Context and Aims of Asch Essay

Earlier studies looked at the way people in groups formed their own opinions

Jenness 1932 asked students to guess the amount of beans in a jar. They then were given the opportunity to discuss their estimates within a group. They were then asked to individually give their estimates again. Jenness found that the new estimates converged to one of a group norm. It was then suggested that in an ambiguous situation, one will look to others for ideas on a reasonable answer.

Sherif 1935 was another research which used the autokinetic effect which consisted of a stationary light that appears to be moving. The participants were individually asked to estimate how far they believed the light had travelled. They were then put in a group with 3 others that had quite different estimates. They were then asked…