Minority influence Flashcards
(14 cards)
What is minority influence?
A form of social influence where one person or a small group of people influences the behaviour and beliefs of the majority
Why does minority influence lead to internalisation?
They persuade others to adopt their beliefs, attitudes or behaviours, leading to internalisation, in which we agree publicly and privately with the minority view
Outline the procedure of Moscovici’s blue-green slide study
-172 participants were tested to ensure that they were not colour blind
-In groups of 6 (3 other participants and 2 confederates) participants were asked to state the colour of 36 slides
-All of the slides were different shades of blue
Condition A: confederates were consistent and called the slides green on all trials
Condition B: confederates were inconsistent and called the slides green 24 times and blue 12 times
Condition C: no confederates present and participants in a group of 6 stated the colour of the slides
What were the results of Moscovici’s study?
Control group: 0.25% of the participants reported any green slides
Consistent group: participants answered green in 8.42% of the trials and 32% of the participants in the group answered green on at least one slide
Inconsistent group: participants answered green in 1.25% of the trials
What conclusions can be drawn from this study’s results?
Minorities can influence majorities. Minority influence is strongest when the minority is consistent in their views. When a minority is inconsistent in their views, they are less influential
What are the three important factors for effective minority influence?
-Consistency
-Commitment
-Flexibility
How is consistency important for minority influence?
Making sure your message is clear, you do not deviate from the message you give over time and among the group
What is the augmentation principle?
Showing dedication to your opinion or cause through some form of personal sacrifice (commitment)
Why do the minority need to be flexible?
You need to listen to other people’s opinions or counter-arguments and are not rigid in your reasoning
How might minority influence have limited real-life application?
Majorities normally have much more power and control and minorities are very committed to their causes because they have to face hostile opposition
Why might it be difficult to measure the effect of the minority?
People may be reluctant to admit their conversion- Moscovici found higher agreement with the minority when participants wrote down their response. This may make it difficult to test minority influence and validate it
Why is it a limitation that research uses artificial tasks?
Studies make a clear distinction between majority and minority influence but the tasks are artificial- real life situations are more complicated
What research support is there for the idea that minority viewpoints are more likely to be influential when they are consistent?
Wood et Al did a meta-analysis of over 100 studies of minority influence and found consistent minorities were significantly more influential than inconsistent minorities. Suggests consistency as a key part of the impact is valid
What research support is there for the idea that minority viewpoints are more likely to be internalised?
Martin et Al gave participants a message supporting a particular viewpoint and measured their support. One group of participants heard and minority group endorsing the same view. Another group of participants heard a majority group endorsing the initial viewpoint. Participants were then exposed to a conflicting view and their support was measured again
-People were less willing to change their opinions to the new conflicting view if they had listened to a minority group than if they had listened to a majority view
-This suggests that the minority message had been more deeply processed and had a more enduring effect
