Introduction to Psychology

Introduction to Psychology of 97 asked to say aloud which line (A, B, or C) matched the length of the line on the first card. Each line question was called a "trial". For the first two trials, the participant would feel at ease, as he and the confederates gave the obvious, correct answer. On the third trial, the confederates would all give the same wrong answer, placing the participant in a dilemma. There were 18 trials in total and the confederates answered incorrectly for 12 of them. These 12 were known as critical trials. The aim was to see whether or not the real participant would change his answers to agree with the confederates’ incorrect answers. Through analysis of participants' responses, Asch discovered that there were vast individual differences in reaction to the experimental situation. Over one-third gave incorrect answers. Interview data revealed that even participants who did not conform to the majority group — and thus remained independent from the group — reacted to the experiment in different ways. Some reacted with confidence in their perception and experience. Despite experiencing conflict between their idea of the correct answer and the group's incorrect answer; they stuck with the answer that was based on their own perception. Behavior in the Asch study is an example of normative social influence: pressure to comply with a norm (even one that is obviously wrong) coming from concern about being rejected by the group. In ambiguous situations, where there are no known norms and no clear basis for deciding how to behave, people often react to informational social influence; what other people do simply provides information about how to behave. Groupthink- The tendency of group members to suspend critical thinking because they are striving to seek agreement. Groupthink is most likely to occur when a group is under high pressure to reach a decision, is insulated from outside input, has a leader who promotes a personal agenda, and has high cohesiveness, reflecting a spirit of closeness and ability to work well together. Social loafing is the tendency for people to expend less individual effort when working in a group than when working alone. Key decisions are often entrusted to groups, such as committees, because groups are assumed to be more conservative than individuals. If group members lean toward a liberal or risky viewpoint to begin with, the group’s decision will tend to become more liberal or riskier. This principle is called group polarization: when a group of like-minded people discuss an issue, the average opinion of group members tends to become more extreme. In crowds, people may experience deindividuation, a loss of individuality that leads to disinhibited behavior. Diffusion of Responsibility- Is a sociopsychological phenomenon whereby a person is less likely to take responsibility for action or inaction when others are present. Considered a form of attribution, the individual assumes that others either are responsible for taking action or have already done so. The phenomenon tends to occur in groups of people above a certain critical size and when responsibility is not explicitly assigned. It rarely occurs when the person is alone; diffusion increases with groups of three or more. Diffusion of responsibility occurs in large group settings and under both prosocial and antisocial conditions. In prosocial situations, individuals' willingness to intervene or assist someone in need is inhibited by the presence of other people. The individual believes that other people present will or should intervene. Thus, the individual does not perceive it as his or her responsibility to take action. In antisocial situations, negative behaviors are more likely to be carried out when the person is in a group of similarly motivated individuals. © 2015 Achieve Page 86