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supercyberlurker t1_itodzrk wrote

Reply to comment by vyralmonkey in TIL that in a series of experiments in the 1950s, Solomon Asch asked a group of actors and a single test subject what the longest line was in a "vision test". The actors would intentionally answer incorrectly, causing the subject to also answer incorrectly, despite it being very obvious. by Amateur_Validator

Depends on the risk-reward. I'd probably still answer the same as the others, even knowing consciously I was conforming. It's because the risk of being 'wrong' is extremely low - I'm not in any danger for answering it wrong, unlike an unstable bridge. I would be really curious why everyone was answering as they did, but caution kind of means to just answer the same and then figure it out safely lately. Conversely, I might suspect some kind of 'individuality test' and then intentionally answer it contrarian, but then I don't really know what's being tested there. I think it's more complex than just 'hurr sheep follow'. If it's literally safer to be in the sheep herd, there's more to it.

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