Variables Affecting Conformity

Question 1

Variable 1 - Group size

Answer 1

• as group size increased , conformity increased ( up to 3 )
• 1 confed , 1 ppt conformity = 3%
• 2 confeds, 1 ppt conformity = 13%
• 3 confeds, 1 ppt conformity = 32%
• conformity plateaued after this, suggesting that the size of the majority does have an effect on conformity but only to a point

Question 2

Variable 2- Unanimity

Answer 2

• complete agreement from a group of people about a viewpoint
• When all confederates gave the same wrong answer on the line task conformity was 37%
• When one confederate broke unanimity and
  gave the correct answer on the line task
  conformity dropped to 5.5.%
• ‘lone’ confed gave answer that was both different from majority and different to correct (conformity dropped to 9%)
• When a dissenter breaks unanimity conformity decreases

Question 3

Variable 3 - Task difficulty

Answer 3

• Asch made the lines more similar in length so harder to identify correct answer
• When task difficulty increased – conformity rates increased.
• suggests ISI plays a greater role when task becomes harder
• when situations are unclear, we are more likely to look to others for guidance

Question 4

R2S- variables affecting conformity

Answer 4

P- conducted by Lucas et al
E- asked students to solve ‘easy’ and ‘hard’ maths problems
E- ppts were given 3 other answers from other ‘students’. The ppts conformed more often when the problems were difficult rather than easy
L- therefore, supporting asch’s research into variables affecting conformity because it suggests that when the task is harder, conformity increases

Question 5

Counter argument - variables affecting conformity

Answer 5

P- lucas etal’s study found that conformity is more complex than asch suggested
E- ppts with high confidence in their maths abilities conformed less on the hard maths problems than those with low confidence
E- this shows that an individual-level factor can influence conformity and interact with situational variables such as task difficulty
L- limiting asch’s research into variables affecting conformity as he did not research the roles of individual factors

Question 6

Weakness 1 - variables affecting conformity

Answer 6

P- gender bias
E- only used male ppts
E- difficult to generalise findings to females as it is suggested that females might be more conformist, regardless of the variables affecting conformity, because they are more concerned with social relationships and being liked by their peers (Neto 1995)
L- weakens external validity of research into variables affecting conformity

Question 7

Weakness 2 - variables affecting conformity

Answer 7

P- culture bias
E- conducted in America ( western, individualistic culture)
E- difficult to generalise findings to non-western, collectivist cultures such as China, where the social group is more important than the individual and may be more likely to conform and agree with the group to be liked by them, regardless of the variable affecting conformity
L- weakens external validity of research into variables affecting conformity