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Running head: IMPACT OF CONFEDERATES IN GROUPS 1

The Impact of Confederates: Conformity in Groups

Derek Henry, Ty Ward, Marisa Brahm, Rachel Wilson, and Fabio Coartney

University of Alaska Anchorage

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IMPACT OF CONFEDERATES IN GROUPS 2

The Impact of Confederates: Conformity in Groups

Solomon Aschs infamous line experiment has had a profound effect on the field of

research psychology since its publication in the 1950s. Social conformity has become a widely

studied and criticized subject for many years and interest on the topic continues to grow. This

study investigated conformity using confederates based on the Aschs experiment by looking at

the impact that confederates have on conformity in a group setting.

Stowell, Oldham, and Bennett (2010) found that there was a relationship between

conformity behaviors and levels of shyness experienced in a classroom setting due to voicing

opinions publically. It was also found that technology can be used as a tool to circumvent this

obstacle of anxiety that debilitates an individual from public participation. Student Response

System (SRS) or Clickers were used to indicate opinions of 50 controversial topics, presented

in the form of questions, in a public setting to induce levels of anxiety to participants. 128

female students enrolled in an introductory psychology class were used for the study. The

Academic Emotions Questionnaire (AEQ) was administered to students and used to measure

levels of shame and anxiety that parallels shyness using a one to five scale with five indicating

the strongest belief in the statement presented on the questionnaire. When participants were

given the option of hand rising or using the SRS to respond to questions, clicker responses

supported their hypothesis that anxiety can be overcome while responding publicly to a question.

Clicker results showed a substantial variation on agreement compared to hand raised responses

suggesting the effects of public conformity or the unspoken power of the group and the need for

group affiliation to avoiding ostracism or public humiliation.

Brown and Schaefer (2010) focused on the effects of receiving information before

attempting to recall a memory that is attached to a previously exposed stimulus to test the effects

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of memory conformity. The results of this study suggests that memory strength is not as affected

by outside influence upon the recollection of a memory. This study was comprised of having

subjects remember and differentiate between new and previously experienced pictures. The

pictures were classified as having a positive, negative, or neutral valiance to test if emotional

stimuli (pictures) were more susceptible to corruptibility when presented with accurate or

inaccurate information prior to the subjects independent testimony (before a confederate

providing accurate or inaccurate information). The pictures were taken from the International

Affective Picture System (IAPS). The pictures were given a standardized valence measuring one

to nine with one being very negative and nine being very positive. This scale was also the same

when rating the pictures for arousal ranging from a one to nine scale. The visual stimuli

comprised of 72 pictures on both ends of the spectrum in valance ratings (one very negative, nine

very positive) in which subjects were exposed to 36 of them then presented with the lot of 72

pictures displayed on a computer screen. Participants were comprised of 48 individuals aged 18-

24. There were 29 more females than males at 19. This study is very important to show that eye

whiteness testimony can be subjective and can be inaccurate because of susceptibility to

influence to information conform and corrupt results.

The research method mentioned above reports that there is an effect on conformity

behavior when confederates are involved in any studies. This paradigm for inaccuracy of

recollection from eye witnessed events supports the importance of confederates in studies. The

goal for the perception conformity experiment was to accurately predict behavior patterns of

random individuals taking part in the study.

Moscovici and Lage (1978) investigated the role of minority influence on individual

susceptibility on judgment. The study was conducted in a libratory setting projecting 12 slides

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that were either blue or green onto a wall for subjects to see. Subjects were asked to voice

publically the color of the previously observed slide based on their individualistic experience to

the visual stimuli. Two confederates were strategically placed in the group of six observers to

maximize the introduction of the opposite belief to cause original judgments to be questioned

and changed. This conformity study placed individuals in an environment where stress was

produced by having to choose to stick to an original individualistic judgment or by conforming

to the groups opinion to avoid conflict of being perceived as a threat to the group because of the

differently held belief. The rules of social engagement acknowledge there rules or the demand

characteristics of any given social situation. The three fundamental rules for social engagement

and interaction are; objectivity, preference and originality. When test subjects were presented

with a situation of having a group members go against the groups consensuses determining the

color for the slide presented, individuals used negotiation tactics to suede others to their belief.

