Abnormal SCLOA CLOA BLOA Essentials

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SCLOA Learning Outcomes SCLOA Research Studies

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Socio-Cultural Level of Analysis

The Research Studies related to the SCLOA.
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Solomon Asch – Asch’s Paradigm Experiment (Conformity)
[A]	Investigate the existence of conformity.
[P]	Subject was placed into a room with 6 confederates and the experimenter. Subject was deceived that the 6 confederates were participants just like them. The subject was placed on the second last seat so they will be the second last to give an answer. The group of subject and confederates were asked to select the line on the second card that matched the line on the first card. There were 18 sets of cards in total, some of which had lines that were completely different in length, others are similar in length. Confederates were instructed to answer correctly on some of the cards but answer incorrectly for most.
[F]	75% conformed at least once to the wrong answer 32% conformed to more than half of the wrong answers 24% did not conform at all
[C]	Conformity happened Those who did not conform sparked further research
[E]	Ecological validity: Low, lab conditions. Controlled environment removed confounding variables. Meaningless stimuli. Gender bias, only male participants were used. Culture bias, only population of the US were used. Cannot be generalised to all population. Ethics: Deception, but subjects were debriefed.

Henry Tajfel – Intergroup discrimination Experiment (SIT)
[A]	To test the Social Identity Theory.
[P]	48 boys were assigned at random to 2 groups based on their preference between Klee or Kandinsky’s art work. Asked to rate in-group and out-group based on traits e.g. like-ability.
[F]	Tajfel found that the out-group was rated less likeable, but never actually disliked.
[C]	There seems to be a preference of the in-group over out-group, however it is not clear that they make social comparisons to enhance either self-esteem. Later research – Social identity does not account for intergroup conflict. In the absence of competition, social comparison can be positive.
[E]	Supports Social Identity Theory. Showed the formation and the features of SIT. Ecological validity: Low, lab conditions. Meaningless groups. Controlled environment removed confounding variables.

Cialdini et al. – Football game observation (SIT)
[A]	Demonstrate social comparison with college football supporters.
[P]	Observed what college students wear to school the next day after their football game.
[F]	Students wore apparel with the representative colour of their school the day after the football game if the school won.
[C]	Result of positive self-concept results in a bias intergroup comparison. Having a positive representation of your social group (Positive distinctiveness).

Albert Bandura – Bobo Doll Experiment (SLT)
[A]	To demonstrate that learning can occur through observation of role models.
[P]	36 boys and 36 girls from age 3 to 6 were divided into groups according to their aggression evaluation from their parents and teachers. Group 1 was exposed to adult models who showed aggression by beating up a Bobo Doll. Models were of both genders. Group 2 observed an adult model who displayed no aggression. Models were of both genders. Group 3 was a controlled group who did not see any model. (Control) The children were then placed into the room with a Bobo doll after 10 minutes of watching the model.
[F]	Children who observed the aggressive model showed significantly more aggression both physically and verbally. Boys were more likely to imitate physical aggression. Girls were more likely to imitate verbal aggression.
[C]	Social learning theory was demonstrated in the study because the children showed signs of observational learning.
[E]	Ethics: Induced aggression. Oversimplification of the learning process. Ecological validity: Low, lab conditions. Confounding variable: children unfamiliar with doll were 5 times more likely to imitate aggressive behaviour.

Geert Hofstede – IBM Employee Correlation Study
[A]	Identify traits through the classification of behaviour according to culture.
[P]	Participants were 60,000 IBM employees from over 50 different countries. They were asked to fill in surveys. The study carried on for 10 years.
[F] [C]	Hofstede concluded with 4 bipolar Cultural Dimensions Individualism-Collectivism Masculinity-Femininity Power Distance Uncertainty Avoidance
[E]	Survey may consist of leading questions or predetermined results. Useful for quantitative data. Ecological validity: Low, lab conditions. Unable to retrieve meaningful/insightful qualitative data. Questions require participants to have level of literacy skills. Questions were originally in English, some meanings might be lost in translation.

Lee et al. – Audience and Game show experiment (FAE)
[A]	Demonstrate the Fundamental Attributional Error (FAE).
[P]	Subjects were split into groups of hosts, audiences and contestants, randomly. Hosts were asked to design there own questions. Audiences watched the show. After the game show the audience were asked to rank the intelligence of people taken part.
[F]	Audience consistently rated the hosts smarter.
[C]	They failed to attribute the role to the person’s situation (random assignation of role). Instead attributed the person’s performance to dispositional factors.
[E]	Only student participants were used. University students spend their days listening to professors – authority figures who ask questions and give answers and is a learned response rather than attribution error.

