Sherif (1935)

The Autokinetic effect

On the next slide is a light. The light will move and you have to say in which way it is moving.

Sherif (1935)

The autokinetic effect is when a stationary spot of light appears to move due to small movements of the eye

Sherif told participants to estimate by how far the spot of light had moved. Asked individually Then exposed to the estimates of two other

participants Estimates tended to converge to a group norm

which was an average of these individuals’ estimates.

Issues with the previous research Sherif and Jenness both used ambiguous

situations to investigate conformity.

Little was known about conformity in non-ambiguous situations (where the answer was clear)

Asch (1955)

Asch – Star studyAims Investigate the effects of group pressure on

individuals in unambiguous situations. To test conformity when the correct answer

was clear and obvious. When confronted with an obviously incorrect

answer, would individuals would give an answer which perpetuated this error (conformed) or would they would give an independent response?

Asch continued

Used 123 participants.

All were American, male students.

The method was a laboratory experiment.

The Main study

Findings for the MAIN study In a control study carried out before this

experiment, it was found that less than 1% of people made errors when carrying out this task when by themselves. This suggests that this task is _____________.

unambiguous

Findings from the baseline study On the critical trials, the

average rate of conformity was 32%.

74% agreed at least once.

5% agreed on nearly every trial

26% never gave a wrong answer

Behaviour was constant

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”. confidence in their own judgment capacity to recover from doubt felt it was “their obligation to call the play as they

saw it”

Variations on the baseline procedure Asch carried out a number of variations of the

same experiment. You need to know the procedures for the MAIN study, and also some of the variations.

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.

Conclusions

The pressure from the majority reduced when the majority was smaller.

Pressure to conform was also reduced by the presence of a dissenter, even if the dissenter was giving a wrong answer.

Therefore, conformity depends a lot upon the majority being unanimous. For example, when the dissenter started to agree with the majority, many participants began to conform.

Evaluate the methodology

Evaluate: Method Reliability Validity Sampling Ethical issues

Alternative evidence Do Sherif and Jenness

support, contradict, or develop Asch’s results?

Perrin and Spencer (1980) 1 person conformed out of

396 trials Higher pressure to conform in

the 1950s Perrin and Spencer used

science students

Alternative evidence

Nicholson et al (1985) 32% of British students and 38% of US students

conformed at least once. Provides some support.

Alternative Evidence

Eagly (1978) Women are more conforming than men in group

pressure situations. Can you think of a reason why this would be the case?

Some key terms

Reactance -sometimes called anti-conformity

Majority influence

Public compliance

Private acceptance/internalisation