Paper 1 - Social Influence - Topic 1 - Social Influence And Social Change Flashcards
What is social change?
Social change refers to the transformation of cultural, social, and political institutions over time
What is the first step in how minority social influence creates social change?
Drawing attention through social proof. The civil rights marches of the 1950s drew attention to segregation in America
What does consistency mean in the context of minority influence?
Civil rights activists maintained a consistent position despite being a minority, participating in numerous marches with non-aggressive messages
What is deeper processing in social change?
Deeper processing occurs when individuals begin to think critically about the unjustness of the status quo due to activism
What is the augmentation principle?
The augmentation principle refers to individuals risking their lives for their beliefs, reinforcing their message
For example, the ‘freedom riders’ faced violence while challenging racial segregation
What is the snowball effect in social change?
The snowball effect describes how minority activists gradually gain majority support, leading to significant legislative changes like the 1964 US Civil Rights Act
What is social cryptomnesia?
Social cryptomnesia is when people recognise that change has occurred but do not remember how it happened
What did Solomon Asch’s research highlight?
Asch’s research highlighted the importance of dissent in breaking the power of the majority, which can lead to social change
How do environmental and health campaigns use conformity?
They appeal to normative social influence by showing what the majority is doing to encourage social change
What did Stanley Milgram’s research demonstrate about obedience?
Milgram’s research showed that disobedient role models can significantly reduce obedience rates among participants
What is gradual commitment in social change?
Gradual commitment is the process where obeying small instructions makes it harder to resist larger ones, leading to new behaviours
What did Jessica Nolan et al. (2008) find in their research?
They found that normative social influence can lead to significant changes in energy usage habits when people are informed about others’ behaviours
What counterpoint did David Foxcroft et al. (2015) provide regarding normative influence?
Foxcroft’s review found that social norms interventions had only a small effect on reducing student alcohol use, suggesting limited long-term change
How does minority influence explain social change?
Minority influence leads to divergent thinking, encouraging broader consideration of issues and better decision making
Charlan Nemeth (2009) argues that this type of thinking is valuable for social change
What limitation was presented regarding deeper processing in minority influence?
Diane Mackie (1987) suggest that majority influence may actually lead to deeper processing when individuals encounter differing views
