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here's the thing about the internet: conservatives have already half-way taken it over. WE NEED TO WAKE UP -- FAST! Below is a very rough, draft write-up re- this subject: I can't believe there are still Dems who don't understand the crucial importance of media ownership. Here are just a few items to consider; see also Noam Chomsky, Media Matters, etc.: Groupthink and the Power of the Echo Chamber: http://www.spring.org.uk/2007/11/i-cant-believe-my-eyes-conforming-to.phpI Can't Believe My Eyes: Conforming to the Norm Rubbing Eyes
Solomon Asch's classic top 10 social psychology experiment shows that many of us will deny our own senses just to conform with others.
We all know that humans are natural born conformers - we copy each other's dress sense, ways of talking and attitudes, often without a second thought. But exactly how far does this conformity go? Do you think it is possible you would deny unambiguous information from your own senses just to conform with other people?
Have a look at the figure below. Compare the line on the left with the three lines on the right: A, B & C. Which of these three lines is the same length as the lonesome line on the left?
Asch Lines
It's obviously C. And yet in a classic psychology experiment conducted in the 1950s, 76% of people denied their own senses at least once, choosing either A or B. What kind of strong-arm psychological pressure tactics made them do this?
The fascinating thing about this experiment was that its creator, renowned psychologist Solomon Asch, set out to prove the exact opposite. A previous experiment by Muzafer Sherif (see his well-known Robbers Cave experiment) had found that when people were faced with making a judgement on an ambiguous test, they used other people's judgements as a reference point.
This makes perfect sense. If I'm not sure about something, I'll check with someone else. But this is only when I'm not sure. The situation is quite different when I have unambiguous information, such as when I can clearly see the answer myself. Other people's judgement should then have no effect - or at least that's what Asch thought.
The experiment
To test his theory he brought male undergraduates, one at a time, into a room with eight other people who were passed off as fellow participants (Asch, 1951). They were then shown three lines with another for comparison, similar to the figure above. Participants were asked to call out which line - A, B or C - was the same length as the reference line. This procedure was repeated 12 times with participants viewing variations of the above figure.
What the participants didn't realise was that all the other people sat around the table were in on the game. They were all confederates who had been told by the experimenter to give the wrong answer. On half of the trials they called out the line that was too short, and on the other half the line that was too long.
The real experimental participant, who knew nothing of this, was actually the sixth to call out their answer after five other confederates of the experimenter had given the wrong answer.
Surprising findings
The results were fascinating, and not at all what Asch had been expecting:
* 50% of people gave the same wrong answer as the others on more than half of the trials.
* Only 25% of participants refused to be swayed by the majority's blatantly false judgement on all of the 12 trials.
* 5% always conformed with the majority incorrect opinion (we all know people like that, right?!)
* Over all the trials the average conformity rate was 33%.
Intrigued as to why participants had gone along with the majority, Asch interviewed them after the experiment. Their answers are probably very familiar to all of us:
* All felt anxious, feared disapproval from others and became self-conscious.
* Most explained they saw the lines differently to the group but then felt the group was correct.
* Some said they went along with the group to avoid standing out, although they knew the group was wrong.
* A small number of people actually said they saw the lines in the same way as the group.
The findings of this study were so startling they inspired many psychologists to investigate further. Here are a few of their findings:
* Asch himself found that if the participant only had to write down their answer (while others called theirs out) conformity was reduced to 12.5%.
* Deutsch and Gerard (1955) still found conformity rates of 23% even in conditions of high anonymity and high certainty about the answer.
* Those who are 'conformers' typically have high levels of anxiety, low status, high need for approval and often authoritarian personalities.
* Cultural differences are important in conformity. People from cultures which view conformity more favourably - typically Eastern societies - are more likely to conform.
A mixed blessing
The variations on the original theme go on and on, examining many possible experimental permutations, but the basic finding still remains solid. While there's no surprise that we copy each other, it's amazing that some people will conform despite the evidence from their own eyes. Imagine how much easier it is to encourage conformity when ambiguity levels are much higher, as they often are in everyday life.
