ABSTRACT
What we say and the way we behave are influenced by other people. We want to be liked by other people and to fit into society. As a result, we often hide what we really think, and try to behave in ways that will meet with the approval of others. However, the work that has been carried out by social psychologists indicates there is more to social influence. Most of us are influenced much more by other people than we think we are. This is true across a very wide range of situations. What we are discussing here is what social psychologists call social influence. Social influence involves “the exercise of social power by a person or group to change the attitudes or behaviour of others in a particular direction. Social power refers to the force available to the influencer to motivate this change” (Franzoi, 1996, p. 258).
