Kimmelman 1

Jessie Kimmelman
Mrs. Thomas
UWRT 1102
30 March 2016
Self Assessment: If I were to give myself a number grade I would give myself something
between an 80-90. I believe that I was very thorough in writing my annotated bibliographies, but
of course there is always still room for improvement. One thing that I specifically struggled with
was creating my own citations. But other than that, I feel as though I did a pretty decent job with
following the directions and incorporating as much information as possible.
AB#1

Fraser, Laura. Losing It. New York: Penguin Group, 1994. Print.

Kimmelman 2
Laura Frasers main reason behind the publication of this book is to bring to light
Americas obsession with weight and the industry that feeds on it. She begins by telling a
personal story of her Adventures in Dietland. When she was thirteen, she had a man come up
to her and say, Wouldnt you like to be thin Laurie? Youd be a pretty girl, you know, if you lost
some of that weight (1). Laurie describes herself as always being a little chubby growing up, but
at that moment she was just going through puberty, which is an insecure time period on its own.
Not only was she receiving negative comments from peers, but her parents as well. Fraser then
goes on to describe some of the stereotypes that surrounded her while growing up. Some
examples of these include: ballerinas never have big tummies, the children got mocked in gym
class when they couldnt climb the rope or run the mile, and the boys in high school would rule
the chubby girls out as potential love interests.
Fraser breaks up her book into several chapters, each of which discuss a different topic.
She begins with chapters 2 and 3 discussing diets and different diet scams. In chapters 4 and 5
she talks about the difference between fat free and fake foods that give no satisfaction. She
continues elaborating on diet groups, diet doctors, and anti-diet researchers. But the part that was
the most relevant to my inquiry question was in her last chapter where she wrote about how
people throw their weight around and rebel against the diet culture.
Chapter ten is very relevant to how peoples thoughts about weight are a reflection of
todays society. She believes that even with the major gains that women have accomplished in
society, many of them still feel inferior and ashamed of their size. One quote that stood out to me
in this chapter was, Most of us dont recognize that the social forces that keep pulling us
toward thinness are every bit more constraining as the corsets that kept our great-grandmothers
from actively participating in the world (282). She mentions how there is a new view of weight

Kimmelman 3
emerging, but with that being said, the cultural pressures to be thin in todays society are getting
progressively worse. This does not only apply to women either. More and more men are
becoming deeply disturbed by their body imagine and lack of self esteem. Fraser then
transitioned to write about how eating disorders are becoming more and more common. They are
on the rise, which in turn only proves how heavily the media and todays culture is affecting the
people of todays society. One other quote that really stood out to me was when Fraser wrote,
We need a widespread rebellion of women who are tired of worrying about their weight, who
understand that weight is not a matter of health or discipline but a weapon our culture uses
against us to keep us in our place and feeling small (284).
Once a person reflects on the meaning behind this book, they could better understand
how heavily our culture and media affect our society, as well as others. Its not only about diets
and people with low self esteem, but it is also about the psychologists and the 8 percent of people
who die due to eating disorders. This is a global issue that is affecting almost, if not everyone,
around us in some way or another. With that being said, it makes this book relatable to pretty
much everyone.

Kimmelman 4

AB #2
Reflection: This is my second annotated bibliography and I feel much more confident this time
around. I have a further understanding of what this assignment needs to contain so that it will
benefit me the most in the future when Im writing my inquiry paper. As I keep going and
continue completing the seven annotated bibliographies needed for this class, I will proceed to
progress and get better at it.
Citation:
Kiesler, Charles A., and Sara B. Kiesler. Conformity. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley

Pub.,

1969. Print.

Charles A. Kiesler was an American educator psychologist and a university administrator.

He was the chancellor as well as the 19th chief executive officer at the University of Missouri
located in Columbia, Missouri. He not only was the founding president of the American
Psychology Society, but he was also elected Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of
Sciences.

