The Positive And Negative Effects Of Conformity In The Work Environment

Conformity is the result of social influences and is the action of changing one’s behavior to align them with the behaviors of the people around them. While conformity is a tool of social interaction, there are positives and negatives outcomes that come with it. What is not widely discussed is the positive and negatives effects that conformity has on employees. There are numerous studies on conformity, most of which discusses memory conformity, academic conformity, and even the effects of conformity on innovation. However, at the same time, there is minimal empirical research pertaining specifically to conformity in the work environment and how employees of different ages will react when presented with the opportunity to conform to their coworkers. Also, there is minimal research about whether or not the experience level of the employee in various age groups has any effect on the rate of conformity in the work environment. All of the previous conducted research will lay a good foundation to

Of all the forms of conformity, memory conformity is the most widely researched and discussed due to its applicability to the legal system. Witnesses are great for testifying against crimes. However, their memories are easily susceptible to another persons’ side of the stories due to informational influences, which are based on a need to be accurate, and normative influences, which are motivated by the necessity for maximum positive social outcomes. As well as normative and informational influences, the social and personal power that one person has over another also leads to memory conformity (Carol, Carlucci, Eaton, & Wright, 2013; Williamson, Weber, & Robertson, 2013). In a study done by Carol et. al. (2013), the social power roles between confederates and subjects were manipulated in three different arrangements with three different independent variables, and the study found that, in a workplace,