Asch performed additional variation studies used to discover certain factors affecting conformity, including:
- Group size
- Unanimity (of Majority)
- Difficulty (of Task)
Group Size
There is very little conformity with 1 - 2 confederates, with 3 confederates needed for a conformity rates of approx. 30%.
There was no further raise seen, with gradual variation - although a decrease past 7 confederates.
- Very little conformity with 1 - 2 confederates
- 3 confederates were needed for a conformity rate of approx. 33%
- Additional confederates had little effect of conformity rates
Unanimity
Contrary to confederates unanimously giving the wrong answer, when at least one confederate gave the right answer (nicknamed a ‘buddy’), conformity levels dropped to 5.5%.
- Having one confederate give the right answer reduced conformity levels to 5.5%
Task Difficulty
With smaller differences between lines, conformity increased demonstrating Informational social influence.
Note: Lucas et al. (2006) found that when participants were exposed to maths problems in an Asch style experiment, individuals remained more independent with lower conformity levels.
- Conformity increased with more difficult tasks due to Informational social influence