Kimmelman 5
In the introduction, Kiesler discussed what he would be writing about throughout the rest
of the book. This book focuses primarily on the problem of conformity- as in what it means and
where it occurs. In analyzing this topic, he believed it is important to consider several other
related issues such as the effects of the mere presence of others on us, communication within
different groups, etc. The main idea of this book is the difference between compliance (going
along with the group) as opposed to private acceptance (actually changing ones opinion as a
result of interaction within a group). He begins by simply defining conformity. He defines it as
a change in behavior or belief toward a group as a result of real or imagined group pressure(2).
By defining this at the beginning, it set the tone for the rest of the book. After the definition, he
elaborated and talked about how if each member of a group influences each other, then the
members as a whole would become more and more like each other in attitude and action. Kiesler
then proceeded to talk about group pressure and group pressure in aggregates. He believes that
there is a force within a group- a force to fulfill others expectations. This leads into the topic of
compliance as in The need to be liked. The need to be correct(42).
Analysis: In reflection, I think that this book will be very helpful when writing my
inquiry paper. Since my topic is why do people choose to conform to society?, this
information goes hand-in-hand with what I need to complete this assignment. Although I thought
Kiesler did an exceptional job with the writing of this book, there was one big issue that I
noticed. From the very beginning he describes conformity as a problem. He defended himself
and his opinion throughout almost the entire book. He never defended the opposing argument.
With that being said, it is hard to grasp the information accurately since it seems to be biased.

Kimmelman 6
AB #3

Reflection: As I continue to do these annotated bibliographies, I feel myself getting better and
better at them. I no longer have to stare at the rubric to make sure that I get all of the needed
information. Instead, I now know what information is relevant and important enough to put in
my annotated bibliography. When I first found out that we would have to write seven of these,
not going to lie, I started panicking. I thought it was going to be similar to writing seven
different papers. Yes, that is somewhat what its like, but all the information being found within
these books will be a lot of help when writing the final paper. It may be overwhelming now, but
its almost like weve broken up this huge assignment into smaller pieces by doing this. Once its
time to complete the final paper, all we will have to do it piece all of this information together.
Citation:
Herman, C. Peter, Mark P. Zanna, and E. Tory Higgins. Physical Appearance, Stigma, and Social
Behavior: The Ontario Symposium. 3.0: (1981). Print.
This novel started out with the topic of physical appearance. The authors wrote the topic
of the symposium, as of this volume, was physical appearance as a determinant of personality

Kimmelman 7
and social behavior. There is little doubt that ones physical appearance has some impact on the
way they are perceived and treated; and presumably, owing to the socially reflected nature of the
self, ones personality likewise will be affected by ones appearance (ix). This beginning set the
tone for the rest of the book. This begins to explain conformity. It brings up the question, do
people conform to society in terms of looks so that the people around them will treat them
better? Do peoples personalities change when they alter their appearance? Branching off of the
topic of facial attractiveness, the authors then began discussing stereotyping based on
attractiveness and how that causes issues and conceptual perspective. The next chapter talks
about the development of social behaviors and social relations as a function of physical
attractiveness. As the book goes on, they touch on topics such as physique and deviance. The one
topic in this book that was the most relevant to my topic was the chapter on the impact on social
behavior. This chapter stated, physical appearance represents a class of variables that may
describe either the agent of social influence or the target of social influence(143). This directly
linked back to what was discussed at the beginning of the book.
Analysis: In reflection, the part about physical appearance influencing the way someone
treats you and how your appearance influences your personality really shocked me. After
thinking about it, it does make a lot of sense. When I first read this it absolutely blew my mind.
This is a great perspective to include in my final paper. Maybe the reason people conform is so
that the people around them (society) would treat them better. Overall, I think this book gave me
a vast amount of information that I could use in my final paper.

