The Effect of a Model on Behavior

1. Whitney Borton Michelle Painter Marissa Walker PSY 220 Winter 2010 The Effect of a Model on Behavior

2. Introduction • Observing a model performing an everyday action can unknowingly “affect behavior” of the observer. • Ex. Stair use by models (Adams et al., 2006) • Ex. Tipping behavior (Guéguen, 2007)

3. Introduction • When the model does something that is generally perceived as improper behavior, the observers of the model are likely to engage in the improper behavior, despite their moral rationale (Toner & Potts, 1981). • The presence of a model can cause a child to act in an aggressive way when the would normally not do so (Bandura, 1961)

4. Hypothesis • To test the effect of model behavior on actions that could be seen as negative, we set a cooler of Coke in the middle of a sidewalk on campus. • We hypothesized that more people will take a Coke after viewing the confederate remove a Coke than when no model is seen removing a Coke.

5. Participants • Control Condition • 164 participants • 83 males • 81 females • Model Condition • 32 participants • 14 males • 18 females

6. Procedure • A cooler was placed in the middle of the sidewalk between Crowe and Lynn Hall with a camera recording all the people who walked by the cooler. • 1st day – no confederates • 2nd day – confederates every 5 minutes when the area was most populated • 1st hour: The lid was completely on the cooler • 2nd hour: The lid was ½ on the cooler

7. Procedure • All the people that appeared to be within a normal college age were counted. • After viewing the tape, all participants were divided into 2 categories • Not removing a Coke from the cooler • Removing a Coke from the cooler • Anyone who passed by the cooler within a 1 minute interval of someone removing a Coke was considered in the “model” condition.

8. Difference was significantChi Square(1) = 5.46, p = .02. • Control Condition • 164 total participants • 5 removed a Coke • Model Condition • 32 total participants • 4 removed a Coke

9. Discussion • We expected more people to take a Coke from the cooler after viewing the model remove a Coke from the cooler than when no model was present. • Our hypothesis was supported • The model had a significant effect on the amount of participants who took a coke, p = .02 • People in the modeled condition took a Coke more often then when they were not in the model condition • People are more willing to partake in an antisocial behavior when other people do it first

10. Future Direction • A larger campus would be a more accurate study due to the anonymity of the students. • More people probably would have taken a Coke if the lid had been off the cooler the entire time or if the Cokes were in a container that made them appear less like they belonged to an individual. • Closer to ideal base rate of 50%

11. Conclusion • On Hanover College campus, the presence of a model removing a Coke from a cooler had an influence on the antisocial behavior of taking a Coke. • More people removed a Coke when there was a model present.