Variables Affecting Conformity- Asch’s Research

Question 1

State the years Asch conducted his research into the effect of group pressure on conformity

Answer 1

1951 and 1955

Question 2

Describe the procedure of Asch’s baseline study

Answer 2

• 123 male US undergraduates were places in groups of 9 participants
• only one naive participant present in the group; the rest were confederates
• the participants were shown 3 lines and asked to say which was the same length as the ‘standard’ line

Question 3

Describe the findings of Asch’s baseline study

Answer 3

• when confederates gave the same wrong answer, mean conformity rate= 36.8%
• naive participants agreed with wrong answer on a third of the 12 trials

Question 4

State three variables that affect conformity

Answer 4

1. Group size
2. Unanimity
3. Task difficulty

Question 5

Outline the effect of group size on conformity

Answer 5

With three confederates conformity increased- any more confederates present resulted in conformity levelling off

Question 6

Outline the effect of unanimity on conformity

Answer 6

Conformity reduced by a quarter when there was a dissenting confederate giving the right answer

Question 7

Task difficulty

Answer 7

Conformity increased when the line-judging task was made more difficult

Question 8

Explain what a confederate is

Answer 8

A colleague of the researcher who is aware of the true aim of the study

Question 9

Explain what a dissenting confederate is

Answer 9

A person in an experiment who goes against the group by either giving the right answer or a different wrong answer.