Asch's research - A03

Question 1

What are limitations for Asch’s research?

Answer 1

• P: Limitation = task and situation were artificial
• E: PPs knew they were in a research study
• E: This means they may have went along with what was expected
• L: The results were not valid
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• P: Limitation = PPs were American men
• E: Neto (1995) - women may be more conformist
• E: This is because they are concerned about social relationships and being accepted
• L: This means Asch’s findings tell us little about conformity in women

Question 2

What is a strength of Asch’s research?

Answer 2

• P: strength = support from other studies for the effects of task difficulty
• E: Lucas et al (2006) asked PPs to solve “easy” and “hard” maths quetions
• E: PPs conformed more often when the questions were harder
• L: Asch was correct in claiming that task difficulty affects conformity