Going along versus going alone: when fundamental motives facilitate strategic (non)conformity.
Three experiments examined how 2 fundamental social motives--self-protection and mate attraction--influenced conformity. A self-protective goal increased conformity for both men and women. In contrast, the effects of a romantic goal depended on sex, causing women to conform more to others' preferences while engendering nonconformity in men. Men motivated to attract a mate were particularly likely to nonconform when (a) nonconformity made them unique (but not merely a member of a small minority) and when (b) the topic was subjective versus objective, meaning that nonconformists could not be revealed to be incorrect. These findings fit with a functional evolutionary model of motivation and behavior, and they indicate that fundamental motives such as self-protection and mate attraction can stimulate specific forms of conformity or nonconformity for strategic self-presentation.
Griskevicius
Vladas
V
Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1104, USA. vladasg@asu.edu
Goldstein
Noah J
NJ
Mortensen
Chad R
CR
Cialdini
Robert B
RB
Kenrick
Douglas T
DT
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D008149:Love; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D012649:Self Concept; D012925:Social Conformity