Conformity and obedience
Classic experiments revealed how powerfully groups and authority figures can shape behaviour.
Asch's conformity studies
Solomon Asch asked participants to judge which of three lines matched a reference line, a very easy task. When the group's other members, who were secretly working with the researcher, gave an obviously wrong answer, many participants went along at least once. Conformity increases with group unanimity and decreases when even one other person disagrees.
Milgram's obedience studies
Stanley Milgram had participants act as 'teachers' told to give increasingly strong electric shocks to a 'learner' (who was actually an actor receiving no shocks). Under instructions from an experimenter, about two-thirds continued to the maximum level. The studies showed how ordinary people can obey authority against their conscience, and raised serious ethical concerns about participant stress.
Roles and situations
Philip Zimbardo's Stanford prison study, in which students played guards and prisoners, is often cited to show how social roles shape behaviour; it was stopped early and has been strongly criticised for its methods. Together these studies suggest that situations can influence behaviour more than we expect.
Flashcard
Changing behaviour to match a group
Check your understanding
In Asch's experiment, what most reduced conformity?