Slow ideas

Reference: Tim Harford, FT

Solomon Asch, professor at Swarthmore College in early 1950s proved by his experiments with groups that

1. People will go against the evidence of their own eyes if contradicted by a unanimous group,
2. Group pressure is much weaker if even a single person dares to disagree with the group,
3. It does not matter if a dissenter is mistaken, dissent punctures the group pressure either way.People are liberated to say what they believe, not because the dissenter speaks the truth but because the dissenter demonstrates that disagreement is possible.