The Conformity Experiment

The impact of social pressure on objective decision-making is a critical aspect to consider. Despite our familiarity with this concept in theory, real-time situations often reveal its profound effects. In a recent scenario (over 2 years ago) whilst guiding a group of research students, we delved into the theme of "Professional Decision Making Loses Objectivity Under Social Pressure."

During an experiment involving the selection of candidates for a job, the dynamics of social influence became strikingly evident. Three interviewers, unbeknownst (to one professional interviewer)

to them being actors amongst the 4 interviewer, were directed as per the script to advocate for the less qualified candidate 'T' over the competent candidate 'A.' In contrast, a fourth only professional HR interviewer, unaware of this manipulation, independently chose candidate 'A' as the best fit for the position.

Interestingly, when confronted with the unanimous support for candidate 'T' by the other interviewers, the professional interviewer reluctantly succumbed to the social pressure and altered his decision, highlighting the profound impact of conformity on individual judgment. He too said T - T - T, the group choice though he believed that 'A' was the best choice for the job.

This phenomenon resonates with the renowned Gestalt psychologist Solomon Asch's conformity experiments from the 1950s. Asch's studies demonstrated how individuals, when placed in a group setting where incorrect information is endorsed, often yield to the group consensus despite knowing the correct answer.

The findings from Asch's experiments underscore the vulnerability of individuals to group pressure, leading them to make decisions contrary to their better judgment solely to align with the collective opinion. The implications of these insights shed light on the complexities of decision-making under social influence and the challenges of maintaining objectivity in professional settings.

We face this situation, day-in and day-out