Psych P1, Social Influence: Asch's Conformity

What are the the types of conformity?

Compliance, Identification, and Internalisation

Who discovered the types of conformity?

Helman

What is Compliance?

Shallowest level of conformity, change in behaviour to fit in/ avoid rejection. Not permanent and only when group is present.

What is an explanation for Compliance?

Normative social influence- Conforming to avoid rejection, driven by a desire to be liked and for social approval.

What is Identification?

Intermediate level of conformity, adopts behaviour/beliefs out of desire for a relationship or association with a group. Wants to be seen as a member rather than deep agreement with group beliefs.

What is an explanation for Identification?

No official explanation but linked to Social Identity- where an individuals sense of self is based on group membership.

What is Internalisation?

Deepest level of conformity, accepts behaviours/beliefs publicly and privately. Sees the group norm as superior to previous beliefs or behaviours.

What is an explanation for Internalisation?

Informational Social Influence- driven by the belief that others have more knowledge/the correct information. Desire to the make the right choices and gain understanding. Motivated by cognitive reasons, change is genuine and permanent.

How did Asch’s 1951 experiment work?

Study involved groups of 8-10 male college student, with only one being an actual participant, the others being confederates of the experimenter. Task was a line judgement experiment. Participant sat second to last in the group. Initially in 6 control trials confederates gave correct answers, then in 12 critical trials confederates all gave the same incorrect answers. Tested conformity.

What were Asch’s findings in his initial experiment?

75% conformed at least once, 5% conformed every time, overall conformity rate of 32%

What did Asch’s findings in his initial experiment suggest?

That people will conform due to normative social influence (social approval, avoid rejection).

What were the variables that Asch changed in his other conformity experiments?

Group size, Unanimity, and Task Difficulty

What were Asch’s findings when group size was changed?

With one confederate the conformity rate was 3%, with 2 it was 13%. Conformity jumped significantly with 3 confederates to 33%. The rate remained steady after this point, with conformity at 31% with 16 confederates.

What do Asch’s findings about group size suggest?

That the presence of a small unanimous group has strong social pressure, but beyond a certain point group size does not proportionally increase this pressure.

What were Asch’s findings when Unanimity was changed and what does this suggest?

Conformity rate dropped to 5.5%. This suggests the presence of a dissenter provides social support.

How did Asch change the Unanimity?

By having one confederate respond correctly before the participant responds.

How did Asch change the Task Difficulty?

By making the difference in line length smaller.

What were Asch’s findings when task difficulty was increased and what does this suggest?

Rate of conformity increased. This suggests that uncertainty about judgement makes individuals more susceptible to informational social influence.

What are 2 positives when evaluating Asch’s experiment?

1. High internal validity, carefully controlled and standardised procedures were followed.

2. Standardised procedures led to multiple replications, which has allowed a wider assessment of conformity across different cultures.

What are 2 negatives when evaluating Asch’s experiment?

1. Perrin and Spencer argued that it lacked temporal validity- suggested rates were affected by the cultural conditions of the Cold War in America at the time. In their 1980s replication they only found conformity in 1 out of 396 trials.

2. Lacks mundane realism. Although this minimises extraneous variables, it does not replicate real-life social interaction where conformity is most likely to occur. Artificial nature causes a lack of validity.

What was Bond’s 1996 meta analysis

133 studies across 17 countries showed higher rates of conformity in collectivist cultures, compared to individualistic societies

How does Asch’s research support an explanation of conformity being NSI?

75% of participants conformed at least once, even though the answers were unambiguous. in a variation where participants privately wrote down their answers, the conformity rate dropped to 12.5%.

How does Asch’s research support an explanation of conformity being ISI?

When the ambiguity of the task was increased, the conformity rate also increased. This suggests that the more unsure the participants were, the more they relied on others.

What are alternative factors when attempting to explain conformity?

Dispositional (personality) factors such as nAffiliators or those with an internal locus of control.