Minority Influence

Question 1

Moscovici et al (1969)- minority influence

Answer 1

• Participants were split into groups of 6 (3 participants and 2 confederates). They were asked what colour 36 slides were (they were all different shades of blue)
• In condition A, confederates always answered green. In condition B, confederates occasionally answered green (24 out of the 36)
• In the control group, 0.25% of participants answered green
• In group A, 8.5% answered green
• In groups B, 1.25% answered green
• This shows that minorities can influence, especially when they are consistent in their views

Question 2

3 processes in minority influence

Answer 2

1) Consistency: consistency in the minority’s views increases the amount of interest from other people. It can make other people rethink their own views

2) Commitment: Sometimes minorities must engage in extreme activities to draw attention to their view (also known as augmentation principle)

3) Flexibility: If a minority is seen as too consistent, they may be deemed as inflexible and uncompromising. When this happens, the majority is unlikely to change their view to match the minority

Question 3

The snowball effect

Answer 3

• If you hear something new from a consistent, committed and flexible minority, you are likely to at least consider their view
• This deeper processing is important in the processes of converting from the majority to the minority
• The more people who convert, the faster the rate of conversion becomes. This is referred to as ‘the snowball principle’