This research found that the rules of engagement of social interaction did in fact get taken into

consideration upon subjects making, conforming, and changing their original judgment of a

perceived stimulus, but situations do vary.

Taha Amir (1984) questioned whether or not the Asch effect is limited to western

societies or if the phenomenon is universal. As in the original study, confederates were instructed

to give a unanimous answer which was clearly incorrect.

The results of the experiment suggest that male critical subjects and female critical

subjects were equally likely to conform to the incorrect group response under experimental

conditions (Amir, 1984). Furthermore, the experiments results were very similar to the results in

Aschs experiments. Amir found that 29.01% of the experimental groups answers were

erroneous which is comparable to the 33.2% of wrong answers in Aschs study and significantly

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different from the 4.76% of the control group (1984). It was further noted that 18.75% of critical

subjects remained independent throughout the experiment while 3.75% conformed to the group

response every time.

Amir concluded that his results were consistent with those of Aschs original study,

therefore implying that the Asch effect is universal and not specific to American orEuropean

cultures (1984). In addition, Amir found no evidence of significant differences in conformity

between genders as he originally suspected.

Collin, Sano, and Malik (1994) reproduced the Asch effect in a different way. One of the

criticisms of Aschs experiment is that the methodology was flawed because it lacked external

validity (Colin et al., 1994). To correct this, the experiment was changed in a way that would

contain both external and internal validity. Instead objective stimuli such as line length, the

experimenters utilized subjective stimuli, specifically color. Collin et al. also investigated

whether or not gender played a role in conformity.

Participants were sorted into one of four groups based on their availability which varied

the genders of the confederates and critical subjects. Subjects were first shown a color and then

asked to pick which of the two color names they felt it was closest to. There were ten trials, with

6 being experimental or, critical trials and the remaining four being neutral trials (Collin et al.,

1994, p. 359). The experiment showed that 97% of subjects conformed to the group response

during critical trials with only one subject who did not conform. It was also found that while the

confederate gender did not matter, female subjects conformed more frequently than male

subjects.

Sherif (1935) unintentionally demonstrated the conformity effect before it was known as

the Asch effect. The experiment, which originally focused on gauging the distance a point of

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light moved without an objective scale, was conducted in two parts: individual and group trials.

It was questioned what the group may do when faced with the issue of having no physical basis

for a norm (Sherif, 1935).

Participants either started with an individual trial followed by three group trials or started

with three group trials followed by an individual trial at a later date. The general trend showed

that subjects who started with the individual trial had a wide range of values which narrowed to a

smaller range consistent with the groups range as a whole. Those who started with the group

trials showed a much narrower range of values which continued to stay consistently small. Upon

return for their individual trial, subjects still held a range of values that was consistent with the

standard set up by the group earlier in the experiment.

Feeny, Polivy, Pliner, & Sullivan (2011) found that people conformed to the perceived

eating habits of others whether the independent variable (confederate) was an actual person or

whether it was suggestive information regarding the eating habits of others involved in their

study.

Schneider and Watkins (1996) research supports the ideathat participants perceived

recognition of information can be influenced, or will tend to conform, to that of a confederates

manipulated recognition. Participants were asked to memorize a list of words and repeat them at

a later time. Confederates responded to the task first where they listed a different set of words

then the words participants were shown. As a result, participants showed conformity and

responded with the same set of words given by the confederates.

Nosanchuk and Lightstones (1974) research supports the view of conformity because

they found that when participants of their study were rating the quality of a joke, their opinion of

its quality was influenced by the recorded sound of supposed other participants laughing at it.

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(Nosanchuck & Lightstone, 1974). For example if the participants heard the sound of laughter

while they were rating an operationally defined poor joke, they tended to rate its quality higher

than its initial rating in regards to how it was operationally defined.

Research on two types of social influence, explores studies done by Sherif, Asch, and

Bovard on group influence to characterize the impact of many different kinds of social factors.

