Breaching Experiment Essay

From the clothes we wear to the rules we follow, we tend to stick to our norms and traditional beliefs. In our society today, people are expected to keep a socially accepting ways of life. We develop norms, which is a rule or guideline regarding what kinds of behavior are acceptable within a culture. People often feel the need to “fit in” to the group they are affiliated with, even if they see a behavior that is different from what they normally do. To study such behaviors when norms are violated in a society, breaching experiments can be used. Breaching experiment is when sociologists go in the field and violate norms to collect data. In sociology, data from the breaching experiments provide important information because people observe what
happens when norms are violated.
At Oxford College, we participated in a breaching experiment to examine people’s actions. We treated these interactions and reactions from the people as data and tried to understand how our society constructs norms. Throughout a series of experiments at the campus, we were able to understand how people behave when norms are violated on a very low level. There are so many unspoken social norms and rules in our society. In fact, social rules tend to become more obvious once they are violated. The elevator experiment clearly demonstrated this idea. The focus of this research was to see if people conformed when they were faced in odd circumstances. When a new person entered the elevator, a group of individuals faced the back of an elevator. This was a simple way to observe social conformity because facing the back of an elevator is not the norm in our society. Because most people tend to face the door, we were expecting a reaction that reflects strong social influence. To yield the best results, the group
avoided laughing or talking during the trials. According to the other class, Dr. McQuaide was part of this experiment. He initially turned around with the rest of the group, but did not conform towards the end of the experiment. As a sociology professor, he studied this research before and knew that it was a social experiment. Even though there was an initial reaction, it was clear that he failed to conform to group behavior because of his prior experience and knowledge. As a result, I decided to conduct two more trials with my friends after class to collect better data. For the next two trials, the group made sure to not include sociology or psychology professors. Our main targets were students who used the elevator in Seney Hall to get to class. When we faced the back of the elevator, one female student immediately conformed as soon as she walked in the elevator as if it was the right thing to do. Although the student remained confused, she seemed to follow the group behavior. For the second trial, a male student partially turned backward. He was hesitant at first, but soon fell to the social pressure and group conformity. This study was my first social experiment and I was amazed with some of the results I saw from watching people’s behaviors.
In sociology, I learned how social influence plays a big role. It exerts group control over individuals’ decisions. Although facing the back of the elevator was an uncomfortable behavior, students were influenced by peer pressure and led evidence that social influence function in everyday situations. This connected me to the idea of groupthink. The results of this experiment demonstrated groupthink because of bringing a high degree of conformity among members. Based on various reactions, it showed how easily people succumb to group pressure to behave in a certain way. This may explain why people in this experiment conformed in order to gain approval by following the group in the elevator. Although the first trial with Dr. McQuaide did not produce good results, I believe the other two trials with the students demonstrated the group dynamics
well. While conducting the experiment, I personally found it difficult to purposely violate a norm when I tried to do it alone. For example, I did not have the “nerves” to demonstrate an abnormal behavior that was not accepted in our community. However, I felt more comfortable violating the norms when I was in a group together. I thought this was also a form of groupthink and social pressure. This breaching experiment explained why it moved people to action even though norms were violated. Furthermore, this experiment helped me to understand the forces of conformity and how people constantly go along due to social pressures. It definitely enhanced my understanding of how our society constructs norms everyday.