Conformism - what is it, examples, types

Conformity explains the desire of some individuals to blend in with the crowd. Conformity is a person’s desire to be the same as everyone else. It is difficult to answer unequivocally the question of whether conformity in psychology is considered a negative characteristic of a person, or whether the phenomenon of conformity in oneself needs to be developed.

In this article I will try to tell you what the concept of “conformity” means, who discovered the phenomenon of conformity, what types of conformity are found in the modern world, how conformity differs from conformity. To do this, I will present the psychological characteristics of conformity.

What is conformism

The literal meaning of the word “conformity” is “conforming”, “similar”, “similar”. The founder of the study of the phenomenon is S. Asch. He believed that such a personality trait as conformity is the individual’s conscious elimination of differences with representatives of the group to which he belongs.

In psychology, conformism is a person’s change of opinion or behavior under the influence of the opinions of others and submission to group pressure. It has been proven that in the personality structure such a quality as conformity suppresses a person’s individuality.

In sociology, conformity is a necessary component of personality that influences the success of an individual’s socialization. In sociology, this concept is attributed to almost every person to one degree or another. Socially, conformism is identified with a person’s adaptation to existence in a group. Conformity is understood as a person’s ability to follow the norms and rules established in a group. In social studies and politics, conformism is reconciliation. Political conformism can be observed during the period of pre-election agitation. Conformity in social science is associated with group pressure on the individual. This leads to a transformation of a person’s value system, a change in his positions and beliefs.

The definitions of conformity and conformity in psychology are almost the same, since these terms are synonymous. But there is also a difference between them. Conformity in psychology is a personal trait, and conformity is a style of behavior, a social pattern.

The opposite concept of this phenomenon is nonconformism and the desire for leadership. An example of nonconformism is a rebel who is ready to stand in opposition, defending his interests.

As socio-psychological studies show, internal conformity and external conformity are inherent in 50% of people. The phenomenon of group conformity was established in psychological experiments in almost all subjects who were under 17 years of age. The conformity effect allows a person to feel united with the group. To merge with a group, an individual is forced to accept the rules and norms of behavior in it, to make the values of the group his own. In this case, conformism means the desire of an individual to follow the leader in a team. This trait of an individual helps him avoid difficulties and conflicts during the period of adaptation to a new team. The degree of manifestation of conformity is directly dependent on the numerical composition of the group and the level of its cohesion.

Social conformism in psychology

There is also social conformism in psychology. Social conformism is the refusal of an individual to take full responsibility for decision-making, any actions and their consequences. Psychologists associate the emergence of this type with a set of personal attitudes, accepted customs and traditions, religion, mentality, and social norms. The main factor of social conformity is the almost global subordination of advantaged groups, influential people, to the majority. In modern society, it is social conformism that is considered the most unfavorable phenomenon. This is explained by the fact that a person, even in conditions of complete non-acceptance of established attitudes, still mindlessly follows them, suppresses his own values and does not try to express his own opinion.

Conformism as a universal phenomenon in Russia

Leonid Prokhorov

Psychologist, Gestalt therapist

Ask a Question

Many scientists, both sociologists and political scientists, note that in Russia every year the population is becoming more and more conformist. But where are the origins of such opportunistic behavior? Historically, the population of Russia was constantly in a depressed state, which was expressed in pressure from the state. This state reached its apogee during the period of the Soviet Union, when the communist system actually turned the population of the USSR into a faceless society. The emergence of many dystopian novels is connected with this: “We” by Zamyatin, “1984” by J. Orwell.

The reasons for the conformism that developed during the Soviet period are directly related to the political and state system of equal distribution of income, the principle “from each according to his ability, to each according to his work.” It was precisely this suppression of society that became the reason for the long existence of the totalitarian Soviet regime.

Kinds

Traditionally, there are 2 types of conformism: internal and external. In short, the definition of internal conformism is associated with a person’s actual change in his own attitudes, opinions and positions. The external version of this phenomenon involves creating the appearance of a change in a person’s views: he remains unconvinced, but outwardly expresses agreement with the opinion of the majority.

In accordance with another approach to the classification of conformity, it is customary to distinguish such varieties as:

Identification is a definition of conformity in psychology, based on the individual's desire to merge with the group. This species is divided into subspecies:

classical identification - a person’s desire to be like an authoritative person, which is achieved by developing certain personality traits and expressing sympathy for the leader;
identification of reciprocal-role communication is a form of intra-group influence of team members on each other (merger with the group is achieved through condemnation of challenging behavior and encouragement of standard behavior).

