Chapter . Critical Learning Exercises - Social Influence

Students’ responses regarding how to reduce excessive teenage drug and alcohol use through a television show may vary but should be based on the principles of Bandura’s social learning theory, which is that we learn from observing others. The characters should be typical teenagers with whom viewers can relate, and the characters should benefit or be rewarded for their actions to avoid excessive drug and alcohol use through the situation or plot lines.

Different experiences will be reported by students, but it is important that they correctly identify the reasons they conformed as either normative (using others to determine how to fit in) or information (using others as sources of information about the world) influence. They may have used normative influence if they conformed in order to be liked and accepted by the group, or to avoid rejection. They may have used information influence if they conformed out of a lack of knowledge about how to act or what to do in a situation. Students’ opinions on whether they regret their actions or wish they had acted differently should be included in the response, as well as their personal advice to incoming freshmen.

Students’ recommended three-step recycling plans will vary but should be based on compliance techniques related to their community, which may include the following: foot-in-the-door effect (getting people to comply with a moderate request after getting them to initially comply with a smaller request); norm for social commitment (getting people to make a public agreement to stick to their behavior); lowballing (getting people to continue a commitment they’ve agreed to, even if they later learn of some extra cost to the deal); door-in-the-face effect (getting people to comply with a moderate request after they refuse to agree to a much larger request); social proof (getting people to go along with what they believe respected others think and do); scarcity (remind people of the scarcity of the offer); or mindlessness (break people’s tendency to rely on familiar categories or behaviors). Students should illustrate how the technique would result in an increased compliance with recycling.

Students’ recommendations for rules or guidelines to implement to ensure obedience that upholds the Geneva Convention or a reasonable code of ethics will vary but may include a focus on charismatic leaders who believe in and uphold these ethical codes, providing opportunities for soldiers to dissent or speak out about problems with authority by speaking to someone other than their leader, making sure unethical behaviors are addressed immediately so they do not become routine and blindly obeyed, and so on.