The Dynamics of Situational Compliance: Difference between committed and situational compliance and 10 proven Insights By Kochanska

Have you ever found yourself doing something you didn’t really want to do, but went ahead and did it anyway? Going out with your friends just to make them happy is an example of compliance.

Definition

In psychology, compliance is a way to change someone’s behavior or work through the influence of another person.

Psychologist Kochanska defines situational compliance as “episodes when children cooperate and follow their caregivers’ instructions, but this is contingent on external control.”

Example

For example, when a mother asked her daughter to fill the water bottles while she was playing with her toys, the daughter didn’t want to do it, but she also wanted to obey her mother. She started filling the bottles. After a few seconds, when the mother left the room, she quickly stopped and went back to playing with her toys.

Point to remember

In situational compliance, an adult, parent, or caregiver needs to supervise the child. As the child is neither interested nor motivated to do that work, he will surely try to skip or quit that task in the absence of parents.

Thorndike has also given importance to readiness of the child in his trial and error theory.

Daily life examples

In our lives, we have all faced similar situations where we do things only because someone asks to do so.

• A friend asks you to help him with his math homework.
• Your grandfather asks you to read the newspaper.
• Your mother asks you to clean the room.
• Your class teacher wants you to shift your seat in the exam hall.
• Your brother wants to use your favorite pen to write with because he lost his own pen.
• Your father wants you to wake up early in the morning.
• Your mother asked you to do workout.
• Your friend requests you to come to a party you don’t want to go.
• Leave the chocolate because your brother wants to eat it.

Difference between committed compliance and situational compliance

• In situational compliance, a child follows instructions or obeys authority but is not motivated. The child doesn’t show sincere commitment towards the work.
• The child is not internally motivated towards the work.
• The child will always try to ignore the task as doesn’t want to do it.
• The child finds himself uncomfortable doing the task.
• Even, the results are not very effective.

• On the other hand, in committed compliance, a child is highly motivated to do the work given by authority. He shows commitment and performs better than a child who is not motivated.
• The child is internally motivated towards his work.
• The child will always try to do the work as he enjoys doing the task .
• The child finds himself comfortable while doing the work.
• The results are very effective.

Encourage positive relationships, choices, constructive feedback, and celebrate efforts among children which helps them to learn. Empathize, adapt, encourage curiosity, and reflect. Create a supportive environment for academic excellence and personal growth.

About Kochanska: 

Grazyna Kochanska is a Polish-American developmental psychologist known for her research on parent-child relationships, developmental psychopathology, child temperament and its role in social development.

Kochanska was the 2017 recipient of the G. Stanley Hall Award for Distinguished Contributions to Developmental Psychology, given by the American Psychological Association.

In 1991, she started her own laboratory at the University of Iowa, conducting research on social emotional development.

Her research on the development of a conscience in early childhood was supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, and the Laura Spelman Rockefeller fund.

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