AB #4

Kimmelman 8

Citation:
Cross, Tracy L. Defying the Crowd: Cultivating Creativity in a Culture of Conformity by R. J.
Sternbert & T. I. Lubart. Journal For the Education of the Gifted. 19.3, (1996): 359-372.
Print.
The original book Defying the Crowd: Cultivating Creativity in a Culture of
Conformity was written by R. J. Sternbert. He was known for having a spectacular research
career in psychology. At a young age he did poorly on IQ tests and was expecting a future full of
failure due to his lack of intelligence. Then as he grew a little older, one of his teachers saw
potential in him and challenged him to become better. Soon after this he began to flourish as a
student. In the seventh grade, he developed his own version of an Intelligence test. Once he was
into his older age, he became an IBM professor of psychology and education and professor of
management at Yale University. He was also a member of the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences.

Kimmelman 9
This article was a persons view on the book by R. J. Sternbert, which focused mainly on
preserving the creativity of a culture despite the conformity that surrounds it. One thing I liked
about reading this was that it provided examples that were very relatable. For example, the
author discussed the stock market and the term buy low, sell high. These people are going
against societal norms and choosing not to conform when doing this. Most people would
purchase a stock when it is high because it is obviously succeeding and then sell it when it is low
and no longer doing well. Although this is what most people would do, the people who go
against this and do it backwards are usually the people who end up making a lot of money off of
stocks. They are defeating the system by going against everyone else.
Sternberg and Lubart chose to focus on six specific aspects that heavily influence the
creative process. These six things include intelligence, knowledge, different thinking styles,
personality, motivation, and environmental context. They also began to mention famous names
such as Picasso and Einstein. These are a few examples of creative people who went against the
norm and ended up becoming huge successes. By being able to name specific people that this
was successful for, it made the article more relatable. If Einstein and Picasso did it and ended up
that successful, then why cant I?
The authors then went on to discuss how conformity can lead to a sense of safety. They
brought up the idea that maybe people do things exactly like everyone else to avoid the risk. But
they elaborated on that idea and said that having a risk factor is vital for the spark of creativity in
a person. This brings us back to the stock market analogy. Going against the norm and buying
low and selling high could be successful, but it also has a huge risk factor. There is the
possibility of losing everything. They also provided the example of gambling. But without that
initial sense of risk, it could be difficult for creativity to develop and prosper.

Kimmelman 10
Quotes:
- Creative people are those who consciously and purposefully decide to follow their own path.
They do it because they want to, not because someone makes them (237).
-When you have a creative new idea or program, dont expect people to come running to you. If
they do, beware of the poison darts. (pg. 91)
Analysis: In reflection, I not only enjoyed the original book, but I also enjoyed the
journal reflection on the novel. I felt as though both of these writers had good perspectives. One
part of this article that really stood out to me the most was when he mentioned Albert Einstein.
Einstein was a person who most definitely went against society and did not conform. He even
has some famous quotes where he touches on this topic.
Albert Einstein Quotes:
It gives me great pleasure indeed to see the stubbornness of an incorrigible nonconformist
warmly acclaimed.
He who joinfully marches in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a
large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would suffice.

AB #5

Kimmelman 11

Citation:
Development of the Conformity to Feminine Norms Inventory. Sex Roles April 2005: 417-435.
Print.
I chose this article because it was written with very specific examples. The article starts
out by discussing Feminine norms. The Bem Sex Role Inventory is said to assess a persons
femininity in a global way. Some people have criticized this measure because they believe it is
assessing a persons personality traits as opposed to their gender roles, therefore not accurately
measuring their femininity or masculinity. The article then transitioned into the topic of Tolman
and Porshes Adolescent Femininity Ideology Scale and how this is a much more effective way.
It is viewed this way because instead of it focusing on a persons personality traits, it measures
the feminine injunctions that young girls experience.
With all of that being said, people tend to critique these measures because they view
gender roles as comprised of many different ideologies including relations, beliefs, and attitude.
Women in the U.S. specifically are used to having certain social norms such as being physically
attractive, nurturing children, being submissive to men, etc. Due to womens different cultures
and backgrounds, it should be understood that it is different for all women depending on their
different backgrounds, culture, etc.

