variables affecting conformity (Asch's study)

Question 1

State the group of participants which took part in Asch’s study

Answer 1

123 male American students, in groups of 6. There was 1 ‘genuine’ participate and 5 confederates

Question 2

State the aim of Asch’s study

Answer 2

To investigate conformity and majority influence

Question 3

What was the procedure within Asch’s study

Answer 3

P’s were presented with 4 lines; 1 standard line and 3 comparison lines
They were asked to state which of the 3 comparison lines was the same as the standard, ‘real’ p always answered last.
Confederates would give an incorrect answer for 12/18 trials

Question 4

What did Asch observe within this procedure?

Answer 4

he observed how often the real participant would give the same incorrect answer as the confederates compared to the correct answer

Question 5

What % of people conformed in Asch’s study

Answer 5

36.8%

Question 6

What % of p’s never conformed

Answer 6

25%

Question 7

What % of p’s conformed atleast once within Asch’s study

Answer 7

75%

Question 8

In a control trial, 1% of responses p’s gave were incorrect, what doe this eliminate

Answer 8

Eyesight/perception as an extraneous variable, increasing validity of findings

Question 9

State 1 strength of Asch’s investigation

Answer 9

High internal validity due to strict control over extraneous variables, p’s completed task before to see if they knew the answer, eliminating lack of knowledge as a cv.
Increases validity and reliability as cause and effect can be established

Question 10

State 1 strength of Asch’s investigation

Answer 10

Lab experiment, extraneous and confounding variables tightly controlled, meaning investigation can be easily replicated, increasing reliability of study