Minority Influence Flashcards
Outline Moscovici’s study on minority influence.
-Aim was to observe how minorities influence majority.
-Lab experiment.
group where there were 2 confederates and 4 pps - shown 36 slides which each consisted of a different shade of blue.
-asked to say whether the slide was blue or green
confederates said the slides were green on two thirds of the trials thus producing a consistent minority view.
Outline the findings of Moscovici’s study on minority influence.
When the confederates were consistent in their answers about the slide being green, 8 percent of pps said the slides were green.
When the confederates answered inconsistently, only 1 percent of pps said that the slides were green.
How does being consistent influence the views of the majority?
makes the majority believe that their views are real and serious enough to pay attention to.
-Synchronic consistency convinces the majority that there is something worth agreeing with.
-Diachronic consistency forces the opposition to rethink their views repeatedly and so this generates more doubt due to conflicting views.
What is meant by synchronic consistency?
This is when views are consistent between all members of the group and so everyone has the same views.
What is meant by diachronic consistency?
This is when the group remains consistent over time and so they do not change their views.
How does commitment influence the views of the majority?
When the minority is committed to their views and depict passion, this suggests to the majority that their views must be somehow valid and so encourages them to explore why; offering more opportunity for the majority to be influenced.
How does flexibility influence the views of the majority?
The majority are more likely to be influenced when the minority is flexible as the minority will appear compromising and rational and so are less likely to be seen as extremists.
What are two strengths of minority influence?
- Research support for consistency.
Wood et al: carried out a meta analysis to investigate the effects consistency had on the views of the majority. The researchers found that the majority were more likely to be influenced by the minority’s views when the minority was consistent. Moscovici et al’s study also supports this.
Therefore, studies into minority influence have all been consistent in producing similar findings and so consistency most definitely impacts the views of the majority. - People are more likely to listen to the minority than the majority.
Martin et al: presented a message supporting a particular viewpoint and measured pp’s agreement.
One group of pps then heard a minority group agree with the initial view whilst the other group heard a majority group agree with the initial view. All pps were then exposed to a conflicting view and attitudes were measured again. Researchers found that pps were less willing to change their views if they listened to the minority group than if they had listened to the majority group.
Therefore, this shows that people are more likely to be influenced by the minority than the majority.
What is one limitation of research into minority influence?
- Artificial tasks
Research into minority influence often use artificial tasks which are not reflective of real life and so are unlikley to produce authentic behaviour.
Example of Moscovici’s lab experiment.
