An Amazing experiment for the ages
The Stress of Conformity ðŸ˜
When we feel we have to go along with a situation that's in contrast, or even conflict, with what we think should be happening, we can get stressed. Take this example of a groundbreaking experiment by Solomon Asch in the 1950s which demonstrates it beautifully.
The group were asked to respond to a series of very easy questions about the length of a straight line. Everyone apart from the one person being assessed were actors, who were all instructed to give the same wrong answer. Despite knowing that the answer they were giving was incorrect, the subject continued to hear the others give the wrong answer time and time again, and also gave the incorrect answer when asked.
This caused stress and frustration because the reality they were experiencing was in conflict with what they thought was how things ‘should’ be.
This experiment has been replicated lots of times over the years, with consistent results showing this ‘groupthink’.
Thinking
People in the test got visibly stressed and frustrated by the situation and their thoughts amplified the stress.
When we think things should be a certain way, and they're not, we will invariably get stressed. In this example, the situation doesn't need to be stressful. The others in the group were giving wrong answers and the subject knew it because the questions & answers were so simple. The trouble was that they let thoughts creep in, double guessing, judging, triggering peer-pressure - all of which can add to stress.
Unthinking
You can reduce stress by first being aware of the situation and then accepting it, without judgement. By literally accepting what is happening - whether you like it or not - the frustration will dissolve.
3.Syncing
It doesn't matter if you're right or wrong, if you want to reduce stress, accept the situation as it is - in that moment. That doesn’t mean you can’t take action if want to change what's happening in a future moment. But resisting what is actually happening now is futile, and is just going to cause more stress.
This might sound like you're giving in to the situation but it actually takes more strength to accept something when every thought is telling you it ‘should be’ another way.
You can check out Asch's experiment on the Stresslessness YouTube channel.