Question

While on a jury, you are thinking of finding the defendant guilty. However, as you listen to the case, another juror brings up three pieces of evidence that you had not recalled. Based on these pieces of evidence, you decide to change your vote. This form of social influence is known as

a. informational social influence
b. normative social influence
c. persuasive social influence
d. none of the above

Answer 1

The change in the juror's vote to not guilty due to new evidence is an example of informational social influence, where the decision is based on evidence suggesting the group has correct information, rather than conformity driven by group acceptance.

Step-by-step explanation:

The situation described exemplifies informational social influence, which occurs when an individual changes their opinion or behavior based on new information or evidence presented by others whom they believe to be knowledgeable or correct.

In this case, the juror was initially inclined to vote guilty but was swayed by additional evidence brought to light by another juror. This shift in judgment is a classic example of informational social influence because the juror used the new evidence not to fit in with the group but rather as a basis for believing that the group had correct information regarding the case.

Normative social influence, by contrast, would involve changing one's vote to conform to the group's expectations or to gain their approval, without necessarily believing in the correctness of the group's stance. Since the change in the juror's vote was driven by evidentiary considerations rather than peer pressure, it does not exemplify normative social influence.