Variables affecting conformity

• What is the Asch Effect?

  Copying other people rather than following your own belief
• What was Asch's hypothesis regarding conformity?

  People would give the incorrect answer to maintain group unanimity
• What was the procedure of the Asch experiment?

  • 6 people at a table: 5 confederates, 1 participant
  • Participant sat in the 2nd to last seat
  • Shown an image of 4 lines to identify the same length
  • Confederates instructed to give the wrong answer 12 out of 18 times
• What percentage of participants conformed to the group in the Asch experiment?

  37%
• What are the three variables that influence social conformity according to Asch?

  1. Group size
  2. Task difficulty
  3. Unanimity
• How many confederates were needed to achieve a 30% conformity rate?

  At least 3 confederates
• How does task difficulty affect conformity according to Asch's findings?

  People are less likely to conform to easier tasks
• Why might participants conform to the second answer in the Asch experiment?

  Due to the similarity of the lines
• What did Asch's second experiment reveal about conformity when one confederate gave the correct answer?

  Conformity dropped to 5%
• What factor contributed to participants' confidence in providing the correct answer in Asch's second experiment?

  Having another confederate give the right answer
• What were the findings of the Perrin and Spencer study regarding conformity?

  • Study considered outdated
  • Only one conforming result out of 396 trials in the UK
• How do individualist cultures compare to collectivist cultures in terms of conformity according to Smith's study?

  Individualist cultures conform less than collectivist cultures
• What percentage of people conformed in individualist cultures according to Smith's study?

  25%
• What percentage of people conformed in collectivist cultures according to Smith's study?

  37%
• What criticism did Bond raise regarding the Asch experiment's group size?

  No experiment used a majority size bigger than 9
• What is the significance of the term "majority size" in the context of conformity?

  It refers to the size of the group influencing conformity
• What is the relationship between self-confidence and conformity in the Asch experiment?


  • Participants with strong self-confidence were less likely to conform
  • Those lacking confidence were more likely to conform