Conformity
Psychology: AQA A Level, topic 1.1.1
Conformity
Conformity is a type of social influence that can be described as changing your behaviour to go along with the group even if you do not agree with the group.
The Asch Effect
- Solomon Asch conducted several experiments in the 1950s to determine how people are affected by the thoughts and behaviours of other people.
- He identified many variables affecting conformity including group size, unanimity and task difficulty.
- The Asch effect is the influence of the group majority on an individual’s judgement.
Motivation to conform
- The researchers, Deutsch & Gerard (1955) categorised the motivation to conform into two types: normative social influence and informational social influence.
Types of conformity
- Researchers have identified two types of conformity: internalisation and compliance.
Milgram's study of obedience
- Milgram (1963) investigated obedience to authority.
- Ordinary people were willing to give what they believed were electric shocks when instructed by an authority figure.
- Findings show the powerful effect of authority and the agentic state in explaining obedience.
Internalisation and Compliance
Internalisation and compliance are all forms of conformity.
Compliance
- When someone votes differently in public to when they vote privately, this is known as compliance.
- Compliance is going along with a request or demand in public whilst disagreeing with the group's viewpoint or behaviour in private.
- This change in people's expressed views is temporary.
- In Asch’s (1951) studies, participants would comply in public and answer questions incorrectly. But in private, they did not agree with the incorrect answers they supplied in public.
Internalisation
- When an individual changes their behaviour to fit in with a group publicly while also agreeing with them privately.
- This is the strongest form of conformity as the group beliefs become part of the individual's belief system.
Test yourself on Conformity
What was the main aim of Milgram’s (1963) study?
What are the two types of conformity?
What are the two types of motivation to conform as identified by Deutsch & Gerard (1955)?
In Asch’s (1951) research, which behaviour demonstrated compliance?
Which classic study demonstrates compliance?