This study hypothesized that normative social influence upon individual judgments would be

greater among individuals forming a group than individuals who did not compose a group. The

experiment was an experimental situation developed by Asch with certain modifications and

variations. On 12 of the 18 perceptual judgments the confederates announced unanimously

incorrect judgments while the participant was in a face-to-face situation. Results showed that the

hypotheses received strong support from the experimental data. When a group situation is

created, even when the group situation is as trivial and artificial, the normative social influences

are higher, producing more errors in individual judgment.

Research on normative assumptions has led psychologists to interpret the studies in terms

of conformity causing a new approach to Aschs (1956) studies relating physical and social

perception. Asch (1951) found that if another person dissents from the majority, participants

rarely agreed with the majority. This study suggests that agreeing with the incorrect majority

occasionally might not be an error, but a creative strategy to communicate unity. Tact and

situational sensitivity may be as crucial to integrity and justice as accuracy and forthrightness.

Aschs situation can be considered to be presenting a choice between competing and

cooperating. A minority is most likely to be influential when it is consistent and persistent.

Consistent disagreement with others is likely to generate anger and reactance, cutting of

communication from the group.

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Research on two commonly held ideas about Aschs Work in social psychology: (a) Asch

was primarily interested in social phenomena in general and in-group processes in particular and

(b) Asch was a forerunner of social cognition. Asch was not interested in groups, his main

interest was the single individual, real social phenomenal experience, or meaning. The

contextual factors which impact peoples judgment according to phenomenal rather than

conditioning principles were also illustrated in Aschs (1948) studies. Asch proposed that the

nature of the experimental setting may affect the perception of the task in a judgmental situation.

Mugny (1984) presented the idea that a direct or an indirect influence could have

different effects on conformity subjects. This study will only use direct influence to sway the

subjects answers as conformity behavior is greatly influenced within a social setting.

This study hypothesized that participants would conform to the false reports of

confederates when indicating whether or not the visual stimuli moved. In addition it was

hypothesized that there will be a higher level of conformity with a higher level of exposure to

false report.

Method

Participants

Participants consisted of Undergraduate students taking classes at the University of

Alaska Anchorage. Participation in the study was mostly due to partial requirement or for extra

credit for a class.

Materials and Procedure

Visual Stimuli consisted of a battery operated red laser pointer. The laser pointer was

taped to the on position then taped to the inside of the shoe box. The laser pointer was on the

duration of the experiment. A one centimeter hole was cut in the shoe box to let the light escape.

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The shoe box was then placed on a level surface twenty feet from a bare projection wall. Since

laser pointer remained on throughout the experiment, a paper flap was constructed and taped to

the box to impede the light from projecting to the viewing area between testing sessions.

Subjects and confederates were seated in chairs during the entire experiment. A row of eight

chairs were placed in a semi circle faced in the direction of where the laser light was. (Seating

position in appendix c)

Design and procedure

Participants first filled out and return the research consent form with the demographic

questionnaire (see appendix A and appendix B) before they received instructions to sit in a

designated chair within the experimental condition. The eight participants in the control group

were not asked to sit in a predetermined chair. Upon entering the room and taking their seats

participants was asked to face towards the front of the room for the duration of the experiment.

The room where the experiment took take place is 261 in SSB. Confederates were used in the

experimental groups to test if exposure to false report causes conformity of agreement. Subjects

sat alongside confederates unknowingly.

Participants observed the visual stimuli for 30 seconds during each testing phase.

Between tests, laser light was blocked by the paper flap to remove visual stimuli from wall.

Participants were instructed to indicate movement of the visual stimuli by raising one hand

during each testing session. The raising of hand indicated a yes response that was recorded. A

hand not raised was indicated as a no response during testing phase. Indication of movement by

hand raised was visible for rater and group to see.

After every session, participants in the control group indicated on a self report sheet a

movement response by checking yes or no under the appropriate column (see appendix G). The

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light of the room was needed to be turned on and off for the control group to indicate their

answer on the answer sheet. The experimenter blocked and unblocked the light with the paper

flap while verbally stating the start and end of testing sessions. In the experimental groups,

confederates falsely reported movement of the laser light during all but one session. This method

was conducted only on the weak experimental false report group and results were recorded. In

the strong false report experimental group, two confederates gave false reports indicating

movement of the laser light in all ten testing session. There were 10 trials each 30 seconds long

given to all groups, control group which consisted of eight participants without the presents of

confederates, weak false report experimental group which consisted of one confederate and six

participants, and the weak false report group that consisted of one confederate among six

participants.

