Conformity: Asch's Research

Question 1

Who were the participants in Asch’s study

Answer 1

123 American, male, undergraduates

Question 2

How many confederates in Asch’s study

Answer 2

Between 6-8

Question 3

How many trials did each participant ale part in, how many were ‘critical’

Answer 3

Each took part in 18 trials (18 occasions identifying the standard line), 12 of which were critical

Question 4

What percentage of the time did participants give the wrong answer

Answer 4

36.8% of the time

Question 5

• What percentage of participants conformed at leat once

- What percentage never conformed

Answer 5

• 75% conformed at least once

- 25% never conformed

Question 6

Explain what the ‘Asch effect’ is

Answer 6

The extent to which participants conform even when the situation is unambiguous

Question 7

When reviewed after how did most participants explain their conformity

Answer 7

-conformed to avoid rejection (NSI)

Question 8

Name the three variation Asch’s carried out on his original study

Answer 8

1. group size
2. unanimity
3. task difficulty

Question 9

Describe findings of effect group size on conformity

Answer 9

• with 3 confederates agreeing to the wrong answer, conformity rose to 31.8% but addition of further confederates made little difference
• suggests a small minority is not enough to influence, but no need for more than 3

Question 10

Describe findings of the effect of unanimity on conformity

Answer 10

• the presence of an agreeing confederate meant conformity dropped by a quarter from when the majority was unanimous.
• suggest to an extent the influence of a majority depends on unanimity

Question 11

Describe the findings of the effect of task difficulty on conformity

Answer 11

• by making the task more difficult conformity increased

- suggests ISI plays a greater role on conformity when the task is more difficult