Photo AI
‘Instigators’ and an unethical act A study examined the psychology of ‘instigators’ - AQA - A-Level Psychology - Question 3 - 2018 - Paper 3
Question 3
‘Instigators’ and an unethical act A study examined the psychology of ‘instigators’. ‘Instigators’ are people who surround an unethical act and influence the wrongd... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:‘Instigators’ and an unethical act A study examined the psychology of ‘instigators’ - AQA - A-Level Psychology - Question 3 - 2018 - Paper 3
Step 1
Explain one ethical issue that could be violated in the ‘instigators’ and an unethical act study.
Answer
One ethical issue that could be violated in this study is the lack of informed consent. The student being asked to vandalise the book would not be aware they are participating in a research study. As a result, they may not have sufficient information to give informed consent, which is a fundamental principle of ethical research.
Step 2
Explain how social impact theory can support the findings of the ‘instigators’ and an unethical act study.
Answer
Social Impact theory suggests that the influence of individuals is affected by the number of sources of influence and their relationship to the target individual. In this study, it can be inferred that students who were instructed by two confederates (87% obedience) were more likely to engage in the unethical act than those influenced by a single confederate (62% obedience).
This suggests that the presence of multiple sources amplifies the perceived pressure to conform, aligning with Social Impact theory. Thus, as the number of instructing confederates increases, so does the likelihood of obedience, reflecting the theory's premise regarding source strength and target relationships.