Abstract
Despite 60years of social–psychological research demonstrating that individuals are likely to conform to inaccurate information presented by group members, this phenomenon of conformity has yet to be studied in an online environment. A total of 53 graduate students visited a virtual classroom. Each one was able to see the names of three other students (confederates), while responding to 10 multiple choice questions about research. Participants who saw incorrect responses given by confederates before responding, obtained fewer correct responses (M=6.78, SD=1.82) than did participants who saw no responses from confederates (M=8.08, SD=1.09), F(1,51)=9.78, p<0.01, d=0.33. Thus, this study supports the need for consideration of conformity behaviors within online learning activities.
•We examined conformity to curriculum-based tasks in an online environment.•Students copy incorrect responses reported by their peers in an online classroom.•Students provide several reasons for conforming to incorrect information.•Students are likely to conform when students meet in an online space just as they do face-to-face.