Evaluation/Weaknesses of Asch study

Question 1

Evaluations against Asch’s study

Answer 1

A child of its times Evaluation against Asch
Artificial situation evaluation against Asch
What this tells us about gender differences
Inconsistent sex differences
Cultural differences
Research against NSI - individual differences and nAffiliators

Question 2

A child of its times Evaluation against Asch

Answer 2

1 out of 396 UK engineering students conformed, possibly due to finding the tasks easier because of their line of study
Asch’s study lacks temporal validity - people are possibly less conformist today
People were more likely to conform to established social norms

Question 3

Artificial situation evaluation against Asch

Answer 3

Is this situation representative of how we conform in our day-to-day life?
Demand characteristics(did participants go along with the demands of the situation: Hawthorne effect(please/screw the experimenter - where our behaviour influences the experiment))
Trivial(don’t judge line lengths, rubbish)
Fiske(2014)- Asch’s groups weren’t very groupy(nobody knew each other)
Can’t be generalised(only looking at male participants)

Question 4

Methodological issues against Asch’s research

Answer 4

Male
Undergraduates
USA
Not a naturalistic situation
Lack ecological validity(not applicable to the real world)
Deception - participants didn’t know about confederates
Psychological harm(stressful situation for participants)
Lab/confederates = Actors/artificial/lacks mundane realism

Question 5

What Asch’s study tells us about gender differences(against Asch’s evaluation)

Answer 5

In the 1970s,it was suggested women would be more conformist, possibly because they’re more concerned with social relationships, meaning Asch concluded women were more conformist than men.
Eagly and Carli(1981) reanalysed the data from previous studies(Meta-analysis)

Question 6

Study showing sex differences are inconsistent

Answer 6

Eagly(1987) argued different social roles explained why women are more likely to conform than men:
Women are more concerned with group harmony
Assertiveness an independence are valued male attributes.

Question 7

Cultural differences argument(against Asch’s study)

Answer 7

Social behaviour in collectivist cultures(China) is determined by goals with the collective rather than separate from it - conformity rates are higher here(Bond and Smith,1996) than for individualistic cultures.

Question 8

Research against NSI -(nAffiliators)

Answer 8

nAffiliators are people who have a greater need for affiliation(fitting in), so are more likely to be affected by NSI than people less concerned with being liked.
McGhee and Teevan(1967): students high in need of affiliation were more likely to conform.

Question 9

Research against NSI- Individual differences in the way people respond

Answer 9

ISI doesn’t always affect everyone’s behaviour, Asch found students were less conformist.
Perrin and Spencer(1980) science and engineering students - very little conformity

Question 10

Support of Asch’s study

Answer 10

ISI and NSI working together
Lucas eat all(2006)- ‘self-efficacy/personal judgement’
Extra evaluation(support for NSI)

Question 11

‘Self-efficacy/personal judgement’:

Answer 11

Students were asked to give answers to mathematical problems, that were easy or more difficult.
There was greater conformity to incorrect answers when they were difficult rather than when they were easier.
This was more likely the case for students who rated their mathematical ability as poor.
Results indicated people conform in situations where they feel they don’t know the answer - low self efficacy

Question 12

ISI and NSI working together

Answer 12

‘Two process approach’ suggests behaviour is either due to ISI or NSI.

Asch(1951): conformity is reduced when there’s one other dissenting(someone who disagrees) participant.
The dissenter might reduce the power of NSI, because the dissenter provides social support, or the power of ISI, because there’s an alternative source of information.
Casts doubt over the view of ISI and NSI as two processes operate independently in conforming behaviour.

Question 13

Extra evaluation(support for NSI)

Answer 13

Asch(1951) found many of his participants went along with a clearly wrong answer, just because other people did. When asked why they did this, the participants said they felt self-conscious about giving the correct answer and they were afraid of disapproval.