Find Mediators Near You:

Under Pressure: When The Minority Yields To The Majority

In a famous experiment from the 1950s, social psychologist Solomon Asch demonstrated the influence a group exerts on our opinions and judgments.

In this experiment, subjects would agree with the answer of the group despite the evidence of their own eyes that the majority’s answer was the wrong one. It showed how readily people will deny what they see and submit to the majority view, and how hard it is for one person to stand strong against the convictions of the many. This holds implications for business meetings, political processes, jury deliberation, or even negotiation.

For two videos that chillingly depict the force of group opinion — one a contemporary replication of Asch’s experiment — see “Individual Conformity to (Incorrect) Group Consensus” at Sociological Images.

                        author

Diane J. Levin

Diane Levin, J.D., is a mediator, dispute resolution trainer, negotiation coach, writer, and lawyer based in Marblehead, Massachusetts, who has instructed people from around the world in the art of talking it out. Since 1995 she has helped clients resolve disputes involving tort, employment, business, estate, family, and real property… MORE >

Featured Mediators

ad
View all

Read these next

Category

Mediation in Domestic Violence Case: Whether to Use or Not to Use? – An Indian Perspective

The author aims is to identify two opposite interests associated with the settlement of domestic violence cases, and look at the Indian law to see how those two interests are...

By Sandeep Bhalothia
Category

Happiness!

From the Blog of Phyllis G. Pollack.The end of the year is upon us, and this fact usually affects people in one of two ways: happiness or sadness. Some love...

By Phyllis Pollack
Category

A Conversation With Antonio Piazza

This is a taped interview with well-known mediator Antonio Piazza by the American Bar Association Litigation Section. Mr. Piazza pioneered the development of mediated negotiations as the preferred alternative to...

By Antonio Piazza
×