Conformity to the Opinions of Other People Lasts for No More Than 3 Days. (July 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Huang, Yi; Kendrick, Keith M.; Yu, Rongjun
• Is Part Of: Psychological science. Volume 25:Number 7(2014:Jul.)
• Page Start: 1388
• Page End: 1393
• Publication Date: 2014-07
• Subjects: social conformity -- long-term effect -- decision making; Psychology -- Periodicals; 150.5
• DOI: 10.1177/0956797614532104
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0956-7976

Abstract

When people are faced with opinions different from their own, they often revise their own opinions to match those held by other people. This is known as the social-conformity effect. Although the immediate impact of social influence on people's decision making is well established, it is unclear whether this reflects a transient capitulation to public opinion or a more enduring change in privately held views. In an experiment using a facial-attractiveness rating task, we asked participants to rate each face; after providing their rating, they were informed of the rating given by a peer group. They then rerated the same faces after 1, 3, or 7 days or 3 months. Results show that individuals' initial judgments are altered by the differing opinions of other people for no more than 3 days. Our findings suggest that because the social-conformity effect lasts several days, it reflects a short-term change in privately held views rather than a transient public compliance.