What is Social Influence?

Social influence is the study of how other people affect our thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. It is one of the most important topics in social psychology because humans are fundamentally social beings — our behaviour is constantly shaped by the presence, actions, and expectations of others.

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Types of Social Influence

Social influence can take several forms:

Type	Description	Example
Conformity	Changing behaviour or beliefs to match those of a group	Wearing the same fashion as your friends
Obedience	Following the orders or commands of an authority figure	A soldier following orders from an officer
Compliance	Going along with a request (without necessarily agreeing privately)	Donating to charity when asked directly
Prosocial behaviour	Helping others, often influenced by social context	Stopping to help someone who has fallen
Anti-social behaviour	Harmful behaviour influenced by social situations	Aggression in a crowd

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Why Do People Conform?

There are two main reasons why people conform to the behaviour of a group:

Normative Social Influence (NSI)

Normative social influence occurs when a person conforms because they want to be accepted and liked by the group. They go along with the group to avoid rejection or social disapproval, even if they privately disagree.

• Driven by the need to belong
• Results in compliance — public behaviour changes but private beliefs stay the same
• Example: Laughing at a joke you do not find funny because everyone else is laughing

Informational Social Influence (ISI)

Informational social influence occurs when a person conforms because they believe the group has better knowledge or information than they do. The person genuinely accepts the group's view as correct.

• Driven by the need to be right
• Results in internalisation — both public behaviour AND private beliefs change
• Most likely in ambiguous or unfamiliar situations
• Example: Looking at what others are doing when you are unsure how to behave in a new situation

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Types of Conformity

Kelman (1958) identified three levels of conformity:

Type	Description	Duration	Public/Private
Compliance	Going along with the group publicly but privately disagreeing	Temporary — stops when group pressure is removed	Public only
Identification	Conforming because you identify with the group and want to be part of it	Lasts as long as group membership continues	Both public and private (while in the group)
Internalisation	Genuinely accepting the group's views as your own — the deepest level of conformity	Permanent — persists even when the group is no longer present	Both public and private

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Why Study Social Influence?

Understanding social influence helps explain:

• Why people sometimes do things they would not normally do (e.g. obey harmful orders)
• How advertising and propaganda work
• Why peer pressure is so powerful, especially among adolescents
• How social norms develop and are maintained
• Why bystanders sometimes fail to help in emergencies

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Key Points

• Social influence is how others affect our thoughts, feelings, and behaviours.
• Conformity can be driven by normative social influence (desire to fit in) or informational social influence (desire to be correct).
• Kelman identified three types of conformity: compliance, identification, and internalisation.
• Social influence is relevant to everyday life, advertising, peer pressure, and the justice system.