Leon Festinger – When Prophecy Fails (Self Fulfilling Prophecy)
[A]	Investigate the existence of Self Fulfilling Prophecy.
[P]	Experimenters found a group of superstitious people in Chicago believing that the world would end on December 21st. They became part of the group to observe their behaviour when the world didn’t actually come to an end. Experimenters needed to be part of the group because the group isolated themselves from all non-believers.
[F]	The group of people explained to themselves that God did not destroy the world because of their prayers. Caused cognitive dissonance (discomfort caused by conflicting cognitions i.e. ideas, beliefs). This is to protect there own group self esteem.
[C]	Self Fulfilling Prophecy was apparent as the believers made up a reason when their believe did not come true.
[E]	Ecological validity: High, naturalistic observation. Culture bias: only one superstitious group were studied locally.

Snyder and Swann – Introverts and Extroverts (Illusory Correlation)
[A]	Testing stereotype.
[P]	Told female students that they would either meet someone that was either introvert or extrovert. They were then asked to prepare a set of questions for the person they were going to meet.
[F]	Participants that thought they were meeting an introvert asked questions like "What do you dislike about parties?" or "Are there times you wish you could be more outgoing?" Participants that thought they were meeting an extrovert asked questions like "What do you do to liven up a party?"
[C]	Questions asked displayed the participants' stereotypes towards either personality. Revealed the formation of stereotyping – Illusory Correlation.

Kashima and Triandis – Self Serving Bias and Modesty Bias study
[A]	Cultural factors affecting attribution (Self Serving Bias and Modesty Bias).
[P]	Participants were students from Japan and America. They were given pictures of unfamiliar countries and were asked to remember details. Participants then performed a recall of the details.
[F]	American students tend to attribute success to dispositional factors more. (Self serving bias). Japanese students tent to attribute failure to dispositional factors more (Modesty bias).
[C]	Biases in attribution can be affected by our cultural background.
[E]	Ecological validity: High, naturalistic observation. Culture bias: only one superstitious group were studied locally.

Philip Zimbardo – Stanford Prison Experiment (Conformity/SIT)
[A]	Prove that situational factors can affect behaviour.
[P]	22 male subjects were selected through personality assessment based on their mental stability, maturity and social ability. Randomly assigned the role of either prisoner or warden. "Prisoners" Signed a consent document that some of their human rights will be suspended for the experiment and that all subjects would receive $15 a day up to 2 weeks. "Arrested" by surprise by real police from their house, taken to a real police station for standard procedures. Driven blindfolded to a prison (set, not a real prison) where they were stripped naked, delouse, and dressed in prisoner uniform. Stayed in the prison for 24 hours a day, followed a schedule of work, rest and meal. "Wardens" Put on warden costumes with the correct props. They worked 8 hours a day, and were given no specific instructions. Asked to keep a reasonable degree of order and were prohibited against any means of physical violence.
[F]	Experiment was terminated in 6 days, instead of the intended 14 days due to abnormal reactions shown by both prisoners and wardens. "Prisoners" Displayed passivity and dependence. Half the prisoners showed signs of depression, crying, fits of rage, acute anxiety. Due to this reason, they were released early. All but two prisoners would forfeit the money if they could be released early. Experimenters proposed that these behaviours were results of the loss of personal identity, dependency and learned helplessness. "Wardens" Displayed huge enjoyment of power at their disposal, leading towards abusive use of power, dehumanizing the prisoners. Some wardens worked extra time with no extra pay and were disappointed that the experiment was over. They punished the prisoners for no apparent justifications (abusive use of power). Not all wardens displayed aggression, but none opposed other’s use of it.
[C]	The situation (prison environment) affected all participant’s behaviour. Arguable that the environment of a prison is what causes prisoners to act violently. Supports SIT Displayed the categorisation and development of identity in both groups.
[E]	Ecological validity: Low, lab environment, overt observation. Prohibition of physical violence limited the generalising ability of the experiment. Experimenters argue that… The functional equivalent of the prison system (setting, costumes etc.) were implemented. Reactions and behaviours of the subjects exceeded the level of “role play”. Calling each other by ID number in private, wardens showed aggression even when they thought they were not being watched. Reliability: Experiment was not repeated until years after, subjects did not act as predicted. Culture bias: only studied subjects from the US. Ethical considerations and issues. Participants signed consent forms, but they had no clear idea of the procedure of the experiment. Induced aggression in subjects. Created discrimination and violence. Gender bias: only male subjects were used.

Charlton et al. – St Helena TV violence study (SLT, covert observation)
[A]	Investigate the effect of the introduction of television on aggression in children.
[P]	TV was introduced to St Helena Island, violent content shown on TV was equal to the UK. Cameras were set up in playgrounds of two primary schools.
[F]	After 5 years, aggression of children did not increase. Good behaviour evident prior the introduction of TV were maintained.
[C]	Without correct and complete SLT process, ARRM, Social Learning cannot be achieved.

