Chapter 10: Social Influences on the Development of Human Potential (36/30) -- Psychology

Chapter 10: Social Influences on the Development of Human Potential Compliance, Conformity and Obedience Humans are not the only social animals living among members of their own species. Humans are not the only social animals dependent upon parents to survive. Humans have pets. Therefore, humans are not the only species dependent upon humans to survive! In fact, some animals not dependent upon humans to survive, still find them helpful. Video Watch the following video for a demonstration of crows using humans to obtain food: This is the third chapter in the Nature/Nurture section. In Chapter 8, we saw how starting from the time of conception, nature and nurture interact, influencing your physical, cognitive, and moral development. In the previous chapter, we considered how nature and nurture interact in the development of human personality. I asked you to consider how you would describe your own personality as well as that of a potential partner in life. This raises the question, why is personality important? From the moment you are born, the most important part of your world is other people. Think of the extent to which you relied on others to eat and survive. Consider the extent to which your answer to “What’s it all about” includes a life partner, family (including potential children), friends, colleagues, and others. Social psychology studies the effects of the presence, or imagined presence, of other people on one’s thoughts, feelings, and actions. One’s social world starts at birth. Immediately, reciprocal determinism feedback loop s (Bandura, 1986) will be established between the newborn and other people. The newborn’s temperament and behavior influences how the environment (including caretakers) respond, which then impacts upon the development of the infant’s skills and knowledge, which then influences how others react, and so on (see video). Video Watch the following video describing the reciprocal determinism feedback loop: Indirect effects of the newborn’s and caregivers’ personalities will occur soon after birth during feeding and whenever the infant communicates being uncomfortable (e.g., by crying). The personalities of the mother and caregivers will influence how they react to the newborn. Previously cited research (Rovee & Rovee, 1969) demonstrated that young infants are sensitive to the consequences of their actions (i.e., they learned to manipulate a mobile by moving their leg). The most important consequences in the newborn’s life are administered by other people. It is not inaccurate to suggest that very early in life, an infant must learn to influence the behavior of other people. These interactions represent the infant’s first experiences in social influence. Examples of social influence occurring later in life include compliance, peer pressure to conform and obedience to authority. Video Watch the following video describing the three types of social influence: From birth, infants are learning the ABCs. No, not the alphabet