Social Conformity
Why do we do what we do?
We have all been perplexed by the Woke and the crazy stuff they say they believe. Sometimes, I think they are doing it to wind us up, and at other times, I think they are mentally ill.
How can so-called normal people believe in crazy ideas around race, gender and sexuality? Why can they not see the reality that I see? Are they delusional? Is it a cult?
Everything we say about the Woke can be repeated about most religious people - they also believe in some crazy stuff. Virgin birth. Resurrection. Flying to the moon on a horse. And my personal favourite – cutting off the tip of a baby’s penis to please God.
Why do we believe what we believe? In most cases, it is because everyone around us believes the same. This brings peace and harmony to a community because we know what everyone else thinks and what they will do in a given situation. Only tribes that work together can survive. Historically, rejecting tribal norms would lead to expulsion which could be a death sentence.
We call this social conformity – the matching of attitudes, beliefs, and behaviours to group norms. It is easier to follow a path others have laid rather than forging a new one.
The 1950s Asch Conformity Experiment placed students in a group with actors who would answer questions incorrectly to see if the student, who would always be asked the question last, would follow the crowd and give the wrong answer due to social pressure. 32% of the students placed in this situation gave the wrong answer. Over a series of trials, the percentage increased to about 75%. In post-test interviews, students acknowledged that they did not actually agree with the answer they had given. The reasons offered were that groups were wiser than individuals, and they did not want to appear as mavericks.
My friends and I carried out a similar experiment four decades ago when I was in college. We sat in the common room telling jokes and waited for someone new to sit down. We then repeated a series of unfunny jokes while we laughed at each one. We wanted to see if the new person would also laugh. From what I can remember, we got a 100% outcome. When we explained what we were doing and asked why they laughed, they said they did not want to be seen as stupid for not understanding the joke.
In simple terms, there seem to be two forms of social conformity:
- compliance: those who will follow the social norms even though they may not wish to – anything for a quiet life
- internalisation: those who believe in the social norms and conform even when in private or alone – a true believer
Compliance is putting your pronouns in your work email address even if you think it is pointless and stupid. Internalisation is a woman happily undressing in front of a man in a women’s changing room because some women do have penises.
The 1935 Sherif's Experiment looked at conformity before and after individuals discussed their answers. Participants were placed in a dark room and asked to stare at a small dot of light 15 feet away and to estimate the amount it moved. The small dot did not move - yet participants stated estimates ranging from 1 to 10 inches. When the participants openly discussed their estimates of the first test, the answers on the following tests converged with the other group members' estimates. His findings potentially show us that people rely on others to interpret new situations.
Every day we hear individuals repeat the slogans of others. We know they are just repeating them because when asked questions about the phrase or opinion, they cannot answer.
From The River To The Sea! When asked what river and what sea – most protestors cannot answer.
Trans Rights Are Human Rights! When asked what rights trans people do not have in the UK – most protestors cannot answer.
Black Lives Matter! When asked about black-on-black violent crime – most protestors cannot answer.
These slogans are not meant to initiate discussion or conversation but to signal an allegiance to a particular group. Christians wear crosses. Sikhs wear turbans. Lepers wear bells.
The 1971 Stanford Prison Experiment is infamous and could never be repeated today. Participants were randomly assigned roles of either prisoner or guard within a fake prison on the university campus. The two-week experiment was abruptly cut short because the guards took on tyrannical and discriminatory characteristics while prisoners showed signs of depression and distress. Those chosen to be guards were not bullies or power-mad, but the situation they were put in made them act accordingly. Do we conform to expected roles or does power corrupt?
In 2020, we had mass social conformity across the UK as an invisible virus spread across the world - COVID-19. We were told to trust the experts and follow the science – this is called informational social influence. We are more susceptible to this when a situation is complicated, ambiguous or a crisis. Looking to others for answers can help ease fears, especially if we think they are knowledgeable.
Experts told us to keep six feet away from each other – they have admitted they made this rule up. We were told to take the vaccine to stop us from catching the virus - this was a completely false claim. We were led to believe that face masks were beneficial – but there is still no evidence that they made any difference. We were scared. Most people did as they were told. We conformed and wanted others punished for not doing so.
Alice Eagly and Linda Carli performed a meta-analysis of 148 studies of influenceability and found that women are more conforming than men. Other research has noted age differences in conformity – older participants display less when compared to younger participants.
Does this explain the stereotype of a social justice warrior being a young woman? Or even the craziness of the Salem Witch Trials?
Life within a community is similar to the trials of Goldilocks in the famous fairy tale. We are seeking a level of conformity that is not too restraining and not too loose - a level that is just right.
Conformity is complicated. Too much and too little can be damaging.
Please consider becoming a paid member of my Substack for earlier access to articles, podcasts, draft writings from my books, and premium articles. Or if you were forwarded this article, then consider signing up for free – you still get lots of articles and podcasts!
Support this channel by buying me a coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/nickbuckleymbe
---------------------------------------------------------
Checkout my 4 books:
England, My England, 2024: https://amzn.eu/d/2qhVYcF
Feminism: Myths, Lies & Ungratefulness, 2023: https://shorturl.at/AEMQW
The Making Of A Beggar, 2022: https://cutt.ly/29ykEuT
Lessons In Courage, 2021: https://t.co/ey8xhpF6os
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NickBuckleyMBE
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nickbuckleymbe
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/nickbuckleymbe
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickbuckleymbe
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nickbuckleymbe
Apple Podcast:
Spotify Podcast:
Substack:
Historically, many groups displaying conformity did so because of strict religious control over their communities - and (as you rightly say) faced expulsion from the security of them as heretics.
As the ‘west’ gained in strength over the course of the 20th century - independence from communities grew as an increase in relative wealth became more prevalent & folks travelled about more. There was a noticeable increase in more egoic-based pursuits.
In 1972 Irving L. Janus wrote his first book about ‘group think’. The expectation of a group to not only comply with each other - but also to punish those ‘outsiders’ who were likely to interfere with the core beliefs of the group.
This has become a huge problem now as the range & breadth of those able to start a following has vastly increased since the times when hundreds of thousands (or millions) worshipped one creed.
Add in social media to the mix - and algorithmic selection - and sponsorship/ownership of the infrastructure running it - and you have the perfect storm for group-think.
The best example of the rise of group-think is climate change. It started with three people around 1978/9. Just three. Forty five years on - it’s consumed the minds of billions & without wishing to mention a certain UK broadcasting entity - messaging around it drips feeds the group think daily.
I’m no genius - but perhaps the whole way to start reversing conformity & group-think is to really think hard about what you need & what you want - rather than trying to force-fit yourself & your dependents into a framework that no longer serves you?
I'm reminded of R. Buckminster Fuller and his assertion that if a system is broken - don't attempt to keep fixing it - go off and build another. Fuller was a genius - but society at large isn't always easy on people who think differently (genius or not), and that may also be something we collectively want to ponder?