Variables affecting conformity Flashcards
(6 cards)
How does group size affect conformity?
Research indicates that conformity rates increase as the size of majority increase, there does become a point where further increases in size does not lead to increase in conformity.
What did Asch find with the manipulation of group size?
-Low conformity when 1 confederate and 1 real, only 3% conformed.
-2 confederates against 1 produced conformity rate 13%.
-3 confederates and 1 real, 33% - did not increase much beyond this point.
-In some conditions, a large group of 15 confederates led to slightly lower levels, perhaps because participants became suspicious when confronted with large majority.
-Many replications found these finings robust.
-Conformity seems at its maximum with majority 3-to-5 persons.
How did Asch investigate the importance of unanimity?
Asch positioned a confederate just before the real participant around the table and instructed them to give the correct answer on critical trials.
What did Asch find in his investigation of the importance of unanimity?
-When the real participant was given the support of another participant or a confederate, conformity levels dropped significantly from 33% to 5%.
-If a lone dissenter gave an answer that was both different from majority and different from the true answer rates dropped to 9%.
What was Asch’s conclusion for his investigation of the importance of unanimity?
That it was breaking the group’s unanimous position that was the major factor for reduction - 2 reasons why this may occur:
1. Dissenter supports participant, increasing confidence in their correct answer.
2. The dissenter breaks the united front of rest of group.
How does task difficulty affect conformity?
In difficult tasks our confidence in our own judgement tends to drop (Asch changed difference in lengths and found higher conformity when more difficult.)
This suggests Informational Social Influence plays a greater role when the task is harder -more ambiguous so likely to look for others for guidance.
