Asch's Variations

• Asch's Variations = 3/7 of the situational variables that can influence levels of conformity that were investigated by Asch
• Group Size:

  • Asch varied the number of confederates (majority)
  • Found - 2=3% conformity
  • NSI -> could be a credible explanation for conformity (A03)
• Unanimity:

  • the degree to which the majority influence in agreement w/ each other
  • Have unanimity= higher conformity
  • Asch disrupted unanimity by including a dissenter- social support for the real ppt= less conformity
  • dropped from 36.8% to 5.5% when unanimity was broken
• Task Difficulty:

  • Asch increased task difficulty by making the comparison lines similar to each other
  • Found - when the correct asnwer is less obvious (ambiguous) ppts will look to the majority for guidance
  • increases likelihood of conformity due to Informational Social Influence