● Asch carried out a number of variations of his original study to find out which variable has the most significant effect on th
● This research has identified several situational variables, that is, qualities of an environment that influence levels of confo
AO1:
Group size: Unanimity: Task diff
● Conformity rates increase as the size of the ● To what degree the group members are in ● Conf
majority increases until it reaches a plateau. agreement with each other. incre
obvi
● Asch found with one real participant and one ● Conformity rates have been found to increase
confederate, conformity was low at 3%, rising to when majority influence is unanimous. ● This
13% with two confederates and 32% with three guid
confederates. Adding extra confederates (up to 15) ● Asch found that if one confederate went against sugg
had no further effect on the overall conformity the others and gave the correct answer then the
rate. conformity rate dropped to 5.5%. Even if this ● Asch
confederate went against the others but gave the mor
other wrong answer the conformity rate dropped likely
to 9%.
AO3:
Research support for task Lacks ecological validity Lacks population validity
difficulty P A weakness of Asch’s research is that P A weakness of Asch’s research is th
P One strength of Asch’s research is it uses an artificial situation and an it lacks population validity.
that it has supporting evidence. artificial task. E An all-male sample is used. Also As
E Lucas et al. asked students to give E Matching lines isn’t an everyday life never conducted research in
answers to mathematical problems experience and is quite insignificant non-Western cultures.
that were easy or difficult. Students compared to real life situations E Asch may have got vastly different
were more likely to give the wrong involving pressures to conform. results if he used female participan
answer when the questions were E Asch’s study may therefore only as well. Additionally, Asch may hav
difficult rather than when they were explain conformity in special got increased levels of conformity
easy ones. This was especially true circumstances that bear little more collectivist cultures because
for students who rated their similarity to real life. the tendency is to focus on the
mathematical ability as poor. L Therefore, Asch’s research lacks group’s needs, which may encoura
E This is a strength because it supports ecological validity and is unlikely to conformity.
Asch’s findings by providing further inform our understanding of L Therefore, Asch’s research lacks
evidence. conformity in everyday situations. population validity and this reduce
L This therefore increases the validity the validity of Asch’s findings.
of Asch’s research.
● This research has identified several situational variables, that is, qualities of an environment that influence levels of confo
AO1:
Group size: Unanimity: Task diff
● Conformity rates increase as the size of the ● To what degree the group members are in ● Conf
majority increases until it reaches a plateau. agreement with each other. incre
obvi
● Asch found with one real participant and one ● Conformity rates have been found to increase
confederate, conformity was low at 3%, rising to when majority influence is unanimous. ● This
13% with two confederates and 32% with three guid
confederates. Adding extra confederates (up to 15) ● Asch found that if one confederate went against sugg
had no further effect on the overall conformity the others and gave the correct answer then the
rate. conformity rate dropped to 5.5%. Even if this ● Asch
confederate went against the others but gave the mor
other wrong answer the conformity rate dropped likely
to 9%.
AO3:
Research support for task Lacks ecological validity Lacks population validity
difficulty P A weakness of Asch’s research is that P A weakness of Asch’s research is th
P One strength of Asch’s research is it uses an artificial situation and an it lacks population validity.
that it has supporting evidence. artificial task. E An all-male sample is used. Also As
E Lucas et al. asked students to give E Matching lines isn’t an everyday life never conducted research in
answers to mathematical problems experience and is quite insignificant non-Western cultures.
that were easy or difficult. Students compared to real life situations E Asch may have got vastly different
were more likely to give the wrong involving pressures to conform. results if he used female participan
answer when the questions were E Asch’s study may therefore only as well. Additionally, Asch may hav
difficult rather than when they were explain conformity in special got increased levels of conformity
easy ones. This was especially true circumstances that bear little more collectivist cultures because
for students who rated their similarity to real life. the tendency is to focus on the
mathematical ability as poor. L Therefore, Asch’s research lacks group’s needs, which may encoura
E This is a strength because it supports ecological validity and is unlikely to conformity.
Asch’s findings by providing further inform our understanding of L Therefore, Asch’s research lacks
evidence. conformity in everyday situations. population validity and this reduce
L This therefore increases the validity the validity of Asch’s findings.
of Asch’s research.
