Social change/influence

Question 1

AO3 research for Consistency

Answer 1

moscovici et al showed that a consistent minority had a greater effect on people with an inconsistent opinion

for example his procedure was that he displayed a blue shade and participants had to try and tell which was the colour

2 confederates were in this group and they CONSISTENTLY claimed that the slide /colour was green

In another condition, other confederates were inconsistently saying that the colour of the slide was green and others said it was blue.

the results showed that the participants were more likely to agree with the consistent group 8% compared to the inconsistent group 1%

this demonstrates that consistency is crucial for minority to be effective

Wood et al carried out a meta analysis of almost 100 similar studies and found that minorities who were as being consistent is a major factor in minority influence

Question 2

limitation of moscovis consistency research

Answer 2

lacks population validity
gender bias only women
lacks ecological validity
calling a blue slide green is artificial does not apply to real world applications

Question 3

explain how social influence processes contribute to social change

Answer 3

minorities contribute to social change by being consistent. through cryptomnesia and the snowball effect the majority group turns into a minority which can bring a change

consistency contributes to social change when a minority repeatedly give the same message
if a minority is consistent and flexibile, they can challenge the beliefs held by the majority. overtime through the snowball effect, the minority group can become the majority group

for example research of moscovi shows that a consistent minority group can be very powerful and can turn into a majority group

Question 4

whats a limit of minority influence

Answer 4

artifical tasks from moscovis which lack external validity
calling a blue slide green is artificial does not apply to real world applications

Question 5

3 processes of minority influence

Answer 5

Consistency:
- The minority must be consistent in their views; by agreement between people in the minority (synchronic) or being consistent over time (diachronic)
Commitment:
- Being willing to suffer or give up something, displaying risk in your protests demonstrates commitment
Flexibility:
- The minority’s beliefs should not be rigid or dogmatic; the minority should be ready to adapt their view and accept reasonable and valid counter argument