Social Influence Flashcards
Describe and evaluate a study into conformity. (Asch)
Asch wanted to know whether people could be influenced by other people’s opinions to give an answer that they knew was wrong.
Asch got 5 confederates and a participant, they were asked to look at a picture of four lines and tell them which line was the same as the first. The confederates were asked to give a wrong answer.
32 % of the participants gave the same answer as the confederate even though it was wrong, when tested on their own they gave the correct answer.
74% of the participants have at least one wrong answer.
The only reason why there was a 32 per cent error rate was hearing the incorrect answers previously given. Those who gave incorrect answers new that they were wrong but did not want to go against the group.
Evaluation: ethical issues
Experimental setting
Low ecological validity
Can’t be counted for target population.
What does obedience mean?
Following the orders of someone we believe to have authority.
Deceive and evaluate a study into obedience( Milgram)
Aim: To see how far people would obey an unreasonable order.
Method: forty male participants volunteered to take part in an experiment that they thought was about memory and learning.
They were made to believe they were giving an electric shock to the ‘learner’ every time they got an answer wrong. the learner an actor.
They were sat I front of a shock generator that had 30 switches 15-450 volts.
CARRY ON HERE
What is conformity?
A change in a persons behaviour or opinions as the result of group pressure.