John Watson – Little Albert (SLT/Classical conditioning)
[A]	Investigating the classical conditioning method.
[P]	A baby, under his parent’s consent, was asked to participate in the classical conditioning experiment. Experimenter exposed Little Albert to a series of white fluffy objects e.g. rats, white rabbits, santa masks etc. as a baseline test. Little Albert showed neutral responses to these stimuli. Little Albert was then placed into a room with some lab rats, his response was neutral. He started playing with the lab rats and did not show any fear. Experimenters then created a loud noise by hitting a metal bar whenever Little Albert touched the rats, Little Albert showed fear.
[F]	After several pairing of the stimulus, Little Albert showed signs of distress and started crying whenever he saw the lab rats.
[C]	Same fear was displayed when other white fluffy objects were shown to Little Albert. Classical conditioning was successful.
[E]	Ecological validity: Low, lab environment. Culture bias: Babies are too young to have any cultural influence. Immoral to evoke fear under lab conditions, unless participants approves to be purposely horrified otherwise. Caused permanent unnecessary mental harm and distress. Welfare of the human participant must always be the paramount consideration of any experiments.

Stanley Milgram – Study On Obedience (Compliance)
[A]	Investigating the effect of authority on compliance and obedience.
[P]	Subjects were 40 males, age range from 20 to 50, found through newspaper advert. Subjects were led to believe that the experiment was investigating the effect of punishment on learning. They were given the role of the “teacher” through a fixed lottery. They saw the learner (which is an actor) in real life, strapped to a chair connected with an electrode. The experimenter took the subject to another room and told them to apply an electric shock by pressing the button whenever the learner gets a question wrong. The experimenter wore a grey lab coat. The “teacher” was given a test shock of 45 volts. At certain voltages, different vocal feedback was given through a recorded system. After 315 volts, no response was given.
[F]	65% of the subjects continued on to the maximum 450 volts. No one stopped before 300 volts. Subjects were observed to show signs of stress (e.g. sweat, tremble, biting their lips).
[C]	Subjects displayed compliance because of the authority figure (the experimenter in the grey lab coat). Compliance, not conformity. Because it is evident that the subjects did not internalise the idea of giving shock. When subjects were asked to electrocute a puppy, level of obedience increased.
[E]	Ecological validity: Low, lab environment. Culture bias: Unrepresentative sample, all subjects were from the US. Other researchers replicated the study in other countries. Findings can then be generalised. Caused distress in subjects. They were told “you have no choice but to carry on” but in actual fact subjects had the right to leave. Subjects were deceived to thinking that they were actually giving out electric shocks. They were then debriefed, and showed that the learner was unharmed. Gender bias: Only male subjects used initially. In later replicates, female subjects and “victim” were also used. When a female “victim” was used, level of obedience reduced.

Jones and Harris – Castro Essays evaluation (FAE)
[A]	Demonstrate the Fundamental Attributional Error (FAE).
[P]	Participants were university students. Subjects read pro and anti Fidel Castro (the Cuban revolutionary) essays. Subjects were asked to rate the “Pro Castro” attitudes of the writer on the scale of 10 to 70.
[F]	When subject believed that the writers had free choice of their position, they rated writers with who spoke in favor of Castro as having a more positive attitude towards Castro. When subject were told that the writers determined their position with a coin toss, they still rated writers who spoke in favor of Castro as having a more positive attitude.
[C]	This proves that although behaviour was severely constrained by situation, observers still opted for internal attribution.

Aronson and Steele – African and European American study (Stereotype)
[A]	To demonstrate the effect of stereotype threat.
[P]	Participants were African Americans and European Americans. 30 minutest verbal test made up of difficult multiple choice questions. Group 1 was told it was a "genuine test on verbal abilities". Group 2 was told it was a "laboratory task that was used to study how certain problems are generally solved". Did similar experiment with females and lower social class.
[F]	African Americans scored significantly lower on the test in Group 1 than European Americans. African Americans scored equally as good as European Americans on the test in Group 2.
[C]	Stereotype threat can affect any social or cultural group, provided that the members believe in the stereotype. Believing in negative stereotypes can harm the performances of group members.

Spencer et al. – Stereotype threat Maths experiment (Stereotype)
[A]	To demonstrate the effect of stereotype threat.
[P]	Participants were a group of male and female students. Gave difficult maths test to students who were strong in mathematics. Predicts that female under the stereotype threat would underperform. This stereotype threat stems from a common negative stereotype amongst society that women are less capable in maths.
[F]	Hypothesis was true, women in the experiment significantly underperformed compared to men with equal abilities. A literature test was also done. The two groups performed equally well because neither groups were put under stereotype threat
[C]	Stereotype threat can affect any social or cultural group, provided that the members believe in the stereotype. Believing in negative stereotypes can harm the performances of group members.