Submission is an outward expression of agreement with an authoritative person within one specific situation (while the person’s actual beliefs remain the same).
Internalization is a complete or partial coincidence of the positions of a person or group with the beliefs of the leader. In psychology, it is believed that such conformity is the result of a person’s active mental activity.

In philosophy, conformism is classified into rational and irrational. Rational conformism is human behavior supported by logical reasoning. It is expressed in consent, obedience, compliance with established norms and rules. Irrational conformity is the behavior of a crowd in a critical situation, which is based on instincts and intuitive reactions (herd conformism).

The concept usually distinguishes between passive and active components. The passive form is the subordination of a person to the rules of the group as a result of direct pressure. An active view is a person’s change in his positions and beliefs as a result of his own rethinking of the situation. This phenomenon can also be classified into conscious and unconscious. Conscious conformism is characterized by a person’s understanding of the need to agree with the opinion of the majority, while the unconscious version of this phenomenon is characterized by the individual’s lack of understanding of the motives for his agreeing behavior.

Social conformity of the individual stands out as a special type. It is based on the desire to follow fashion and give preference to popular music. This type of conformity in a group equalizes individuals. Social conformism is a degeneration of the leveling standardization of society. The advantage of this type of conformism can be considered an increase in the level of group unity of the team. Members of such a group do not have a feeling of loneliness (this is good), but they also do not have individuality (this is bad). For a social conformist, the desire to think in patterns and to be accepted by a group is a kind of self-expression.

Characteristic manifestations

The main feature is the commonality of opinion in the team

Many managers strive to ensure that all their employees develop this character trait. In addition, the presence of conformity is considered a priority when selecting job candidates.

Let's find out what the characteristic of conformism is.

Acceleration of adaptation. Such a person quickly joins the new team. It is much easier for him to build relationships with colleagues and begin the work process. The main thing is that it is necessary to follow existing norms and rules, which allows you to avoid conflict situations and clashes of interests.
Loss of independence. Such a person is not capable of making decisions if she has agreed with someone else for a long time. For example, when a team loses its leader, the work process may stop.
Simplifying the organization. Such employees never argue and agree with any option proposed by the manager.
Prejudice against minorities. When a person agrees with the opinion of the majority, he begins to condemn those who disagree. Healthy competition disappears, opponents are condemned and reproached. People who differ from the majority in one way or another are not allowed to develop.
Loss of originality. A person with conformity is not able to independently generate a new thought or think about other options. Therefore, you cannot hear anything unique from him.

Levels

The essence of conformity is submission to the group. But what is group conformity? How does conformity manifest itself in people's lives? This process occurs at 3 levels:

Formal submission is a short-term phenomenon that can be observed in a specific situation. A person understands that the opposite of conformity in the current conditions is sanctions for disobedience. As soon as the threat of punishment disappears, conformity will disappear after it.
Rational conformity. At this level, merging with the team occurs under the influence of external factors. It is beneficial for a person to be in this group. He accepts the norms and rules of life in the team, obeys these rules and expects the same behavior from other team members.
Merging with the group. A person’s value system is completely restructured in accordance with the requirements of the group and does not depend on external factors.

The types of conformism and the pattern of its manifestation are determined by the reasons for the occurrence of the phenomenon. It is not difficult to compile a list of reasons for this phenomenon.

Famous nonconformists

Among the people who were not understood at first, but then the results of their work were appreciated at the world level, we can name the well-known Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and others. They can also be called nonconformists to some extent. For example, they said about John Lennon: “He was known as a nonconformist, a rebel and a hooligan who lived as he saw fit and who was not at all embarrassed by the public opinion of the prim West.”

John Lennon is one of the most famous nonconformists

Causes

What factors influence the emergence of conformity? The definition of conformism allowed scientists to establish that this phenomenon is due to the following reasons:

