Write a research question. Write a one-sentence question that can be answered with a precise, quantifiable answer. For example, if you want to know how much people will change their opinion on something when the group contradicts them, ask "What percentage of individuals will change their opinion on a subject when shown that their opinion is out of line with the majority view?"
Develop a hypothesis. A hypothesis is a prediction of what result you will obtain when you perform some kind of procedure. Write your hypothesis so that it follows the form of "if, then." For example, "If I get a room full of paid actors to give the wrong answer to a teacher's question, then a real-life participant in the room who got the right answer will eventually change his answer."
Write down the variables in your experiment. For the independent variable, write down the aspect of the experiment that does not change, such as the time the participants spend in the room together. For the dependent variable, write the aspect of the experiment that changes, for example the number of participants answering incorrectly. For control variables, enter variables that need to be controlled in order to ensure an accurate result--whether or not the participants have a criminal record.
Draw up a list of procedures for carrying out your experiment. Determine how you will get the volunteers for the study, how many volunteers you will use and how you will measure their levels of conformity. Decide whether you will test the conformity levels in a group made up entirely of participants, or whether you will place single participants in a room full of actors. If you are going to use actors, decide what ratio of actors to participants you will use.
Design your research data forms using word processing and spreadsheet software. Include a section on the form where you can enter the participant's personal and demographic information. Include another section where you record the participant's responsiveness to the social pressure applied to them, such as whether they did what they were told and how many other people had to do the same thing before they went along with it.
Write up a series of advertisements for participants. Also create advertisements for actors if you need them for your experiment. Do not mention that you are doing a "conformity experiment." Instead, say that you are looking for participants for an experiment on social behavior, and tell each participant that part of the experiment's purpose involves concealing the purpose of the experiment until after the experiment is done. According to the American Psychological Association's guideline for research ethics, you are allowed to have participants unaware of the research aim only if they agree to enter the project without that knowledge.