Expectation States Theory and the Motivational Determinants of Social Influence

Abstract

In this chapter we give an overview of our research program in which we investigate how status affects the influence behavior of people in co-operative task groups. Based on expectation states theory (Berger, Wagner, & Zelditch, 1985) we investigated in which situations self-oriented or group-oriented motivations underlie influence differentials. The results of four laboratory experiments suggest that participants were only group-oriented when their relative status positions were unlikely to change. As soon as there was a possibility that status relations might change, the participants became self-oriented; they showed a greater reluctance to accept influence and tried to influence others more often. The implications of the results for expectation states theory and the literature on social influence are discussed.