poor awareness (if a person does not have sufficient information on the topic discussed in the group, he is inclined to listen to the opinions of experts and trust them);
poor development of a person’s communication skills (for such people, defending their opinion is stressful, therefore, in order to maintain a healthy state of health, it is more profitable for them to silently accept the position of the majority);
indifference to the problem under consideration (if a person is not interested in discussing the topic, he agrees with the opinion of the majority in order to quickly end this conversation);
aggressive attitude of group members towards the newcomer (obeying the instinct of self-preservation, the newcomer quickly accepts the rules of this group);
the individual’s interest in membership in a given community (if a person, when joining a group, pursues his personal interests, he will agree with the rules of the community at least outwardly);
the desire to occupy a certain position in the enterprise (the reason for conformity in production may be a person’s desire to occupy a leadership position - in this case he will agree with the boss in everything);
social position in society (representatives of the lower strata of the population are more inclined to share the opinion of the majority);
errors in upbringing (if the parents chose an authoritarian parenting style or there was overprotection in the parent-child family, then psychologists are confident that the child in such conditions will grow up to be a conformist);
level of education (the lower a person’s level of education or his IQ, the more often he behaves like a conformist);
gender (for women, merging with the reference group has become a typical model of behavior);
insufficient level of psychological maturity (as a result of the immaturity of some personal constructs, adolescents more often demonstrate conformity);
low level of self-esteem (self-doubt makes a person rely on the leader’s opinion and obey him);
increased personal anxiety combined with a person’s suggestibility (in situations of uncertainty, people with such personality characteristics find it difficult to defend their own point of view and resist group pressure);
fear of loneliness (fearing being rejected, a person becomes a conformist);
belonging to a certain culture. The reasons for conformity can be determined by a person’s nationality: in the West, this personality trait is regarded as negative (associated with compliance and submissiveness), and in the East, conformity and conformity are approved (perceived as tact).

When clients come to me who want to get rid of a position of subordination, I first need to determine the reasons for the development of conformity in them, so I tell them: “Briefly describe your thoughts that arise in those moments when you agree with the opinion of the majority and give your definition of the concept of conformity."

The reasons for conformity are closely related to the factors of manifestation of conformity.

Famous experiments with conformity

One of the most famous experiments is Solomon Asch's experiment - the Asch Experiment. It consisted in identifying the phenomenon of group pressure. The subject was given two cards, and he had to determine which segment from the second card corresponded to the segment from the first. When the subjects solved the task independently and in isolation, everyone answered correctly (Segment C). And then a group was invited, where in advance everyone except one person - the test subject - gave obviously incorrect answers.

The Asch experiment is one of the most famous psychological experiments on identifying conformity.

Asch's next experiment was the elevator experiment. The subject entered the elevator and stood as usual, facing the doors (there is only one exit from the elevator). Other people, arranged in advance, followed him, and they stood facing the wall. Then the subjects, under pressure from the group, turned their backs to the exit.

According to the results of the experiments, 75% were subjected to group pressure and gave the wrong answer. Later, participants were asked why they were influenced and responded/turned around in the same way as the dummy group of people. Most of the subjects answered that they were afraid of ridicule and did not want to take risks.

Another experiment in conformity was the fire experiment. At the beginning of the experiment, one person enters the waiting room. The fire alarm sounds, smoke comes from the door - the subject begins to take actions to extinguish the fire / leave the room. At the next stage, a group of dummy people are placed next to another test subject, who were told in advance not to respond to alarms and smoke. The same thing happens - the fire alarm starts to sound, smoke comes out, but this time the subject looks at the others and does nothing. Only 1 out of 10 people approached the place where the smoke was coming from and wanted to leave. However, he was also stopped by the group “after all, they were told to wait in the room.”

Factors of influence

The conformity of a person’s behavior in a group does not depend on the direction of the community’s activities. What is the degree of conformity associated with? Why do some people conform and others do not? In simple words, conformity is a socially determined phenomenon that is provoked by factors such as:

person's age;
individual typological characteristics of a person;
type of nervous system;
personality mood;
social status of the individual;
human decision-making situations;
features of interpersonal relationships in a team;
personality traits of the group leader.

Factors influencing conformity of behavior are the same for representatives of different nationalities.

Behavior patterns

Internal agreement is a manifestation of a behavior model

Internal agreement. A person agrees with what others say and internally accepts this opinion. In such a situation, the individual has a high degree of suggestibility. This model is an adaptation in changing conditions.
External consent. At a subconscious level, there comes an understanding that people can make mistakes. This model of behavior is true conformism, and characterizes people who make attempts to find their place in society.
Denial is also called negativism. There is resistance to the majority. He defends his point of view to prove his own independence. Such people most often occupy leadership positions.
Nonconformism. The person has resilience. This model of behavior characterizes self-sufficient individuals.

Stages of development

A brief definition of conformity in psychology is adaptation to life among people. The phenomenon of conformity is formed as follows:

Submission stage. It begins from the moment a person enters a particular community. He is immediately influenced by the members of this group. As a result, a person's opinions and position change.
Awareness stage. Analyzing the values of the group, a person comes to the conclusion that his previous value system is erroneous, so in most issues he agrees with the opinion of the group. In this case, conformity refers to an imaginary scientific approach.
Activity stage. A high social status in the reference group becomes a priority for a person. This means that deep down he may not agree with the opinion of the group, but outwardly he will demonstrate conformity because it benefits him.