Experimental groups differed in strength of false report experienced given by the number

of confederates in the group. Expression strength for false report was determined as strong when

confederate esthetically introduces false report by smiling, fidgeting in seat, and ooh-ing while

raising their hand to indicate movement during the testing session. The weak false report was

introduced by the confederates raise of hand. One experimental group had one confederate who

was seated in the third chair. In the other experimental group, two confederates were placed in

the seats four and five (see appendix c for seating arrangement of groups). The control group

consisted of eight subjects seated in the testing environment without confederates.

Results

In order to test whether the number of false responses would increase depending on the

percentage of confederates, three independent ttests were conducted. The number of false

responses was expected to be lowest in the zero percentage confederate groups, higher in the

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14% (weak) confederate group, and highest in the 200% (strong) confederate group. Contrary to

our prediction, the number of false responses in the zero percentage group was higher than the

weak percentage group, but not significantly, t(13) = 1.25, ns.

Also contrary to our prediction, the number of false responses in the zero percentage

group was higher than the strong percentage group, but not significantly, t(7) = 0.78, ns.

In conjunction with our prediction, the number of false responses in the strong percentage

group was higher than the weak percentage group, but not significantly, t(6) = 0.15, ns.

Discussion

The original hypothesis of the study stated that the false reports of the confederates would

influence the responses of participants when indicating whether or not they saw the visual stimuli

move. More specifically, it was hypothesized that there would be a stronger level of conformity

in the experimental group with a higher confederate to participant ratio. The results of the study

did not support the hypothesis because there was not a significant difference in conformity

between the experimental groups. In addition to this, as a result of the control group being

comprised solely of students from the same class as the experimenters, the baseline data rendered

from the control group is non-significant as well. Research suggests that the results of this study

would have supported the original hypothesis. The non-significant results could have been due to

multiple confounding variables that were not accounted for when designing and conducting the

experiment.

Due to issues with the research portal, the amount of participants that the study required

was not met. Unfortunately at the last minute the design of the experiment had to be changed due

to this confounding variable. The experiment had to be conducted with a considerably lower

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number of participants which affected the generalizability and external validity of the experiment

because there was no way to control for this variable. As previously, stated the control group was

solely participants that were also in the same class as the experimenters which affected the

baseline data that was computed. Without reliable baseline data, there would be no point in

comparing the experimental data to it. The weak experimental group was mostly participants that

were also in the same class and the strong experimental group only had one participant who was

in the same class as well. Because the majority of the participants in the study were class mates,

it increased the possibility that the participants had an idea as to what the true intentions of the

study were. If the participants believed they knew what the experimenters were actually

studying, it could have caused them to try and give answers that they believed the researchers

were looking for or inhabiting demand characteristics within the study. It also could have caused

them to intentionally give wrong answers. This confounding variable introduced a very

significant amount of bias in the implementation of the study.

Flawed methodology had a detrimental effect on the study because it affected its internal

validity. Specifying if the light moved more than an inch would have been a better way for the

participants to indicate if the light moved because this would have minimized yes answers that

resulted from the eyes natural saccadic movements, which are very slight. An unstable light

platform was another confounding variable, especially because the study was conducted on the

second floor of the SSB building, which shakes whenever there is minimal movement such as

walking, shifting in chairs, etc. Doing the experiment on a ground floor and with a more stable

platform such as a table would have been a more reliable way to set up the experiment. The

design of the study had to be changed again at the beginning of the control group session as well.

There was not enough light for the participants to mark their answers when the light was off in

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the room. To solve this issue the researcher had to walk back and forth to turn the light on and

off in between each fifteen second testing intervals (causing the floor to shake). It is also worth

mentioning that the experimenter bumped the apparatus that was holding the visual stimuli

which also caused the light to move. The accumulation of these variables caused the visual

stimuli to move (or appear to move), when the intention of the study was that the stimuli remain

still at all times. Feedback from participants indicated that the light looked like it was moving in

almost all of the sessions. It is very probable that the participants of the study said that the light

moved due to these confounding variables, not conformity.

