Transcript Conformity
Conformity Is this really true? Find out HERE Social Influence • How behavior is influenced by the social environment and the presence of other people • Conformity • Obedience • Helping Behaviors Conformity • Adopting attitudes or behaviors of others because of pressure to do so; the pressure can be real or imagined • 2 general reasons for conformity – Informational social influence refers to behavior that is motivated by the desire to be correct – Normative social influence—behavior that is motivated by the desire to gain social acceptance and approval. Solomon Asch (1907-1996) • Social psychologist who researched the circumstances under which people conform 1907-1996 Asch’s Experiments on Conformity Previous research had shown people will conform to others’ judgments more often when the evidence is ambiguous Asch’s Experiments on Conformity • All but 1 in group was confederate • Seating was rigged • Asked to rate which line matched a “standard” line • Confederates were instructed to pick the wrong line 12/18 times 1 Standard lines 2 3 Comparison lines Asch’s Conformity Study Asch’s Conformity Study Asch’s Experiments on Conformity • Results – Asch found that 76% participants conformed to at least one wrong choice during multiple trials. – BUT when data from all the trials was combined, subjects gave wrong answer (conformed) on only 37% of the critical trials. – Means that almost 2/3 (63%)of people did not conform & said correct answer even when others said the wrong one – However, Control group that responded alone (no group present) chose correctly 99%. • Why did 1/3 of participants conform to clearly wrong choices? – informational influence? – subjects reported having doubted their own perceptual abilities which led to their conformance – didn’t report seeing the lines the way the confederates had Factors Increasing Conformity • • • • The person feels incompetent or insecure. The group has three or more people. The rest of the group is unanimous. The person is impressed by the status of the group. • No prior commitments were made. • The group is observing the person respond. • One’s culture encourages conformity. Factors Decreasing Conformity • When we have an ally in our dissent from majority opinion, even if the dissenter’s competence is questionable. Effects of a Nonconformist • If everyone agrees, you are less likely to disagree HOWEVER… • If one person disagrees, even if they give the wrong answer, you are more likely to express your nonconforming view • Asch tested this hypothesis – one confederate gave different answer from others – conformity dropped significantly Culture & Conformity • In general, levels of conformity have steadily declined since Asch’s original study of U.S. college students in the 1950s • Individualistic cultures tend to emphasize independence, self-expression, and standing out from the crowd; thus the whole notion of conformity tends to carry a negative connotation • Collectivistic cultures, however, publicly conforming while privately disagreeing is regarded as socially appropriate tact or