Conformity is good or bad?

Experiment indicates that, the "establishment" or modal group tends to like conformists better than nonconformists.

But there are compelling situations in which conformity can lead to disaster and tragedy. For example, Hilter's inner circle, Nixon's "palace guard", or the decision makers for the space shuttle Challenger. These groups have something in common. They were relatively cohesive groups isolated from dissenting points of view.

Such groups often fall prey to "groupthink".

Definition of groupthink

A model of thinking that persons engage in when concurrence seeking becomes so dominant in a cohesive in-group that it tends to override realistic appraisal of alternative courses of action.

What is conformity?

Conformity can be defined as a change in a person's behavior or opinions as a result of real or imagined pressure from a person or group of people.

How to increase or decrease conformity?

1. Break the unanimity.

Even if unanimity is broken by a non-ally, the power of the group can be seriously diminished.

2. Induce the individual to make some sort of commitment to his/her initial judgement.

3. Make the individual be responsible for his/her judgement.

Some other factors

1. People with low self-esteem are far more likely to yield to group pressure.

2. Individuals who believe they have little or no aptitude for the task at hand, are more tended to conform.

3. A group is more effective at inducing conformity if

1）it consists of experts

2）the members are important to the individual;

3）the members are comparable to the individual in some way.

4. Conformity behavior is partly related with a feeling of insecurity for an individual. It is easier for an individual who is securely ensconced in a group to deviate from the group.