GCSEPsychologyAQAExam QuestionsSocial InfluenceConformity

Conformity (AQA GCSE Psychology): Exam Questions

Exam code: 8182

56 mins12 questions
1
9 marks

Read the following conversation

Two psychology students were having a conversation about the lesson they had just had.

Aneeta: “I found the results of Asch’s study really surprising. I don’t believe that I would have conformed in that situation".

Myla: "I was surprised too – but I wonder if it had something to do with them being in a situation that wasn’t like their everyday life?"

Aneeta: "That’s true – the task was also not like anything I have ever been asked to do before.”

Describe Asch’s study of conformity and evaluate the research method used in his study.

Refer to the conversation as part of your answer.

How did you do?

2
6 marks

Solomon Asch carried out his famous ‘line’ experiment in the 1950s.

Discuss whether or not Asch’s study of conformity would be considered to be ethical now.

Use your knowledge of the British Psychological Society guidelines on ethical issues in psychological research to inform your discussion.

How did you do?

3
1 mark

Dana is shopping with two of her friends. Her friends both choose sandwiches for lunch. After seeing this, Dana decides to choose a sandwich too. Which one of the following best describes Dana’s behaviour?

  • Bystander intervention

  • Conformity

  • Deindividuation

  • Obedience

Choose your answer

4
9 marks

Describe and evaluate one way in which conformity was investigated.

In your description include the method used, the results obtained and the conclusion drawn.

How did you do?

5
4 marks

Read the following article.

A psychology teacher’s findings about conformity

A psychology teacher carried out an experiment to investigate conformity. Students were asked to complete a difficult maths test in groups.

In some groups, there were many students, while in other groups, there were only a few students.

The teacher found that students were more likely to change their answers when they were in larger groups.

In another version of the experiment, the teacher changed who the other students were. In some groups, the majority were described as maths experts, while in others they were described as English literature students.

The teacher found that students were more likely to agree with the majority when the group were maths experts.

Use the article to identify:

  • Two examples where group size affected conformity levels, and

  • Two examples where expertise affected conformity levels

Write your answers in the correct boxes.

Examples of group size

Examples of expertise

How did you do?

6
3 marks

Briefly evaluate dispositional factors that affect conformity to the majority.

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7
1 mark

Both dispositional and social factors affect conformity.

Which of the following is the best definition of ‘dispositional factors’?

  • External events which may affect a person’s behaviour or choices

  • Personal characteristics which may affect a person’s behaviour or choices

  • The effect that being part of a large group has on a person’s choices or behaviour

  • The effects that other people can have on our choices or behaviour

Choose your answer

8a
2 marks

Read the following description of a study.

A psychologist conducted a study to see if the level of conformity is affected by how many people are present.

The psychologist made groups of either 3 or 8 people. Only one person in each group was a true participant. The same procedure was carried out in all of the groups.

The psychologist asked each group to compare the length of 3 different lines to the length of a single line. She asked each group member to say out loud which of the 3 lines was the same length as the single line. She asked the true participant in each group to say their answers last. The true participants did not know that everyone else in the group was an actor and was deliberately giving the wrong answer.

Write a suitable null hypothesis for the described study of conformity.

How did you do?

8b
3 marks

The psychologist’s results showed that when the group size was 8, the participants gave the same wrong answer as the actors 83% of the time. This compared to only 34% of the time when the group size was 3.

Give one conclusion the psychologist could draw from the described study of conformity.

Use the results to explain your answer.

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8c
3 marks

Asch used a very similar procedure to the one described.

Briefly evaluate Asch’s study of conformity.

How did you do?

9
2 marks

Task difficulty and expertise are two factors known to affect conformity.

Use an example to describe how each of these factors could affect conformity.

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10
2 marks

Which two of the following statements about conformity are correct?

A

Conformity is when people follow the orders of someone in a position of authority.

B

Group size does not affect how likely people are to conform.

C

People are more likely to conform when the task they are doing is difficult.

D

People are more likely to conform when they have a high level of expertise in the task they are doing.

E

Personality can affect how likely people are to conform.

How did you do?

11a
3 marks

A psychologist conducted a study to see if people will conform to the opinion of others.

The psychologist put each participant into a group with seven strangers. The group was asked to compare the length of three different lines to the length of a single line. Each group member was asked to say out loud which of the three lines was the same length as the single line. The participants were asked to say their answers last.

The participants did not know that everyone else in the group was a confederate and was deliberately giving wrong answers.

The psychologist found that 91% of the participants conformed by giving a wrong answer at least once.

Use your knowledge of one social factor affecting conformity to explain these results.

How did you do?

11b
4 marks

Evaluate the study described in Question 11a.

How did you do?

12
4 marks

Briefly explain two weaknesses of laboratory experiments. Refer to Asch’s study of conformity in your answer.

How did you do?