Kimmelman 12
In this article, researchers perform a Conformity to Feminine Norms Inventory (CFNI).
Tests on inventory must have a variety in which researchers can properly understand the way
specific feminine norms affect individual women. Within this psychometrically sound study, the
main purpose is to be able to determine the degree in which women conform to the common
feminine norms. This can be shown through the way women react to certain events. If they feel a
sense of pride following an event, chances are it is because they went along with society and
conformed. If following the event, the woman felt a sense of shame, chances are it is because she
went against societal norms. By not conforming to the feminine norms, the woman ultimately
goes against the expectations of someone who is feminine.
For the study itself, 733 women participated. The average of their ages was around 19
years old. The studys results showed that some of the most popular feminine norms include:
nice in relationships, thinness, modesty, domestic, care for children, romantic relationship,
sexual fidelity, and invest in appearance(Development 419). With that being said, the
researchers also made a point to state that the results of the study should in no way suggest that
there are only eight feminine norms-no more and no less- in the dominant culture in the US.
There are obviously other feminine norms in the dominant culture in the US that our measure
development process did not capture(8).
Analysis: In reflection, this article just provided data to support the idea that women
around the world feel the need to conform to specific feminine norms in order to fit in. This is
also not something that occurs in women, but in men as well. In my opinion, there will also be
preconceived norms that people feel the need to follow in order to be accepted within a society.
Quotes:

Kimmelman 13
-It was therefore expected that rigid internalization of feminine norms for appearance (be thin
and invest in appearance), as evidenced by high levels of conformity to these norms, would be
associated with higher levels of eating disordered behavior, negative body image, and
preoccupation with weight as assessed by EDI. **EDI- Eating Disorder Inventory

AB #6

Kimmelman 14

Citation:
"Conformity and Group Mentality: Why We Comply." Conformity and Group Mentality. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2016.

This website contains an article, from the Rochester Institute of Technology, written by
Samantha P. Lumbert. It mainly focuses on the idea of conformity and then branches off into
reason why people choose to conform. With each new reason, Lumber elaborates to help further
the understanding of the reader.
Lumbert focuses on the five main motivational reasons found to cause people to conform.
With that being said, she brings up the idea of how most people view themselves as a unique
individual, unlike any other. But as much as we would like to believe this, it is pretty unrealistic.
The majority of human beings comply to some sort of set rules or social norms without even
realizing it. Some of these could be as easy as cars go when the light is green and stop when the
light is red. This example is an obvious one because without compliance of something that

Kimmelman 15
simple, the entire structure of a society would collapse. But what she wants to discuss are the
not-so-obvious reasons. Like why do the children bully the outcast child? Or why do college
students binge drink? According to Lumberts standpoint, people do this for the five reasons she
elaborates on.
The first of these reasons is for correctness. People feel the need to strive and be accurate
in their judgement and observation. With each given situation, people analyze social cues. The
article stated that, An important study examined how an individuals motivation to be accurate
was influenced by the social pressure created by a group of inaccurate individuals. Lumbert also
presents another example. In this example, there are a group of people. The main person is
presented a task of low difficulty. They know the correct answer, but everyone thinks differently.
Since the task is low difficulty, they know they are correct and stick with their answer. In a
different case, the same main person was given a high difficulty task where they were not 100%
about the answer. In this instance, the person looked to the people around them for cues as to
what the solution could be. The group once again answered incorrectly, but this time the person
went along with what the group said. This is important because it shows that under enough
pressure, a person will cave and conform to the rest of the group to be within the majority.
The second reason people choose to conform is for social acceptance. According to
Lumbert, there have been numerous studies which show how human beings strive in many ways
just to be accepted or not rejected by a social group. She then returned to the example of college
students binge drinking and playing drinking games. There have been studies which show that
people do this mainly for the sense of acceptance, the pressure to socialize, fit in, etc. It seems
like our desire to be accepted within a group is so great, us as human beings will even risk our
own well being to do so. There was another study that examined a human beings fear of

