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that they had arrived serendipitously atthe same correct answer.” <strong>The</strong>y wereutterly bl<strong>in</strong>d, <strong>in</strong> other words, to howmuch their peers had <strong>in</strong>fluenced them.What does this have to do with socialfear? Well, remember that the volunteers<strong>in</strong> the Asch and Berns studiesdidn’t always conform. Sometimes theypicked the right answer despite theirpeers’ <strong>in</strong>fluence. And Berns and histeam found someth<strong>in</strong>g very <strong>in</strong>terest<strong>in</strong>gabout these moments. <strong>The</strong>y were l<strong>in</strong>kedto heightened activation <strong>in</strong> the amygdala,a small organ <strong>in</strong> the bra<strong>in</strong> associatedwith upsett<strong>in</strong>g emotions such asthe fear <strong>of</strong> rejection.Berns refers to this as “the pa<strong>in</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>in</strong>dependence,”and it has serious implications.Many <strong>of</strong> our most importantcivic <strong>in</strong>stitutions, from elections to jurytrials to the very idea <strong>of</strong> majority rule,depend on dissent<strong>in</strong>g voices. But when275/929

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