Experimental bias, which took away from the internal validity of the study, could also

have affected the data rendered from the study. During the strong experimental group testing

sessions, which had two confederates and one participant, the experimenter stared at the

participant more than the other confederates. This could have made it more obvious that there

were confederates in the experiment because the confederates and the participant were not

treated the same. This experimental bias behavior could have skewed the responses of the

participant in that they were less likely to conform to the confederates answers because they

may have been aware of the confederates intentions.

Two less severe confounding variables that may have skewed the results were that a way

to record and code the answers of the participants was not formulated before the experiment was

conducted, and the experimenter did not have a clear view of chairs one and eight during the

testing sessions. The answers from each participant had to be matched after the experimental

portion was over and it is possible that some of the data was matched incorrectly. Due to the fact

that the experimenter could not see chairs one and eight clearly (due to computer monitors), it is

also possible that he recorded the answers of the participants seated in the chairs incorrectly.

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Accounting for the variables would have been simple if they had been foreseen. Formulating a

way to match answers to specific participants before the experiment and conducting the

experiment in a room other than a computer room would have eradicated both of these

confounding variables.

In conducting this study, the importance of attention to detail, preparation, and running a

pilot study were all made very evident. A pilot study would have made the many confounding

variables very clear and it would have allowed the researchers to make adjustments to the

experimental design. Although there were many confounding variables that were not accounted

for in this study, if it was replicated in a way that did account for these variables, the results

could be used to make generalizations or provide insight in regards to conformity and college

student behavior (because all the participants were college students). The study of saccadic eye

movements is yet another topic that could be elaborated on through further research as a result of

the study as well. It would likely open the door to a number hypothetical questions and research

opportunities regarding all of these topics.

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References

Amir, T. (1984). The Asch conformity effect: A study in Kuwait. Social Behavior and

Personality, 12, 187-190.

Brown, C., & Schaefer, A. (2010). The effects of conformity on recognition judgments for

emotional stimuli.Acta Psychologica, 133, 38-44. doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2009.08.004

Bryan, T., Pearl, R., & Fallon, P. (1989). Conformity to peer pressure by students with learning

disabilities: A replication.Journal of Learning Disabilities, 22, 458-459.

Collin, C. A., Sano, F. D., & Malik, R. (1994). Effects of confederate and subject gender on

conformity in a color classification task. Social Behavior and Personality, 22, 355-364.

Deutsch, M., & Gerard, H. B. (1955). A study of normative and informational social influences

upon individual judgment.Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 51, 629-636.

Feeney, J. R., Pliner, P., Polivy, J., & Sullivan, M. D. (2011).Comparing live and remote models

in eating conformity research.Eating Behaviors, 12, 75-77.

doi:10.1016/j.eatbeh.2010.09.007

Hodges, B. H., & Geyer, A. L. (2006). A nonconformist account of the Asch experiments:

Values, pragmatics, and moral dilemmas. Personality and Social Psychology, 10, 2-19.

Jugert, P., Cohrs, J. C., & Duckitt, J. (2009). Inter- and intrapersonal processes underlying

authoritarianism: The role of social conformity and personal need for structure.European

Journal of Personality, 23, 607-621.doi:10.1002/per.735

Leyens, J. P., & Corneille, O. (1999). Aschs social psychology: Not as social as you may think.

Personality and Social Psychology, 3, 345-357.

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Moscovici, S., & Lage, E. (1978), Studies in social influence IV: Minority influence in a context

of original judgments.European Journal of Social Psychology, 8, 349365.

doi:10.1002/ejsp.2420080307

Mugny, G. (1984). Compliance, conversion and the Asch paradigm.European Journal of Social

Psychology, 14,353-368.

Nosanchuk, T. A., & Lightstone, J. (1974). Canned laughter and public and private conformity.

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 29, 153-156. doi:10.1037/h0035737

Schneider, D. M., & Watkins, M. J. (1996). Response conformity in recognition testing.

