Example of normative social influence
Informational social influence can be described as “other people’s actions and opinions define social reality for us, and we use them as a guide for our own actions and opinions” (Branscombe, 2016). A real-life example could be following fashion trends, a certain musician, or the slang that you use. People tend to be very impressionable and want to fit in with people that are surrounding them. This can lead to dressing in a way that fits the current style, listening to music by a popular artist and picking on language that your friends are using. Social influences have a very strong effect on decisions and the behavior that is portrayed. Fitting in is hard enough and I know I personally went out of my way to make decisions based off of what was going on around me.
Normative social influence is very close to informational social influence but the difference is the craving for acceptance and getting others to like you. “One important reason we conform, therefore, is this: We have learned that doing so can help us win the approval and acceptance we crave. This source of conformity is known as normative social influence, since it involves altering our behavior to meet others’ expectations” (Branscombe, 2016). A real-life example of normative social influence would be to sneak out to fit in with your group of friends, or to want to spend the night out when really you would rather stay at home in bed. This can be to fit in and get the acceptance from your friends, it can also be to maintain the relationships that you have made.
The influence of conformity, compliance, and obedience has the potential to decrease. I believe that the older you get the less desire you have to fit in, gain acceptance, and fit in with the current crowd. The more you gain confidence in yourself, your beliefs, and your personal style the desire for acceptance will go down immensely and soon not exist. The situations I identified would most likely not matter or happen. If those around you do not like how you dress, what you listen to, how you talk, and that you stay in then maybe they aren’t the people that need to be surrounding you. If they are your friends then they will accept you for your likes, dislikes, opinions, and maybe even listen to the artist you like or have a night in instead of going out. Conformity is a part of life but I do think it has the opportunity to decrease as you grow into yourself.
3-1 LL (Reply 200 words with 1 reference)
An example of social influences that impacts individual’s decisions or behavior is making an impression on social media, so that others see them in that light. Many people only post the good things that they have going on, but skip the chaotic moments that ,ay have others see them in a new light. I must say that I am guilty of this. I have a brand that I must uphold, so I have to be careful of what I post if I ever want to see my business expand. This goes for many other brands, to where you can not share all the things you would, to protect your brand. From the sociocognitive perspective, compliance means that the subject assumes the same actions or attitudes as the object’s expectations after summarizing, judging, and deducing his/her action and attitude, even though he/she may not think it is right (Song, 2012). An example of normative social influences is how they put on make up and have theses fancy backgrounds. Many people will not follow if they see your pictures is not flawed free. This promoted people to use filters and cover themselves up to fit the criteria. According to, the increased obedience might be the result of the individual’s attempt to re-fortify their threatened inclusionary status(Riva, 2014).The influence of obedience can be decreased, if the person has nothing to loose. Also, if more people stepped into their light as opposed to staying in the box of what the world wants from them. This will impact the situation that I explained by influencing people to be who they are, not who the world wants them to be.
3-2 KG (Reply 200 words with 1 reference)
Social influence describes how our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors respond to our social world, including our tendencies to conform to others, follow social rules, and obey authority figures & takes a wide variety of forms, including obedience, conformity, persuasion, social loafing, social facilitation, deindividuation, observer effect, bystander effect, and peer pressure. There are existing belief systems that influence the way we think and behave in society. Even our faith influences how we move both within the religious group we belong to and how we act outside the group. Social influence can positively impact an individual’s behavior if they put in the time in settings that project positive moods, attitudes, and positive views (Branscombe & Baron, 2016). Positive influence is the impact you have on another person & yourself by pointing out strengths and virtues. It is how we are, what we do, and the power we have over others to value what is best within us & help a person be better today than they were yesterday. An example of a negative influence is associated with people who encourage you to use drugs to the point of making regretful decisions leading to expensive habits, forgetful nights or blackouts, or car wrecks and criminal charges. Surrounding yourself with good people can affect every aspect of your life, from business to romantic relationships. When you surround yourself with positivity, you’re more likely to adopt empowering beliefs and see life as happening for you instead of to you. Just as you benefit when you surround yourself with people who make you happy, you suffer when those in your business or social circles are negative or narrow-minded. Always remember that whom you spend the most time with is who you eventually become. “The quality of a person’s life is most often a direct reflection of the expectations of their peer group.” (Tony Robbins 2019).
