Practice question · Multiple choice
In Asch's line studies conformity ran around 37%, and adding a single confederate who gave the correct answer cut it dramatically. Why does one ally matter so much?
Hints
- Compare a wrong majority of seven against a wrong majority of seven with one dissenter. What changed?
- Ask what the lone participant learns from seeing someone else disagree and survive.
Show the answer
A. Because what the participant faces is unanimity, not size
Why
Unanimity is doing the work, not headcount. Asch found conformity barely rose past a majority of three or four, and collapsed when one person broke ranks. The practical reading is uncomfortable and useful: being the first to object is far harder than being the second.
Practise Social Psychology
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