individual accepts influence because the content of the induced behavior – the ideas and actions of which it is composed – is intrinsically rewarding. He adopts the induced behavior because it is congruent [consistent] with his value system. […] Behavior adopted in this fashion tends to be integrated with the individual’s existing values. Thus the satisfaction derived from internalization is due to the content of the new behavior” (Kelman, 1958, p. 53).
This type of behaviour implies that individuals internalise the opinion of a group and agrees with it even when the group is not involved anymore.
Why do we conform?
The reasons we conform are deeply rooted in us. Every individual has two primary desires that they wish to satisfy and that push them to conform to the group: truth and acceptance.
The pursuit of truth is related to the fact that when people are unsure about their beliefs, they rely on the beliefs of the group, as a large number of people holding the same opinion may be more likely to hold the truth. “People want to hold accurate beliefs about the world because such beliefs usually lead to rewarding outcomes. Some beliefs about the world can be verified by using objective tests; others cannot be verified by using objective standards and hence must be verified by using social tests, namely comparing one’s beliefs to those of other people whose judgment one respects. If those others agree with one’s beliefs, one gains confidence in them; if they disagree, one loses confidence (Levine, 2020)”. And since disagreement leads to confidence loss, people avoid it by conforming to the group. The pursuit of truth and the desire of acceptance are precise types of conformity called Informational Conformity and Normative Conformity.
- Informational Conformity occurs when an individual feels unsure about what their beliefs, so they look to the group for guidance.
- Normative Conformity occurs when an individual fears social rejection. When we want to feel accepted by the group, we eliminate internal tension by publicly conforming.
Social Conformity is a phenomenon of utmost importance, as in almost every aspect of our life we are part of a group, whether it is family, a class, a team, a couple, a group of friends. Knowing how a group changes our behaviour is crucial to understand many events happening in our society. Groups are a crucial part of social change. No change in history was made by an individual who fought their battle alone. It is the power of unity that allows people to win battles for what they believe in.
Francesca Cuomo
References:
Levine, J. M. (2020, January 28). conformity. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/conformity
Kelman H. (1958), Compliance, Identification, and Internalization Three processes of Attitude Change, Journal of Conflict Resolution, 2, 51-60.
McLeod S. (2016), What is Conformity, https://www.simplypsychology.org/conformity.html (last access 12/04/2022).
Sorrentino F. (2022), Così fan tutti: il conformismo sociale, https://comunicazione-dinamica.it/cosi-fan-tutti-il-conformismo-sociale/ (last access 12/04/2022).
Herbert Kelman, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Kelman (last access 12/04/2022).
Why Do We Conform? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_H-DioFXpec (last access 14/04/2022).
