Ash's experiment: how the fear of becoming an outcast deprives people of reason

Few people know the name August Landmesser, but you most likely saw a photo with him. Here she is:

The picture was taken in 1936 at the Hamburg shipyard. Landmesser was the only worker who did not raise his hand to Nazi hello. Together with his relatives, he entered V NSDAP, so as not to be left without work, but later became engaged to a Jewish woman and left the party. The further fate of the Landmessers was predictably tragic: Augustus was sentenced to hard labor, then identified in a penal battalion, where he died, his wife was executed in a concentration camp, and their daughters were sent to a children's house.

A photo from the shipyard can be considered a symbol of fearlessness and fidelity to one's own ideals. Even decades later, when looking at the picture, natural questions arise: “What did ordinary Germans feel during the Holocaust? Why did they turn a blind eye to absolute evil?”

One of the main works on this topic is

The banality of evil» Hannah Arendt. Watching the trial of Adolf Eichmann, the "architect of the Holocaust", the philosopher tried to comprehend the nature of evil. Arendt concluded that neither Eichmann, nor the concentration camp workers, nor thousands of other Germans were inherently sadistic. They only blindly obeyed orders, did not try critically to comprehend what was happening and accepted a new “normality”, where violence and killings were allowed.

Today, when the world knows the horrific facts about the crimes of the Nazi regime, it can be difficult to accept Arendt's thought and not place the blame on everyone who did not then rebel against the system. But to go against the majority is much more difficult than it seems. This was confirmed in 1951 by the experiment of psychologist Solomon Asch.

What is the essence of the Asch experiment

In the post-war years, questions about the influence of the crowd and free will were of interest not only to Hannah Arendt, but also to other scientists and thinkers. Among them was Solomon Asch, an American psychologist of Polish origin. He decided to study how majority pressure can distort individual behavior.

Ash spent a series of studies. For each, a group of eight students was recruited, who were asked to check vision with a simple test. They were shown 18 pairs of cards. The first one showed one vertical line, the second - three more of different lengths. Participants had to answer aloud which segment had the same length as on the first card.

You can look at these pictures and see if the correct answer is obvious. But, to the surprise of one of the group members, the other seven people constantly chose the wrong lines.

In fact, they were decoys, who were instructed in advance by a scientist, and the only object of study was one unsuspecting person. At first, the actors answered correctly, and then called the lines longer or shorter. The subject always answered at the end, and the opinions of the other members of the group confused him, made him doubt your choice and end up choosing the wrong one.

What the experiment showed

To assess how much the opinion of the majority influences the subjects, Asch conducted exactly the same test in the control group without dummy participants, where it was proposed to answer not verbally, but in writing. Under such conditions, students gave 99% correct answers. In groups with actors, only 25% of the participants stood their ground and called the correct lines, and a third of the students were wrong in at least half of the questions and chose the same option as the majority.

Ash arranged several repeated experiments, slightly changing the conditions. He added another member to the group. The scientists asked him to give the correct answers first, and then join the majority. The presence of even one ally reduced the number of subjects' errors from 32% to 10.4%. When he began to agree with the opinions of the others, the proportion of incorrect answers rose again to 28%. Although Asch predicted that the experience of confronting the crowd should have motivated the subjects to keep independence.

What makes people be conformists

In his article, Asch noted that the behavior of independent participants in the experiment was largely determined by their character. But there are factors that influence any person and push him to do the same as others.

Desire to be part of a group

People cannot live in complete isolation, they want to be accepted and are afraid of being rejected. Pursuit like others and remain part of the team encourages us to play by its rules.

Such an impact of the group on the behavior of the individual in social psychology called normative social influence, and all people living in society are subject to it. It is important that a person does not necessarily internally agree with the norms of the team, but recognizes them publicly so as not to become an outcast.

Confidence that the majority is smarter

There are times when a group can change internal beliefs as well. This type of influence is called informational. It usually manifests itself in situations where a person does not have enough data about reality. If an individual feels confused and cannot verify the correctness of his arguments, then he accepts the opinion of the majority as the truth.

