Proposal of a Double Diamond Model of Social Response

Abstract

Models of social response concern the identification and delineation of possible responses to social pressure. Previous efforts toward a unified model have been limited to conceptualizations that define conformity and its alternatives based on discrete categories (e.g., Montgomery, 1992 ; Nail et al., 2000 ). Social response in many settings, however, is more a matter of degree, requiring continuous-response formats. The authors propose a new unified model, the double diamond, which was derived from a synthesis of 11 existing models. To our knowledge, it includes for the first time in a continuous-response model: two types of conformity, three types of anticonformity, independence, compromise, contagion, and numerous other possibilities. The model provides a needed theoretical foundation for a relatively new influence technique: strategic self-anticonformity ( MacDonald et al., 2011 ). The broader integrative power of the model is illustrated by its links with the true self ( Rogers, 1951 ), self-determination theory ( Ryan & Deci, 2008 ), and two therapeutic techniques— paradoxical intention ( Frankl, 1967 ) and motivational interviewing ( Miller & Rollnick, 2002 ).