minority influence Flashcards
what is minority influence
-a form of social influence in which a minority of people (can be one person) persuades others to adopt their beliefs attitudes and behaviours
what does minority influence do
-lead to internalisation or conversion
-private attitudes are changed as well as public behaviours
3 principles that make for a successful minority
-consistency
-commitment
-flexibility
how can people be consistent
-repeating the same message again and again
what does the consistency in minority view do over time?
-increases amount of interest from others
-makes them rethink their own views
whats the consistency when people are all saying the same thing
synchronic consistency
whats the consistency when people have been saying the same thing for a long time
-diachronic consistency
how can we show commitment
-spending lots of time working on the issue
-using own money to fund this action
what is the augmentation principle
-minorities engage in extreme activities to draw attention to their cause
-these activities must be at some risk to the minority as it demonstrate commitment
-increases amount of interest
how can minority groups show they’re flexible
-listening to points of others
-showing openness and willingness to differing views and beliefs
who argued consistency is not the only important factor in minority influence
-nemeth (1986)
why dd nemeth argue this
-consistency can be interpreted negatively
-can be seen as rigid, unbending, dogmatic
-likely to be off putting to majority and unlikely to result in conversions