Psychonomic Bulletin & Review,3(4), 481-485.

Sherif, M. (1935). A study of some social factors in perception: Chapter 3. Archives of

Psychology,27, 23-46.

Stowell, J. R., Oldham, T., & Bennett, D. (2010). Using student response systems (Clickers) to

combat conformity and shyness. Teaching of Psychology, 37, 135-140.

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(Appendix A)

University of Alaska Anchorage

Research Consent Form

Visual Perceptions

Principal Investigator: Ty Ward

Research supervisor: Vickie Wesolowski - (907) 7861617

Department: Psychology

The purpose of this experiment is to determine how lighting conditions effect the perception of

an individual. During this experiment, participants will observe a stimulus and report the actions

of the stimulus. The experiment will consist of 10 trials to be preformed back to back and will

take approximately 10 to 15 minutes. There is no known risk to you as a participant in this

experiment. Your actions and responses during this experiment will remain anonymous and any

publication or presentation of the data derived from this experiment will not carry any personally

identifying information.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your participation in this experiment, please

contact Research Supervisor Vickie Wesolowski at the number listed above. If you have any

further questions regarding your rights as a participant, please contact the UAA Office of

Academic Affairs at (907) 786-1921.

Your participation in this project is completely voluntary, and you will not be penalized in any

way if you choose not to participate. If at any point you chose to withdrawal from the

experiment, you are free to do so. Your signature below indicates that you fully understand the

above study, what is being asked of you, and that your involvement is voluntary.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask now or at any time during the

experiment.

Signature _________________________________________ Date ______________

Printed Name ______________________________________

A copy of this consent form is available for you to keep.

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Please fill out questioner to the best of your abilities. Upon completion, please return form to the

rater to receive further instructions.

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(Appendix B)

How old are you? (Age)_______

What is your gender? (male/female) _______

How tall are you? (Feet)________(Inches) ________

What is your major? _______

Do you wear glasses/contacts/and or both? (yes/no)_______

How many years have you been enrolled in college?_______

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(Appendix C)

Good afternoon participants,

We will like to thank you for participating in our perception study. You will be observing the

visual stimuli for 15 seconds during each experiment test session. During the test you will

indicate whether you observed the visual stimuli to move or not move. If at anytime you see

movement of the red dot raise your hand to indicate that you have seen movement of the dot. A

no answer will be recorded if you do not raise your hand to indicate what you have seen

movement of the dot. Please refrain from talking at anytime during this experiment and please

silence your cell phones. Upon exiting the room you will be debriefed.

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(Appendix D)

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(Appendix E)

Experimental

Manipulation:

Experimental

Manipulation: Participant Response

Comments

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Experimental

Manipulation:

Trial Participant Response Comments

1

2

3

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4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Experimental

Manipulation:

Trial Participant Response Comments

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

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(Appendix F)

Debriefing Statement

This experiment is officially over and I will explain what this experiment is about. This is called

the debriefing.

In this experiment we are examining the effect of close proximity social pressure on our

participants tendency to conform to that social pressure. There is a significant amount of

research that supports the idea that we as human beings more often than not tend to conform to

what is seen as normal or acceptable social behavior, even if that behavior is not correct,

(Aschs line experiment).

Our experiment has nothing to do with measuring perception. It was designed to see if our

participants would start conforming to a wrong answer given by confederates, when indicating

whether or not the visual stimuli shown on the board at the front of the room moved. There were

three different groups of participants that were examined. One group had four confederates,

another had two confederates, and the third had no confederates. The question that was asked

regarding how far the visual stimuli was thought to move, had no other purpose in our study

except to try and make the study seem more like it was measuring perception. The results of this

study will help us evaluate and determine whether or not the need to be seen as normal, or

correct in the eyes of others, is stronger than ones own opinion.

It is very important that you not discuss the details of this study with your classmates. In order to

collect good quality data, it is imperative that each person who participates in this study is

unaware of the nature and details of the study, like you were, until it ends.

If you have any questions please feel free to ask.

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You may now sign the appropriate sign-in sheet to receive your extra credit. Thank you for your

participation.

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Appendix G

Self report control group table

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