Variables affecting conformity Flashcards
1
Q
Asch 1956
A
- 123 male American undergrads
- 12/18 ‘critical trials’
- control group of 36, less than 1 % made a mistake
- groups of 6-9, 1 ppt, rest confederates
2
Q
Asch’s line study results
A
- 75% conformed atleast once
- 25% never conformed
- 5% conformed in all critical trials
- 33% overall conformity rate
3
Q
reasons ppts conform
A
distortion perception, distortion judgement, distortion of action
4
Q
distortion perception
A
some ppts actually saw lines in the same way as the majority
5
Q
distortion of judgement
A
doubtful/unsure of their own judgement
6
Q
distortion of action
A
privately thought different but changed public belief to avoid disapproval
7
Q
asch study variations
A
group size, unanimity, and task difficulty
8
Q
group size
A
- little conformity for 1 or 2 people
- conformity increased to 33% with three people
- increase of ppts past the optimal doesn’t increase conformity
9
Q
task difficulty
A
more ppts conformed through ISI and difficulty increased
10
Q
unanimity
A
- conformity dropped to 5% w/ one dissenter
- breaking group consensus of unanimity main way to resist conformity
11
Q
variables affecting conformity strengths
A
confederates acted convincingly
12
Q
variables affecting conformity limitations
A
gender bias (all male ppts) , ethical issues (psych harm), ecological validity (artificial task)
