Aim
To investigate the extent social pressure from a majority group had on a person to conform.
Procedure
- 123 American male undergraduates
- Tested in groups of: 5 confederates and 1 undergraduate
- Participants looked at lines of different lengths
- Took turns to call out which of the 3 lines was the same as the target line
- Each participant took part in 18 trials
- 12/18 trials were critical (confederates instructed to give incorrect answer)
Example line diagram provided to participants.
Findings
- Critical trials averaged a conformity rate of 33%
- 25% did not conform on any trials
- 50% conformed on 6 or more critical trials
- 1 in 20 conformed on all critical trials
- 1% made mistakes on the control condition (confederates instructed to give correct answer)
- Conformers did so even when the situation was unambiguous
- Known as the ‘The Asch effect’
- Post-interviews with uncovered most participants conformed to avoid disapproval despite knowing they were wrong