Abstract
An experiment was designed to test the hypothesis that after rejection from a group subjects will conform more to group requests to act like the group than to act differently from the group. The conformity behavior of 76 female subjects to requests to act like the others (similarity) or differently from them (dissimilarity) was compared after rejection from or acceptance by the group. Both rejected and accepted subjects conformed mote when asked to act like others than to act differently. Intropunitive reactions by the rejected subjects were positively associated with conformity but only in the dissimilarity condition. These and other results are discussed in terms of the invidious meaning of behavioral dissimilarity in a threatening situation.
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