ACT SSC Psychology Unit 3: Social Psychology — Flashcards & Quiz

Q1: Describe Asch’s (1951) conformity experiment and distinguish types of social influence.

Asch presented participants with a line-matching task where confederates gave deliberately wrong answers. Findings: 75% conformed at least once; average conformity rate 37%. Normative social influence: conforming to be accepted by the group (public compliance without private acceptance). Informational social influence: conforming because you believe the group has better information (private acceptance). Asch’s paradigm primarily demonstrated normative influence.

Q2: Describe Milgram’s (1963) obedience study and factors affecting obedience levels.

Milgram instructed participants to administer electric shocks (15–450V) to a "learner" for incorrect answers. Baseline: 65% obeyed to 450V. Factors increasing obedience: proximity of authority figure, prestige of institution, physical distance from victim, perceived legitimate authority. Factors reducing obedience: proximity to victim, disobedient peers, absence of authority figure, reduced legitimacy of setting.

Q3: Explain cognitive dissonance theory and how it leads to attitude change.

Festinger’s (1957) cognitive dissonance theory proposes that holding two contradictory cognitions (or a cognition that conflicts with behaviour) creates psychological discomfort. To reduce this dissonance, people may: change their attitude to match their behaviour, change their behaviour to match their attitude, or add new cognitions that justify the inconsistency. Less external justification for behaviour produces greater dissonance and more attitude change.

Q4: Explain how Social Identity Theory accounts for prejudice and discrimination.

Tajfel and Turner’s (1979) Social Identity Theory proposes three processes: social categorisation (classifying people into groups), social identification (adopting the in-group’s identity as part of self-concept) and social comparison (comparing in-group favourably to out-groups to maintain self-esteem). This leads to in-group favouritism, out-group derogation, ethnocentrism and intergroup conflict — even when group distinctions are minimal or arbitrary.

Q5: Explain the bystander effect and the three mechanisms that produce it.

The bystander effect (Darley & Latané, 1968) describes the finding that individuals are less likely to help in emergencies when other bystanders are present. Three mechanisms: diffusion of responsibility (belief that someone else will act), pluralistic ignorance (looking to passive others and concluding the situation is not an emergency), and evaluation apprehension (fear of being judged negatively for intervening).

Q6: What is the fundamental attribution error and how does it affect social judgement?

The fundamental attribution error (Ross, 1977) is the tendency to overestimate dispositional (internal, personality-based) factors and underestimate situational (external, environmental) factors when explaining other people’s behaviour. We judge others by their character but judge ourselves by our circumstances. This asymmetry is related to the actor-observer bias, where actors emphasise situational causes and observers emphasise dispositional causes.

Q7: What is social loafing and what factors influence it?

Social loafing (Latané, Williams & Harkins, 1979) is the tendency for individuals to exert less effort when working in a group compared to working alone. It occurs due to diffusion of responsibility and the difficulty of identifying individual contributions. Factors reducing social loafing: making individual contributions identifiable, increasing personal accountability, making the task meaningful and maintaining small group sizes.

Q8: What is deindividuation and how does it affect behaviour?

Deindividuation is the loss of individual identity and personal responsibility in group settings, leading to behaviour that would normally be inhibited. Contributing factors: anonymity (masks, uniforms, online avatars), group immersion, reduced self-awareness and arousal. Zimbardo (1969) proposed that deindividuation weakens internal controls (guilt, shame) and increases responsiveness to situational cues.

Q1: Informational social influence involves conforming to be accepted by the group, even when you privately disagree.

Answer: FALSE

Informational social influence involves conforming because you genuinely believe the group has better information (leading to private acceptance). Conforming to be accepted while privately disagreeing describes normative social influence.

Q2: In Milgram’s baseline condition, 65% of participants administered the maximum 450-volt shock.

Answer: TRUE

In the baseline condition of Milgram’s experiment, 65% of participants obeyed the experimenter’s instructions and administered the full 450-volt shock, despite the apparent distress of the "learner."

Q3: In Festinger and Carlsmith’s study, participants paid $20 showed more attitude change than those paid $1.

Answer: FALSE

Participants paid $1 showed MORE attitude change. The small payment provided insufficient justification for lying, creating cognitive dissonance that was resolved by changing their attitude toward the task. The $20 group had sufficient external justification and experienced less dissonance.

Q4: Tajfel’s minimal group paradigm showed that in-group favouritism requires meaningful differences between groups.

Answer: FALSE

Tajfel’s minimal group paradigm demonstrated the opposite: even arbitrary, meaningless group distinctions (such as random assignment or trivial preferences) were sufficient to produce in-group favouritism and out-group discrimination.

Q5: The bystander effect predicts that people are MORE likely to help when many other bystanders are present.

Answer: FALSE

The bystander effect predicts the opposite: as the number of bystanders increases, the probability that any individual will help decreases. This occurs due to diffusion of responsibility, pluralistic ignorance and evaluation apprehension.

Conformity and Obedience

Asch’s conformity studies and Milgram’s obedience research demonstrate the power of social pressure and authority. BSSS assessments require you to describe procedures and findings accurately, distinguish between types of influence and critically evaluate methodology and ethics.

Attitudes and Persuasion

Cognitive dissonance theory (Festinger) and the Elaboration Likelihood Model (Petty & Cacioppo) explain how and why attitudes change. Being able to apply these theories to real-world persuasion scenarios is a frequently assessed BSSS skill.

Prejudice and Social Identity

Social Identity Theory (Tajfel & Turner) explains the psychological mechanisms underlying in-group favouritism and out-group discrimination. Understanding the roles of stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination, and how they relate to SIT, is essential for BSSS extended responses.

Group Dynamics and Prosocial Behaviour

The bystander effect, social loafing and deindividuation demonstrate how group contexts alter individual behaviour. Knowing the mechanisms behind each phenomenon and being able to suggest interventions is a practical skill tested in BSSS assessments.

What does ACT SSC Psychology Unit 3 cover?

Unit 3 covers social psychology including conformity (Asch), obedience to authority (Milgram), attitude formation and cognitive dissonance, prejudice, stereotypes and discrimination, prosocial behaviour and the bystander effect, attribution theory and group dynamics (social loafing, deindividuation, groupthink).

Are these flashcards aligned to the BSSS curriculum?

Yes — every flashcard and quiz question is mapped to the ACT Board of Senior Secondary Studies (BSSS) Psychology curriculum for Unit 3: Social Psychology.

How should I study classic social psychology experiments for BSSS exams?

For each classic study (Asch, Milgram, Zimbardo), memorise the procedure, findings and ethical issues. Practise evaluating studies for reliability, validity, generalisability and ethics, as BSSS assessments require critical evaluation alongside description.