Minority Influence Flashcards
(25 cards)
What is meant by minority influence
-A form of social influence where a persuasive minority changes the attitudes and behaviours of the majority
What are the three processes of minority influence
-Consistency
-Commitment
-Flexibilty
What is the process of consistency
-The minority must be consistent in their views over time and across members.
-This signals dedication to the position and makes others rethink their own stance.
-Consistency can be diachronic (consistent over time) or synchronic (agreement among group members).
What is the process of commitment
-The minority must show dedication to their cause, often through personal sacrifice or risk. The greater the dedication, the greater the influence
-Demonstrating commitment makes their viewpoint seem more credible and persuasive, showing they’re not pursuing self-interest but genuinely believe in their stance.
-The majority then pay attention- this is called the augmentation principle.
What is the process of flexibility
-While consistency is important, being too rigid can be off-putting.
-The minority must also show willingness to compromise or adapt their position slightly when appropriate and listen to others when expressing opinions.
-A balanced approach between consistency and flexibility is most effective.
What is the main outcome of minority influence
Internalization – a deep, lasting change in private and public beliefs and attitudes.
What is internalisation
people change both public and private beliefs and behaviours. It is a long term change
How does minority influence differ from majority influence?
It causes internalization (long-term change), whereas majority influence often causes compliance (short-term, surface-level change).
Why is minority influence often slow and indirect?
Because people are initially resistant to different views, and it takes time for them to process and accept them.
What is the snowball effect in minority influence?
When a few people adopt the minority view, momentum builds, and more people join in, eventually leading to the minority view becoming the majority.
How can minority influence lead to social change?
Through consistent, committed, and flexible advocacy, the minority gains influence, causing society to shift its views over time (e.g., civil rights, women’s rights).
Example of flexibility within minority influence groups
Environmental activists agreeing to gradual change rather than immediate, extreme reforms.
Example of commitment within minority influence groups
Suffragettes risking imprisonment to win women’s right to vote.
Example of consistency within minority influence groups
A group campaigning for environmental protection always promoting the same message over months or years.
Aim of Moscovici’s (1969) study into minority influence
To investigate the process of innovation by looking at how a consistent minority affects the opinions of a larger group, possibly creating doubt and leading them to question and alter their views
Procedure of Moscivici’s (1969) study into minority influence
-Used an all female group of participants
-They were first give an eye test to check that they were not colour blind. They were then placed in a group of four participants and two confederates.
-They were all shown 36 slides that were different shades of blue and asked to state the colour out loud. here were two groups int he experiment:
-In the first group the confederate were consistent and answered green for ever slide
-In the second group the confederates were inconsistent ad answered green 24time and blue 12 times
Findings of Moscovici’s (1969) study into minority influence
-In the consistent group, 8.42% of trials resulted in participants answering green (agreeing with the minority).32% of the participants agreed at least once.
-In the inconsistent group 1.25% of trials resulted in Particpants answering green.
Conclusion of Moscovici’s (1969) study into minority influence
-Minorities can change thee opinion of the majority, particularly if they are consistent
Aim of Nemeth’s (1986) study into minority influence
-To investigate whether a flexible minority could influence a majority to give less compensation to a victim of a ski-lift accident
Method of Nemeth’s (1986) study into minority influence
-Participants were placed into groups of four and had to agree on the amount of compensation they would give to a victim of a ski lift accident. One of the participants in each group was a confederate and there were two conditions:
1) When the minority argued for a low rate of compensation and refused to change its position (inflexible)
2) When the majority argued for a low rate of compensation, but compromised by offering a slightly higher rate of compensation (flexible)
Findings of Nemeth’s (1969) study into minority influence
-In the inflexible condition, the minority had little or no effect on the majority
-In the flexible condition, the majority was much more likely to compromise and change their view
What is synchronic consistency
People within the majority are all saying the same thing (consistency)
What is diachronic consistency
-They’ve all been saying the same thing for some time (consistency)
Summarise Clark’s (1994) ‘Twelve angry men experiment’
Clark investigated minority influence using mock jury transcripts inspired by the film Twelve Angry Men, where one juror gradually persuades others to change their verdict from guilty to not guilty.
Participants (270 college students) read these transcripts, and Clark manipulated factors like the consistency of the lone dissenting juror, the strength of arguments, and how many jurors defected to the minority viewpoint.
🔍 Findings:
• A consistent and confident minority was more persuasive.
• As more jurors changed sides, a snowball effect occurred, increasing the likelihood of the majority shifting to the minority view.
📌 Conclusion:
Clark’s study showed that minority influence can lead to major opinion change in group settings, supporting theories by Moscovici and linking well to real-life situations like jury decision-making.
