Social Influences on Behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Social Influences on Behavior - Essay Example As far as it is impossible for him not to talk on the phone while driving (he works outside the office and thus is to be available and easy of access at all times) there is supposed to be some way to make him more attentive and careful (Knobloch and Solomon 2003). Following the theory of social influences it is possible to say that this behavior is doing dissonance. This behavior is characterized by free choice of actions, no rewards and no excuse. The main focus is on behavior and practical outcomes. This is supposed to be such a principle as negative reinforcement. But Christopher's behavior (if changed) will be difficult to control. So this variant of influence can be used as additional and a kind of a safety net. What is more likely to have its positive effect on Christopher's driving behavior is such principle as respondent conditioning. This principle is supposed to be used in order to establish certain response based on methods developed and described by Ivan Pavlov and his di sciples. There are some possibilities of making Christopher be more careful on the way while talking on his cell-phone. First of all, it is possible to engage his close relatives (and even friends) into the process and ask them to constantly remind Christopher to be careful.