Conformity in Psychology: a Study Based on Solomon Asch's Paradigm
Conformity In Psychology:
A Study Based On The Solomon Asch’ Paradigm
Understanding the reasons why we act the way we do
Conformity in Psychology- A study based on the Solomon Asch’ Paradigm
Understanding the reasons why we act the way we do. by Chinwendu Ukoha
Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management
09AC08836
Contents: PG
Introduction 4
Chapter 1 Conformity In Psychology 5
Chapter 2 Psychologist View On Conformity 9
Chapter 3 Solomon Asch’ Paradigm/Experiment 16
Chapter 4 Conclusion and Comparison 20
References 21
Introduction
Imagine yourself in the following situation: You sign up for a psychology experiment, and on a specified date you and seven others whom you think are also subjects arrive and are seated at a table in a small room. You don 't know it at the time, but the others are actually associates of the experimenter, and their behaviour has been carefully scripted. You 're the only real subject.
The experimenter arrives and tells you that the study in which you are about to participate concerns people 's visual judgments. She places two cards before you. The card on the left contains one vertical line. The card on the right displays three lines of varying length.
The experimenter asks all of you, one at a time, to choose which of the three lines on the right card matches the length of the line on the left card. The task is repeated several times with different cards. On some occasions the other "subjects" unanimously choose the wrong line. It is clear to you that they are wrong, but they have all given the same answer.
What would you do? Would you go along with the majority opinion, or would you "stick to your guns" and trust your own eyes?
This is the situation in conformity. People tend to conform in situations such as that stated above either by a desire to ‘fit in’ or be liked (normative) or because of a desire to be correct
A Study Based On The Solomon Asch’ Paradigm
Understanding the reasons why we act the way we do
Conformity in Psychology- A study based on the Solomon Asch’ Paradigm
Understanding the reasons why we act the way we do. by Chinwendu Ukoha
Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management
09AC08836
Contents: PG
Introduction 4
Chapter 1 Conformity In Psychology 5
Chapter 2 Psychologist View On Conformity 9
Chapter 3 Solomon Asch’ Paradigm/Experiment 16
Chapter 4 Conclusion and Comparison 20
References 21
Introduction
Imagine yourself in the following situation: You sign up for a psychology experiment, and on a specified date you and seven others whom you think are also subjects arrive and are seated at a table in a small room. You don 't know it at the time, but the others are actually associates of the experimenter, and their behaviour has been carefully scripted. You 're the only real subject.
The experimenter arrives and tells you that the study in which you are about to participate concerns people 's visual judgments. She places two cards before you. The card on the left contains one vertical line. The card on the right displays three lines of varying length.
The experimenter asks all of you, one at a time, to choose which of the three lines on the right card matches the length of the line on the left card. The task is repeated several times with different cards. On some occasions the other "subjects" unanimously choose the wrong line. It is clear to you that they are wrong, but they have all given the same answer.
What would you do? Would you go along with the majority opinion, or would you "stick to your guns" and trust your own eyes?
This is the situation in conformity. People tend to conform in situations such as that stated above either by a desire to ‘fit in’ or be liked (normative) or because of a desire to be correct
References: Bond and Smith compared, (1996) 134 studies in a meta-analysis and found that Japan and Brazil were two nations that conformed a lot whereas Europe and the United States of America did not as much. Sherif (1935) Autokinetic Effect Experiment Aim: Sherif (1935) conducted an experiment with the aim of demonstrating that people conform to group norms when they are put in an ambiguous (i.e Types of Conformity Man (1969) states that “the essence of conformity is yielding to group pressure” Harvard psychologist HerbertKelman (1958) distinguished between three different types of conformity: Compliance, Internalization and identification.