Thus, the basis of internal and external conformity is the desire to avoid penalties, indifference and fear of loneliness.

Who is a conformist: personality characteristics

Who are conformists? Those who consciously obey society agree with the accepted rules of behavior and laws. A conformist is also considered a person who has changed his behavior or way of thinking under someone else’s influence. Most often the term is used in a political context.

▪️In fact, most people are conformists, to varying degrees. Even when speaking out against the political regime, they continue to enjoy the rights and freedoms it provides. A conscious conformist is a person who relies on certain moral and material values. Most often it is the preservation of life, survival. Conformist behavior is characteristic of persons with low intelligence and not particularly talented, unremarkable individuals. They note that good material support quickly turns even those who initially strived for a different way of thinking into conformists.

▪️Conformists are adherents of traditional social values, which include: family, children, religion, patriotism. Americans with their world-famous “national dream” are a striking example of conformism in action. This is neither good nor bad. Probably, to a greater extent, this is good for the survival of humanity as a species. The laws and rules established in society are aimed precisely at these goals. Disobedience threatens the loss of freedom, and sometimes even life (traffic regulations, enterprise safety rules, criminal law).

▪️A clearly expressed conformal personality type is characterized by adaptation to the environment, dissolution of one’s own individuality in it. Such people adapt by mimicking and trying to adopt the way of thinking and acting accepted in a given environment. They do not like sudden changes or the abolition of stereotypes. Perception is limited by what is expected, hobbies are dictated by society.

▪️Conformal type of behavior is characterized by belonging to a community. The main quality of such people is their thoughts, actions, moral and material values “like everyone else,” from personal belongings to judgments on a universal scale. “Everyone” is the immediate environment. For example, residents of the province can serve as a striking example of a conformist type of thinking. What is condemned today may become desirable tomorrow only because “it is so accepted.”

Pros and cons of conformity

What are the advantages and disadvantages of conformity? The pros and cons of conformity are determined by the characteristics of the specific situation of its manifestation.

pros

Internal conformity is a psychological defense mechanism. Thanks to this typological character trait, a person avoids loneliness.
Conformity in following traffic rules can reduce the number of road accidents and save a person’s life.
The positive effect of conformity was described by S. Asch when he studied the features of the organization of intragroup activities.
In psychology, experiments were carried out with the help of which it was possible to prove that such a phenomenon as conformism increases the level of team cohesion.
In production, workers show conformity, which allows them to receive a salary and quickly move up the career ladder.
The effect of conformity in managerial psychology allows managers to successfully solve assigned tasks.
Thanks to conformists, social values such as religious education, patriotism, marriage and family, and a woman’s desire to have children are preserved.

Minuses

Why is conformism dangerous?

The negative consequences of conformity are loss of individuality, loss of one’s “I,” and violation of personal harmony.
Correction of conformity in enterprises is necessary, as it slows down the introduction of innovative technologies and contributes to the development of conservatism.
A person’s inability to make decisions independently and take responsibility for their life.
Decreased self-esteem, the emergence of personal complexes.
In the realm of politics, conformists are informers.

Thus, it becomes obvious that such a socio-psychological phenomenon as conformity is beneficial for the individual if it does not turn into a person’s life motto. The advantages, disadvantages and consequences of conformity can be clearly shown in real-life examples.

Examples of conformity in life

When I conduct trainings with teenagers, after finishing the theoretical block I ask the group: “Give me an example of conformity.” This task baffles teenagers.

The following examples of conformity from life can be given:

