Group process versus social influence in evidential reasoning about an empirical stimulus.
Item
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Title
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Group process versus social influence in evidential reasoning about an empirical stimulus.
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Identifier
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AAI9009719
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identifier
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9009719
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Creator
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Bovasso, Gregory Bernard.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Salomon Rettig
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Date
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1989
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Psychology, Social | Psychology, General | Psychology, Experimental
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Abstract
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Evidential reasoning is defined here as the verification of an empirical fact by perceptual inference influenced by sources external to an empirical stimulus. The present research tested the effects of both social influence and group processes on evidential reasoning about an ambiguous empirical stimulus, the Muller-Lyer illusion. Social influence was defined as the unilateral influence of a source on a target. Group process was defined as the mutual influence of subjects on each other. Individuals involved in group discussion made significantly more veridical perceptions of an ambiguous stimulus than individuals alone ({dollar}F{dollar} = 4.32, {dollar}df{dollar} = 1,49, {dollar}p{dollar} {dollar}<{dollar}.05). Groups and individuals exposed to a source of social influence made significantly less veridical perceptions than groups and individuals not exposed to an influence source ({dollar}F{dollar} = 5.04, {dollar}df{dollar} = 2,49, {dollar}p{dollar} {dollar}<{dollar}.05). These results suggest that consensus formed in discourse is a rational process by which empirical reality is validated, unless biased by influence external to that discourse. The implications of the results for scientific evidential reasoning are also discussed.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
