PSYC 342 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Jaywalking, Security Guard
24 Nov 2016
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The principle that people are more likely to comply with requests made by a person of high prestige and/or authority. Authority figures may be perceived as providing particularly accurate information. Factors influencing authority and compliance: professional status, organisational affiliation, clothing. Higham & carment (1992): estimates of politicians heights higher after winning elections than before winning. Peter & ceci (1982): resubmitted previously published articles from prestigious institutions with a new low status affiliation: but no control condition for gauging base rate. Advertising campaigns often stress expertise of the manufacturer (stress amount of time business has made product, actors portraying doctors or scientists) Bickman (1974): confederate in street clothes or security guard uniform requested people give money to someone: street clothes: 42% compliance, security guard: 92% compliance. Lefkowitz et al. (1955): 3. 5 times as many people followed a jaywalker into traffic wearing a business suit than someone wearing casual clothes.
