A researcher carried out a study based on Asch's research to see if task difficulty affects conformity.

Easy task condition: the standard line was very different from the incorrect comparison lines.

Difficult task condition: the standard line was very similar to the incorrect comparison lines.

Participants took part in only one condition and were not matched. They were asked to state which comparison line was the same as the standard line. In both conditions, four confederates (people working with the researcher) gave the same wrong answer. The researcher recorded whether each participant did or did not conform.

(a) Write a suitable directional hypothesis for this study. [3 marks]

Answer: The number of participants who conform will be significantly higher in the difficult condition (where the standard line was very similar to the incorrect comparison lines) than in the easy condition (where the standard line was very different from the incorrect comparison lines).

(b) Identify the experimental design used in this study. Explain one advantage of using this design in this study. [3 marks]

Answer: Independent groups design.

One advantage of using an independent groups design is that demand characteristics are less likely to occur. As participants take part in only one condition (either the easy task or the difficult task), they are less likely to guess the aim of the experiment and change their behaviour as a result.

The results of the genuine participants were recorded in the table below.

(c) Refer to the data in the table above. Which of A, B, C or D is the correct ratio of participants who conformed in the easy condition to those who conformed in the difficult condition? [1 mark]

A 1:2

B 1:3

C 1:4

D 3:1

Answer: B

(d) Refer to the data in the table above. Which of A, B, C or D is the correct percentage of participants who did not conform in the study? [1 mark]

A 5%

B 35%

C 40%

D 87.5%

Answer: C

(e) Using your knowledge of social influence, explain the difference in conformity between the two conditions. [2 marks]

Answer: Participants completing the more difficult task are more likely to conform to the majority compared with those completing the easier task. This is because, in more challenging or ambiguous situations, people are more likely to conform due to informational social influence; they lack confidence in their own judgment and believe that the group is more likely to be correct.

Examiner Comment: For part (a), students are required to operationalise both the independent variable (IV) and the dependent variable (DV). The operationalised IV is the easy and difficult task conditions, while the operationalised DV is the number of participants who conformed.

For part (b), students often confuse experimental design with experimental method, incorrectly referring to laboratory studies (the method) instead of identifying independent groups (the design). Students must ensure that any advantage given (e.g., reduced order effects or a lower likelihood of demand characteristics) is explicitly linked to the scenario.

For part (c), it is important to state the difference between the two conditions, for example, that participants completing the more difficult task are more likely to conform to the majority than those completing the easier task, before going on to explain why this difference occurs.