The most obvious example of conformity from everyday life is a pedestrian crossing, where most people begin to move only when the traffic light turns green. However, as soon as one person crosses the road at a red traffic light, several more impatient people (conformists) will almost always run after him. This is an example of external conformity without internal conflict.
Another example of conformism can be cited from the vegetable market: seeing that there is a queue at one of the counters, a person decides that this seller has a better price-quality ratio than the other. Although in reality this is not the case. It’s just that a person is guided by the opinion of the majority.
The presence of a tie and glasses is regarded by people as belonging to a business or scientific field of activity. Here conformity manifests itself in the form of a social stereotype.
Conformity is manifested in the desire of adolescents to wear clothes of a certain style and listen to songs of a popular group. Perhaps some teenagers don’t suit this type of sweatshirt or trousers at all, but they wear them because it’s a kind of pass to their reference group. This is an example of how the phenomenon of conformism manifests itself in a group of children and youth.
A negative example of how external conformism manifests itself is the drinking of alcoholic beverages by minors. Maybe one of the children does not want to drink beer, but, fearing ridicule from his comrades, drinks along with the rest.
External conformism manifests itself in a situation when one student from the group proposes to run away from the last class, he is supported by the rest, not wanting to be branded as “nerds” and in order to maintain friendly relations with classmates.
When a professor with an academic degree gives a lecture at an institute, most students listen to him carefully, take notes on his words, without questioning their truth. Thus, the manifestation of conformity is influenced not by the content of the educational material, but by the personality of the speaker.
External conformity is expressed in the fact that a new employee in the office meekly accepts the team’s tradition of going to the same cafe for lunch. He may not be satisfied with the prices or the dishes on the menu, but he will continue to go to this cafe every day along with the rest of the employees, since it is important for him to join the new production team. This is a clear example of forced conformity.
Examples of external conformity with internal conflict can be found in the psychological literature, where various researchers describe the results of experiments. Thus, in one of the experiments, people were asked to compare the lengths of two segments (the difference in length was obvious). Based on the opinion of the majority (experimenter's assistants), 70% of subjects gave the wrong answer.
Members of a literary club gathered to discuss a book they had read. One of them did not like the author’s style, but everyone else spoke about the talented presentation and skillfully constructed storyline. As a result, the young man briefly said that he also liked the work. This is external conformity.

Thus, many more examples of conformity from everyday life can be given. Examples from life convince us that the effect of conformity is present in all areas of people’s social activity. Conformity or non-conformity is everyone’s personal choice. Many are inclined to the first option, because it greatly simplifies life.

Nonconformism

It is not always the case that a person responds to the pressure put on him with tacit consent and acceptance. Sometimes pressure causes the opposite reaction - nonconformism. A person refuses to share the opinion of the group and quite often takes a diametrically opposed position, even if his views were initially neutral.

Nonconformism is positioned as the opposite of conformism. But in reality, everything is more complicated, and it often leads to conformist behavior in another environment. As an example, we can cite the same smoking teenagers. Nonconformity makes them resist the rules imposed by their parents. But when they come to their company, they behave extremely conformally, trying to become “in” in the team. And teenage smoking is part of this conformism.

Nonconformity manifests itself in one of the following forms:

Independence (true non-conformism).
This is a reluctance to bend under external pressure. A person simply maintains his principles.
Anti-conformity.
Rebellion against externally imposed norms. A person deliberately goes to extremes to demonstrate his protest. It is about this kind of behavior that they jokingly say, “To spite my mother, I’ll freeze my ears off.”

The same people in different situations can demonstrate completely different forms of conformism and nonconformism. This is especially pronounced, as noted above, in adolescents.

Interestingly, most people consider themselves nonconformists. This happens because they poorly understand what conformism is, considering it something purely negative and undesirable. But the irony is that a demonstrative attempt to look like a nonconformist is the most natural conformism. A true nonconformist is not trying to prove anything to anyone.

How to get rid of conformity and conformity

As can be seen from the material presented above, the types and reasons for conformity are different. Sometimes, after comparing the advantages and disadvantages of conformity, a person comes to the conclusion that this character trait interferes with his life. In this case, he thinks about how to get rid of conformity?

The degree of conformity can be reduced by following these recommendations:

You need to set yourself clear goals for the near future. Goal setting helps you gain self-confidence and independence from other people's opinions.
It is necessary to perform daily exercises aimed at developing adequate self-esteem and reducing situational anxiety. If it is difficult to choose such exercises on your own, you can seek help from a psychologist.
You need to develop communication skills. This will help you express your point of view with reason and learn how to behave with dignity in conflict situations.
It is important to learn to refuse a request to do something that does not fit into the plans. If you don’t want to do something for a loved one, you need to politely explain to him the reason for the refusal. This will save energy and personal resources, freeing up a lot of time for self-development and self-expression.
It is important to develop the ability to take criticism constructively. Comments from others should be perceived as a promising direction of development.

Psychologists have discovered 22 psychological characteristics (traits) of conformity. Each of them, taken separately, looks neutral. However, taken together, they can lead to such negative consequences as mental disorders and psychosomatic abnormalities. In this case, it will no longer be possible to independently eliminate the tendency to obey authority figures and change your views as a result of social pressure. In especially severe cases, conformists require the help of clinical psychologists.