Sociology 1010: Another Asch Experiment

ALM

Dr. Pratkanis:  Conformity is going along with the group, modeling your responses after what the group is doing, doing exactly what the crowd, what everyone else is performing.  

Male Speaker:   People today are generally considered more self-aware and sophisticated about the effects of social influence.  But are they less subject to conformity?  Dr. Pratkanis decided to find out.  

Dr. Pratkanis:  There will be a stimulus line over here on your left-hand side.  All you need to do is to pick which of these lines is the same as the stimulus line.  We'll go around, in order, and all you need to do is state the number.  We'll start with subject number one.  What is your response?  

Male Speaker:   Two.  

Dr. Pratkanis:   Subject number two?  

Female Speaker:  Two.  

Male Speaker:   On the first two trials, the confederates match the stimulus line to the standard line, giving the right answer.  

Male Speaker:   Two.  

Male Speaker:   Two.   

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject number six?  

Female Speaker:  Two.  

Dr. Pratkanis:   Subject number seven?  

Female Speaker:  Two.  

Male Speaker:   On the third trial and thereafter, the confederates give the obviously incorrect response.  

Female Speaker:  One.  

Dr. Pratkanis:   Subject three?  

Female Speaker:  One.  

Dr. Pratkanis:    Subject four?  

Male Speaker:   One.  

Dr. Pratkanis:    Subject five?  

Male Speaker:   One.  

Dr. Pratkanis:    Subject six?  

Male Speaker:   Two.   

Dr. Pratkanis:    Subject seven?  

Female Speaker:  One.    

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject one?  

Male Speaker:  Two.   

Dr. Pratkanis:   Subject two?  

Female Speaker:  Two.   

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject three?  

Male Speaker:   As this subject hears the rest of the group give the wrong answer, he initially resists the influence of group pressure.  

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject five?  Subject six?  

Male Speaker:   One.  

Dr. Pratkanis:   Subject seven?  

Male Speaker:   Most subjects start out defying the group but after repeated trials, many of them begin to conform.  

Male Speaker:   Three.  

Female Speaker: Two.   

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject four?  

Male Speaker:   Two.  

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject five?  

Male Speaker:   Two.   

Dr. Pratkanis:   Subject six?  

Male Speaker:   Two.  

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject seven?  

Female Speaker:  Two.  

Dr. Pratkanis:   Subject number four, what is your response?  

Male Speaker:   One.  

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject number five?  

Male Speaker:   One.  

Dr. Pratkanis:   Subject number six, your turn.  

Male Speaker:   One.    

Male Speaker:   Their voices may drop, they may know they are giving the wrong answers, but they eventually give in.

Dr. Pratkanis:  Subject number five?  

Male Speaker:   Two.    

[End.]