Asch conformity experiment
Summary
Solomon Asch's studies showed that people often go along with a unanimous group's clearly wrong answer on a simple line-matching task. It is the classic demonstration of conformity driven by normative social influence, and one dissenter sharply reduces it.
Detail
Meaning: In Solomon Asch's 1950s studies, a participant sat with confederates posing as fellow participants and judged which of three comparison lines matched a standard line. The answer was obvious, but on critical trials the confederates unanimously gave the same wrong answer. Many participants went along with the group at least once, though most of their answers overall were still correct. Because the task was easy, the pressure was mainly normative social influence (wanting acceptance and avoiding disapproval) rather than informational influence.
On the MCAT: Passages often describe a modified design and ask how conformity changes. Conformity tends to rise as the group grows from one or two confederates to about three or four, then levels off. It drops sharply if even one confederate gives the correct answer, and it tends to drop when responses are written privately instead of spoken aloud. The independent variable is the confederates' behavior or group size; the dependent variable is the rate of wrong answers.
Common confusion: Do not mix this up with Milgram's obedience study. Asch tested conformity to peers, with no authority figure giving orders; Milgram tested obedience to an authority. It is also not groupthink, which is flawed decision-making within a cohesive group. Going along publicly (compliance) does not prove the person's private belief changed.
Sources
- Social Psychology (Aronson, Wilson, Akert)
- Psychology (Myers)
Written for the MCAT and checked before it was published. For study reference only. Spotted an error? Let us know.