minority influence

Question 1

what is minority influence

Answer 1

where one small group of people influences the beliefs and behaviours of other people

most likely to lead to internalisation

Question 2

consistency

Answer 2

must be consistent in their views

consistency increase the amount of interest in other people

synchronic consistency - all saying the same thing agreement within the group

diachronic consistency - saying the same thing for a while

Question 3

commitment

Answer 3

just demonstrate commitment to their chase

may engage in risks which show greater commitment

majority members then pay more attention - augmentation principle

Question 4

flexibility

Answer 4

someone who is consistent and be seen as rigid

members need to be able to adapt their point of view

need a balance between consistency and flexibility

Question 5

explaining the process of change

Answer 5

deeper processing - important in the process of conversion

faster rate of conversion more people convert - snowball effect

Question 6

strength

Answer 6

research support for consistency

moscovici et al blue green slide study

showed that a consistent minority opinion had a greater effect on changing the views of other people than an inconsistent opinion

wendy wood et al - carried out meta analysis of similar studies

foudn thay minorities who were seen as consistent were the most influential

suggests that presenting a consistent view is a minimum requirement for a minority trying to influence a majority

Question 7

strength

Answer 7

research support for deeper processing

evidence showing that a change in the majority’s position does involve deeper processing

martin et al - presented a message supporting a particular viewpoint an measured participants agreement

one group - then heard a minority group agree with the inital view

another heard the majority agree with it

participants were exposed to conflicting views

people were less willing to change their opinions if they had listened to a minority group than if they had listened to a majority group

suggests that the minority message had been more deeply processed and had a more enduring effect

Question 8

limitation

Answer 8

artificial tasks

tasks involved are just as artificial as aschs line judgement task

moscavicis et al take of identifying the colour of a slide

doesn’t tell us about how minorities attempt to change behaviours in real life

outcomes are more important

means findings of minority influence studies are lacking in external validity and are limited in what they can tell us about how minority influcemce works in real world situations