Dickerson – Take shorter shower (Compliance – Commitment)
[A]	Investigate the effect of compliance (commitment) on behaviour.
[P]	Students from the university was asked to sign a poster saying “Take shorter showers, if I can do it, so can you!” Then the students were asked to do a survey that was designed to make them think about their own water wastage. The shower times of students were monitored.
[F]	Those who signed the poster were forced to think about their own water wastage, they averaged the shower time of 3.5 minutes That result was significantly lower than the average time across the dormitories. Might be able to argue that the students signed the poster because they are already committed to the cause.
[C]	Students felt that they are committed to a cause.

Cialdini – Juvenile day trip/social worker (Compliance – Reciprocity)
[A]	Investigate the effect of compliance (reciprocity) on behaviour.
[P] [F]	Experimenters pretended they were from a “County Youth Counseling Programme”. They stopped at different university campuses recruiting students to look after a group of juvenile on their day trip. 83% refused this job. On another day, the experimenters asked if the students would be willing to be part of a counseling programme for two hours a week for two years. Everyone refused the job. Then, the experimenter asked them to look after a group of juvenile on their day trip. 50% agreed.
[C]	Students felt the need to accept the second offer as a for of returning a favour because they declined the first offer.

Perrin and Spencer – Asch’s Paradigm with professionals (Conformity)
Experiment brief	Replication of the "Asch's Paradigm" study. Except the subjects used were all from professional fields. Maths, Chemistry, Medical and Engineering students.
[F]	Only 1 out of 396 trials did the subject conform to the big group.
[C]	Individuals with high self esteem and confidence are less likely to conform.
[E]	Offered an alternative view on the factors affecting conformity. Improved upon the theory of conformity and the original study (Asch's Paradigm) Evaluative points of Asch's Paradigm apply.

Moscovici and Lage – Shades of blue study (Conformity)
[A]	Investigate whether a minority group can influence a bigger group through conformity.
[P]	4 subjects were placed into a room with 2 confederates and the experimenter. Subjects were deceived that the 2 confederates were participants just like them. Subjects were asked to judge whether different shades of blue-green cards were blue or green. The 2 confederates were instructed to give the wrong answer consistently.
[F]	The minority of 2 confederates were able to influence 32% of the participants to give a wrong answer.
[C]	Uncovered an important element of conformity. Consistency of the group.
[E]	Offered an alternative view on the factors affecting conformity. Improved upon the theory of conformity and the original study (Asch’s Paradigm). Evaluative points of Asch's Paradigm apply.

Bond and Smith – Asch’s Paradigm with different cultures (Conformity/Culture)
Experiment brief	Meta-analysis of 133 Asch's Paradigm study in 17 different countries around the world.
[F]	Individualist societies tend to have a lower rate of conformity (e.g. US, UK, France) Collectivist societies tend to have a higher rate of conformity (e.g. Hong Kong, Fiji, Brazil)
[C]	Displayed the effect of culture on conformity.
[E]	Emic approach: took care of the cultural differences around the world individually Evaluative points of Asch's Paradigm apply.

Solomon Asch – Asch’s Paradigm variation (Conformity)
Experiment brief	Replication of the original Asch's Paradigm study. Except at points of the experiment, one confederate was instructed to disagree with majority, even if it was also a wrong answer.
[F]	Conformity rate dropped significantly.
[C]	Consistency and unanimity is crucial for conformity to happen.
[E]	Evaluative points of Asch's Paradigm apply.

Mead – New Guinea Anthropological study
[A]	Comparing masculine and feminine traits in different cultures in New Guinea.
[P]	Covert observation. Research was done in three different tribes in New Guinea.
[F]	One tribe shows that both male and female displayed the same sensitive behaviour. Another tribe shows that both male and female were aggressive and ruthless. Another tribe shows that female had the dominant characteristics and male showed more “feminine” traits.
[C]	Mead’s demonstration of cultural differences in many respects a valid indication of how society scan influence gender-role development.
[E]	Unscientific methodology. Possible Confirmation Bias – Researcher believed that situation was influential in changing behaviour. Re-analysis of Mead’s material failed to show that one of the tribe displayed any gender dominance. Covert observation, did not interfere with subject’s life. Female researcher, might not understand the perspective of a male subject.

World Health Organisation Study on Depression
[A]	A study of diagnosis and classification of depression in Switzerland, Canada, Japan and Iran.
[P]	576 patients were studied Used a standard diagnosis system for the four countries
[F]	40% of patients displayed symptoms that were not on the classification system.
[C]	Diagnosis and classification system need an Emic (Culture specific) approach because socially acceptable norms are different in different cultures.