Asch (1956): Research Into Conformity

Question 1

Procedure summary p1-

Answer 1

-Naive participant in a room of confederates
-Shown two large cards with 3 comparison lines
-Asked to match the similar lines
-Answered aloud-pressure

Question 2

Procedure summary P2-

Answer 2

-Tested in groups of 6-8
-Naive participant went second from last
-123 male American undergraduates
-18 trials-on 12 confederates gave the same wrong answer

Question 3

Findings-Percentages

Answer 3

26% conformed
74% conformed at least once

overall:
32% conformed to incorrect answers

Question 4

Conclusions

Answer 4

-Conformed even when situation was unambiguous
-Conformed to avoid group rejection-NSI

Question 5

Evaluation-
Three ethical issues

Answer 5

Psychological harm- stress and embarrassment
Deception- told they were taking part in a study of perception

Question 6

Evaluation-
Unrepresentative sample reasons

Answer 6

Gender and culture bias-
Lacking generalisability, sample consisted of male American students only
Weakness- levels of conformity may differ with females or individuals from other cultures

Question 7

Evaluation-
Ecological validity reasons

Answer 7

Conducted in an artificial setting- participants were aware they were partaking in a study
Causing them to go along with the demands of the situation
The task was trivial, and participants had no reason to conform

Question 8

What was the aim of Asch’s study?

Answer 8

To see whether participants would conform to the majority and give wrong answers in an unambiguous situation/task