Kimmelman 16
rejection. In a group of people discussing their opinions of a particular topic, those holding the
minority opinion hesitated greatly before expressing their opinion. They fear the rejection of
going against the majority. As the minority group decreases, their hesitation increases. It also
showed that increased social pressure would weaken the connection between the persons
attitude and their final behavior.
The third reason people choose to conform is due to group goals. There was a study
where a group of people were given stories to read and interpret individually. They were then
told what their group members thought and were given the option to change their mind. The
results of this study showed that the people altered their opinions towards a common goal for the
entire group. People want to achieve success as a whole therefore, through discussion and
conforming, they are better able to reach this goal.
The fourth reason people choose to conform is for social identity. Lumbert seems to
believe that there are cultural and sex-typed reasons that lead to people conforming. Lembert
states that Uniqueness in America is often associated with the positive outcomes of freedom and
independence. In Eastern Asian cultures, however, conformity implies the positive outcomes of
harmony and connectedness. This shows that this particular reason for conformity is heavily
based on culture. This can be reflected through even the smallest things such as the pattern of
squares on a shirt. The topic of social identity even branches off into masculinity and femininity.
People comply and do things to avoid going against their gender. A guy is not going to wear a
dress in fear that he will be called gay.
The fifth and final reason people choose to conform is because of alignment with similar
people. This refers to the group of people known as our in-group. These are people that a person

Kimmelman 17
would most readily approach. With that being said, it has been shown that a certain group of
people can form a large, unsupported prejudice against another group that is not their own.
Analysis: In reflection, I really enjoyed this article which could probably be reflected
through how long this annotated bibliography is. I thought it contained a plethora of useful
information for my thesis paper. By breaking up this big and general topic, it helped further my
understanding of each piece. Lumbert not only provided opinion, but she also described and
discussed different studies that backed up her statements.

Quotes:
-It is reasonable to conclude that many times we choose to conform because--whether
consciously or subconsciously-- we all desire to fit in somewhere, with someone.
-Possible future research might include longitudinal research involving many countries
concerning conformity as a cultural norm, and close examination of individual people and their
reasons for choosing to conform in specific situations.

AB #7

Kimmelman 18

Citation:
"Conformity and Group Mentality: Why We Comply." Conformity and Group Mentality. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2016.
This article talks about many different topics, but there is one that stood out to me more
in terms of my thesis paper. This was an experiment which proves how people conform. This
experiment can help provide evidence and supporting data to my information.
The Sherif (1935) Autokinetic Effect Experiment was conducted with the purpose of
proving that people conform to group norms when they are put into an unclear situation. The way
Sherif executed this was by using the autokinetic effect. The autokinetic effect is where a group
of people sit in a dark room and there is a small light projected onto the screen. Although the
light does not actually move, it will appear to. When the people were individually questioned
afterwards, they had an average estimate of the light moving 20cm-80cm. Sherif then asked
people in groups of three. In the group, he would put two people who had a similar estimate and
one person who had a vastly different estimate. Each person in the group had to say out loud
what they individually thought the distance was. The results of the experiment showed that the
group would converge to a common estimate. The person who had a distance greatly different
than the others would end up conforming to the view of the other two people within the group.
Sherifs results show that when in an unclear or ambiguous situation, a person will look to others
in hope of getting guidance towards the correct choice. These people want to do the right thing,

Kimmelman 19
but do not have enough information to do so. This specific case is known as informational
conformity.
Quotes:
-This usually occurs when a person lacks knowledge and looks to the group for guidance.
-informational conformity usually involves internalization- where a person accepts the views of
the group and adopts them as an individual.
Analysis: In reflection, I thought that this example would be a great contribution to my overall
inquiry. By providing a specific example such as an experiment, it allows me to support my
information with data. An experiment such as this one can also help the reader of my thesis paper
better understand the overall inquiry.