Conformity itself is something of a mixed blessing. In many situations we need conformity. In fact, many aspects of our social lives would be much harder if we didn't conform to a certain extent - whether it's to legal rules or just to queuing in the post office.
The dangers of conformity are only too well-known, just take a look at the implications of Milgram's obedience experiments for a glimpse at what humans will do in the name of conformity. Sometimes it really is better if we think for ourselves rather than relying on what others say and do.
How does conformity affect us all?
It certainly bears considering how our own lives would be different if, one day, we decided not to conform, or even to suddenly start conforming. Would things get better or worse for you? Many people find their inability to conform is a real problem in their lives while others find it more difficult to break away and do their own thing.
» Read more of the top 10 social psychology experiments.
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Reference
Asch, S. E. (1951). Effects of group pressure upon the modification and distortion of judgments. Groups, leadership, and men, 177-190.
Deutsch, M. & Gerard, H. B. (1955). A study of normative and informational social influences upon individual judgment. J. Abnorm. Soc. Psychol. 51, 629-36.
The Internet Will Protect Us from the Effects of Media Consolidation
at http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/248 :
This relates to one of the top two or three issues of our time. Knowledge is power, and a balance of power requires a balance of knowledge; but lately, those with power over the rest of us know everything about what we do while we know little or nothing about what they do. If we don't know what's really going on, all our other (remaining) rights are virtually meaningless.
Miller's talk barely scratches the surface.
It's not just that news cos. are driven by profits. It's also (among other things) that we've allowed ownership of the vast majority of traditional media to be consolidated into the hands of a tiny number of giant, multinational corps. who regard news merely as another tool for molding citizens into compliant consumers -- and this has been the situation not just for years but literally for decades (see http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Herman /Manufacturing_Consent.html ; http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8953172273825999151 ).
We're as passive and ignorant as we are at least partly because that's how we've been trained.
The NYT? Puleez. There are good reporters there; but during the run up to the invasion of Iraq, they chose to prominently feature Judith Miller, one of the loudest proponents of the invasion. Where were all the articles pointing out that the question was NOT, were there WMD's, but rather, was the likelihood that Saddam could and actually would USE them so imminent that we could not afford to wait even two months to allow the U.N. inspectors to complete their mission? (It was clear to many of us even then, the only real urgency was to invade BEFORE the inspectors could prove there was no need.) There are many other examples.
NPR's own record hasn't been exactly great, either. We face ongoing crises in multiple areas; we desperately need much more real investigation and follow-up regarding election reform (I have yet to hear a story on NPR that didn't at least partly whitewash the problems), CIA rendition, Guantanamo, illegal government eavesdropping on U.S. citizens, etc. But the last time I listened to All Things Considered, it was filled with lengthy stories about a new speedo swimsuit, the Pope's visit to the U.S. and that he made an apology relating to priest pedophilia, and I forget what else; but in 45 min., there seemed to be only about 5 of hard news that might actually inform our decisions about the matters that should be of greatest importance to us.
Re- the BBC, in I believe 2005, its governance rules were revised to replace its governing body with a trust whose members are to be appointed by the Prime Minister and calling for greater privatization of programming (see http://www.bbccharterreview.org.uk/have_your_say/green_paper/greenpaper_home.html#1 ) -- can you spell conflict of interest?)
The main source of hope has been the internet. We MUST protect net neutrality (among other things) -- not only by warding off legislation that would permit corporations to charge more for access to selected urls, but ALSO to impose MEANINGFUL PENALTIES for violations. (Cease-and-desist orders or fines that amount to a hand-slap easily endured as a cost of doing business are NOT meaningful.)
And legal or not, the erosion of net neutrality already appears to be underway (see, e.g., http://www.boingboing.net/2008/04/13/virgin-media-ceo-net.html ; http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gxRiQSVfgK4sLbVRE_X4MOlM9q0AD8SCASPG0 ; http://www.boingboing.net/2008/02/26/report-comcast-paid.html ; http://www.savetheinternet.com/blog/2007/06/05/ed-whitacre-gone-but-not-forgotten/ ).
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