Real-World Applications of Social Influence

The research covered in this topic has important implications for understanding and addressing real-world issues. Social influence affects behaviour in everyday life, from advertising to the justice system, from workplace dynamics to online behaviour.

---

Applications to the Criminal Justice System

Eyewitness Testimony and Conformity

Research on conformity has important implications for eyewitness testimony:

• Post-event discussion between witnesses can lead to memory conformity (Gabbert et al., 2003) — witnesses may incorporate details from others' accounts into their own memory
• Police should keep witnesses separate to prevent conformity effects on their testimony
• Line-up procedures should be designed to minimise social influence — for example, witnesses should be told that the suspect may or may not be in the line-up

Jury Decision-Making

Conformity research is relevant to jury deliberation: