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Conformity in the Asch task as a function of age

M B Walker1, M G Andrade

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Sydney, NSW, Australia.

The Journal of Social Psychology
|June 1, 1996
PubMed
Summary

This study found that children and adolescents conform less as they get older. This social conformity research highlights age-related changes in majority influence on unambiguous tasks.

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Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Social Psychology

Background:

  • The Asch conformity experiments (1956) are foundational in social psychology.
  • Previous research on age and conformity has yielded conflicting results, potentially due to task ambiguity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between age and conformist behavior.
  • To replicate the Asch paradigm with a focus on developmental differences.

Main Methods:

  • Replication of the Asch social conformity paradigm.
  • Study participants: 110 Australian school children and adolescents (ages 3-17).
  • Experimental setup: Each participant was a minority of 1 against a unanimous majority of 3 on perceptually unambiguous tasks.

Main Results:

  • Conformity significantly decreases with increasing age.
  • Age is a critical factor influencing susceptibility to majority influence in unambiguous perceptual tasks.
  • Task clarity is essential for observing age-related declines in conformity.

Conclusions:

  • Conformity is not static and diminishes with age during childhood and adolescence.
  • The ambiguity of tasks in prior studies may explain discrepancies in findings regarding age and conformity.
  • This study provides clear evidence for developmental trends in social conformity behavior.

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