Information influence helps to develop and comply with social norms - for example, we do not need to personally taste fly agaric to understand that it is dangerous. But sometimes strict adherence to established rules slows down progress. Bright illustration - story treatment cataracts.

Ophthalmologist Harold Ridley figured out how to deal with the disease and performed the first successful artificial lens implantation in the late 1940s. He told his colleagues at the conference about his discovery, but despite the successful results, he was booed. Ridley's method seemed too revolutionary to the rest of the doctors, so they continued to remove the lens as was customary before. The invention of the ophthalmologist was appreciated and began to be actively used several decades later, although during this time thousands of patients could regain their sight.

Features of mentality and gender norms

Critics of the Asch experiment notethat the psychologist did not take into account the influence of cultural characteristics on the subjects in the study. Society in the United States after the war was cohesive, and individualism was not encouraged. The results of similar studies in the 70s or 80s, with their spirit of freedom and rebellion, were characterized by a higher level of independence. It is difficult to trace the extent to which the mentality affects conformism, but it is worth recognizing that behavior people depends on the values ​​in which they were brought up and lived.

This is confirmed by the experiment of scientists from the University of Sussex. They analyzed more than a hundred studies repeating the Asch experiment in 17 countries and concluded that the level of conformity in collectivist and conservative societies is noticeably higher than in liberal ones.

The tendency to agree with the majority is influenced not only by the country, but also by gender roles. This was shown by a study by Japanese scientists. They reproduced the experiment, but, unlike Asch, they added women to the groups. It revealedthat they are more conformist than men.

Brain device

The desire to belong to a group is inherent in us by nature. HSE researchers conducted an experiment and discoveredthat the brain not only pushes us to conform behavior, but also learns to adjust to the opinion of the majority in the long run. In situations where the views of a person diverge from the position of the rest of the group, strong signals of error and possible conflict appear in the cortex. And if we join the majority, the areas of the brain responsible for expectation are activated. remuneration. To similar conclusion Chinese scientists also came.

How to resist the crowd and is it always necessary to do it

People tend to join the majority. This in itself is neither good nor bad. If you think about it, conformism allows us to adhere to laws and moral standards and can make joint decisions. But sometimes you need to have the courage to go against the crowd. In crisis situations with a high level uncertainty the majority cannot adequately assess the situation and make informed decisions. In order not to make a mistake in such conditions, follow these rules.

Expand your horizons

To stay objective, constantly learn new things and get out of your information bubble. This will help not only lectures, books and the media, but also meeting people different views. During communication, strive not to convince them, but to sincerely understand the point of view.

Being open to new experiences will help you avoid bias.

Don't Forget About Your Values

Turn your attention to yourself, draw up your own moral code and often remember what is important and valuable for you personally, and not for the whole group. To do this, Olesya Zaiko advises asking yourself the following questions: “How will I personally live my life? What actions do I choose? How to make it easier and safer? What or who will help me with this? Answer them honestly before making a decision and joining. crowd.

Don't underestimate the importance of the group

Breaking ties can be very difficult. But remember that this step will not doom you to eternity. loneliness. Over time, you will be able to find a new circle of friends, like-minded people whose views will not contradict your beliefs. Think about your feelings and evaluate whether the negative emotions from leaving the group will be as strong as from living with an internal moral conflict.

Strive for Safe Conversation

If something happens in the team that you don’t like, it’s not necessary to immediately burn bridges. Express your concern and discuss the problem. To make this conversation productive, use the advice of Olesya Zaiko:

1. Pick a time and place. The environment should be safe and comfortable. For example, for many it is more convenient to clarify the situation in correspondence or voice messages.
2. Prepare for the conversation ahead of time. Think about what you will say and what will be answered. If you have to face the majority, try to talk to everyone in private beforehand to get more votes in your favor.
3. Let the interlocutor talk. take micropause before answering and do not rush to speak your own. Show that you really heard someone else's point of view, and report not only the facts, but also your feelings.
4. Keep in mind the purpose of the conversation. Decide what is more important for you: blow off steam or achieve results.