Social Influence Asch (1951)

Lesson Objectives Today we will be looking at specific research into conformity. Conformity is a type of social influence. It is based on the majority changing the behaviour or beliefs of an individual. By the end of the lesson you will be able to name and describe 3 pieces of research. You will also recap how to describe and evaluate a study.

Researching conformity …. Jenness (1932) Asked people individually to estimate how many beans the jar contained Then put the group in a room with the jar, and asked them to provide a group estimate. Ppts were asked individually if they would like to stick with their individual estimate, or go with the group estimate. Almost all changed their individual guesses to be closer to the group estimate.

Sherif (1935) The Autokinetic effect On the next slide is a light. The light will move and you have to say which way it is moving. And estimate how far it has moved

Sherif (1935) How can you explain this type of conformity? The autokinetic effect is when a stationary spot of light appears to move due to small movements of the eye Sherif asked participants to estimate how far the spot of light moved. First he asked them individually Then ppts were exposed to the estimates of two other participants Estimates tended to converge to a group norm which was an average of these individuals’ estimates. How can you explain this type of conformity?

Issues with the previous research Sherif and other researchers used ambiguous situations to investigate conformity. (open to more than one interpretation; not having one obvious meaning). “…confronted with opinions contrary to their own, many subjects apparently shifted their judgment in the direction of the views of the majorities ... there is some reason to wonder whether it was not the investigators who, in their enthusiasm for a theory, were suggestible, and whether gullible subjects were providing answers they thought good subjects were expected to give.” Asch took issue with the methodology of these studies: What research method term can we use to sum up Asch’s criticisms?

Asch was interested in conformity in non-ambiguous situations

Recap: Describing a study in Psychology When describing a piece of research you need to ‘Always Proceed Really Carefully’ we need to cover the ‘APRC’ Aim –What  the researcher was trying to find out? Procedure – How did the researcher conduct the research? What did they do? What did they control? What materials did they use? What did they standardise? What did the ppts do? How did they collect their data? Results – These are usually always some kind of number , sometimes this is presented as a fraction or a decimal or a percentage. Results are presented in tables and graphs. Conclusion  – Having considered the aim and analysed the results what conclusion can be drawn? The conclusion does not include any numbers but it links back to the aim.

Asch’s Aims Was to investigate the effects of group pressure on individuals in unambiguous situations. 1. When confronted with an obviously incorrect answer, would individuals give an answer which supported this error (conform) or would they give an independent response? 2. He also aimed to investigate the effect of various other factors on the rate of conformity

Procedure Asch carried out a number of variations of the same experiment. You need to know in-depth the procedure for the baseline study, and also some of the variations.

The baseline study In a control study carried out before the experiment, Asch found less than 1% of people made errors when carrying out this task by themselves. What does this suggest about the line estimating task? What is the purpose of having a control group?

Results from the baseline study On the critical trials, 36.8% of responses given by the naïve ppt were obviously wrong. But……25% never gave a wrong answer!! A few ppts agreed on nearly every trial!

Those who did not conform… Asch states “Those who strike out on the path to independence, do not, as a rule, succumb to the majority”. Some ppts had confidence in their own judgment, a strong capacity to recover from doubt and felt it was “their obligation to call the play as they saw it”

Those who did conform… Asch says “Those who chose the path of compliance are unable to free themselves, and the ordeal is prolonged”. Some ppts believed that “I am wrong, they are right” Some conformed so as “not to spoil the results" Some suspected the majority were “sheep” Some thought the majority were “victims of an optical illusion”

The variations (Prep Activity) Using your text books…. You need to be able to explain the procedures and findings from the original baseline study plus 3 variations. With each variations focus on how it is different from the baseline study You do not need to go into as much detail as you have for the baseline Variation Details Group Size Unanimity Task Difficulty

Conclusions The results from both the baseline study and the variations suggest that there is a strong tendency to conform to group pressures, even in an unambiguous situation.

Issues…Strengths… As well as being able to describe Asch’s conformity studies you also need to be able to evaluate them In a 16 mark question, how many marks can you get for description? We use GRAVEE to evaluate a piece of research

PEEL Your Answers. You cannot achieve the top mark band unless you do this – so this a skill you are constantly practicing

What is your point? Introduce your point.. “A strength of Asch’s research is the method he used, it was a lab experiment which means it was well controlled…”

Present the evidence to support your point… “For example he used a standardised procedure, standardised instructions and the same ‘line length cards’ for all ppts”

Explain Explain the evidence in relation to the point. How does it support your point? “Because the variables were controlled we can be sure that the only thing affecting the DV (ppts answers) was the IV (whether incorrect answers were given by the confederates)”

Link your ideas back to the question or point. “Therefore this suggests we can be confident in the conclusion he reaches –i.e. that most people conform to majority social influence even in unambiguous situations ”

This week’s prep = Exam questions. In relation to Asch's research, explain what is meant by the terms unanimity and task difficulty. (2 + 2 marks) Describe Asch's study of conformity. Include details of what he did and what he found in your answer. (6 marks) A sixth-form college had a visit from the Anthony Nolan charity, to raise awareness of bone marrow donation for people suffering from leukaemia. A group of friends decide to take the 'spit test', to see if they would make suitable donors. But Hyacinth wasn't sure whether to take the test or not. Using your knowledge of Asch's research, explain how two factors could affect Hyacinth's decision to conform to the rest of the group. (2 marks + 2 marks) Describe and evaluate Asch's investigations into factors affecting conformity. (16 marks)

Extension Activity On page 7-8 of the Mask book there is an updated version of the Asch (1955) study. Questions to consider : What are the main differences between Asch (1955) and Mori and Arai’s (2010)study? What are the ethical issues with each study? What does replication mean and why was it important with Asch’s study? Do you think similar findings to Asch would be found today (2016)? Why, why not? Mori and Arai’s study was meant to reduce demand characteristics. What are demand characteristics and how did Mori and Arai attempt to reduce them? Did they reduce them?