Lesson 12- Minority influence including consistency, commitment & flexibility Flashcards
What is minority influence?
Minority influence- type of social influence- motivates individuals to reject established majority group norms
- Achieved through process of conversion- majority gradually won over to minority viewpoint
- Conversion- new belief/behaviour accepted publically & privately … type of ‘internalisation’
What is consistency as a quality of minority influence?
Consistency- minority influence persuasive if minority consistent with opinion/behaviour- confidence in beliefs- others (majority) reassess situation
Who researched consistency & when did they do so?
Moscovici (1969)
State the method/procedure for Mocovici’s study into consistency
1) 6 people bought together: 4 real, 2 confederates
2) Shown 36 slides of different shades of blue
3) Asked to name aloud the colour of the slide
4) In 1 condition (the consistent condition)- confederates called all slides green
5) In the 2nd (inconsistent)- confederates called 24/36 slides green.
State the results/conclusion for Mocovici’s study into consistency
- Consistent condition- 8% of pps moved to minority position & called blue slides green
- In the 2nd (inconsistent) condition- 1% moved to minority position
- … study suggests minorities should be consistent to influence
State the evaluation for Mocovici’s study into consistency
👎- artificial tasks involved- … research ✖️ be applied to real life accurately- e.g. in jury decision making- outcomes much ⬆️ important than colour on slides
- … lacks ecological validity as task unrealistic & pps aware of study 📖
What is commitment as a quality of minority influence?
Commitment- suggests certainty, confidence & courage- ⬆️ commitment persuade majority group to take minority ⬆️ seriously potentially-> conversion
What is the augmentation principle?
Augmentation principle- explains how minorities change majority if minority doing something risky & shows commitment then majority pay ⬆️ interest
Who investigated commitment as a quality of minority influence & when did they do so?
Xie et al. (2011)
State the method/procedure for Xie et al’s study into commitment
1) Developed computer models of social networks with individuals free to ‘chat’ with each other across networks
2) Each individual held ‘traditional view’ BUT open to other views
3) Added committed individuals representing alternative viewpoint- expressed consistently
4) If listener held different belief to speaker- listen and consider & move on to talk to another speaker
5) If next speaker held same new belief- listener adopted it (snowball effect)
State the results/conclusion for Xie et al’s study into commitment
Percentage of committed opinion holders necessary to tip majority- 10%- shows how commitment-> change in opinion
What is flexibility (non-dogmatic) as a quality of minority influence?
Minorities powerless against majorities … minority must negotiate rather than enforce their position upon majority
- BUT minority too flexible or too rigid seen as either weak & inconsistent or dogmatic (too rigid with views)
- … Nemeth (1986) argues- important to strike balance between consistency & flexibility
Who investigated flexibility as a quality of minority influence & when did they do so?
Nemeth & Brilmayer (1987)
State the method/procedure for Nemeth & Brilmayer’s study into flexibility
1) Jury situation- group members discussed amount of compensation 💰 to be paid to someone involved in ski-lift 🎿 accident
2) When confederate put forward alternative viewpoint & refused to change position- no effect on majority
3) BUT confederate who compromised & showed degree of shift to majority- influenced majority
4) BUT only worked for undecided 🤷♀ group members rather than those who made up mind
What are the evaluation points for minority influence?
👎- research lacks ecological validity & realism- e.g. task in Moscovici’s study- colour of slides ✖️ real to life as normal people ✖️ spend time judging colours unless painter/art profession
👍- Research has ‘real value’- Nemeth (2010) argues dissent of minority group opens mind of majority & … people search for info, consider ⬆️ options & make better decisions- allows researchers to understand means & processes for social change
👍- research evidence hearing minority viewpoint-> deeper processing of ideas
- Martin et al. (2003) gave pps message supporting particular viewpoint & measured their support- 1 group heard minority group agree with initial view whilst another group heard majority agree
- Found that pps ⬇️ willing to change opinions if listened to minority group rather than the majority … shows power of minority influence in terms of views being ⬆️ deeply processed & having a ⬆️ enduring effect
