Social influence- minority influence

Question 1

What is meant by minority influence

Answer 1

A form of social influence in which a minority of people (sometimes just one person) persuades others to adopt their beliefs, attitudes or behaviours. This leads to conversion.

Question 2

What three factors are really important for minority influence to be effective

Answer 2

• Consistency
• Commitment
• Flexibility

Question 3

What are the 2 types of consistency

Answer 3

Synchronic consistency → consistency between members of the minority
E.g., Women’s suffrage: all agreed that women deserve the right to vote

Diachronic consistency → consistency over time
E.g., Women’s suffrage: movement lasted decades, but they remained
consistent in their belief that women should be allowed to vote

Question 4

How is consistency important

Answer 4

Minority influence is most effective if the minority keeps the same beliefs, both over time and between all the individuals that form the minority. Consistency is effective because it draws attention to the minority view.

Question 5

What was moscovicis aim

Answer 5

To see whether a consistent minority of participants (pps) could influence a majority to give an incorrect answer in a colour perception test.

Question 6

Who was in Moscovici’s sample

Answer 6

172 female American pps

Question 7

What was Moscovici’s procedure

Answer 7

Six pps at a time were asked to estimate the colour of 36 slides, all the slides were blue, but of differing brightness. Two of the six pps were confederates of the experimenter.

Question 8

What were Moscovici’s two conditions

Answer 8

Consistent condition → the two confederates called the slides green on all the trials

Inconsistent condition → the two confederated called the slides green 24 times and blue 12 times

Question 9

What were Moscovici’s results

Answer 9

Consistent condition = 8.4% conformity

Inconsistency condition = 1.3% conformity

Question 10

What does Moscovici’s research support

Answer 10

Consistency is important for minority influence

Question 11

What is the augmentation principle

Answer 11

When a group member performs an action when they know there will be severe consequences - they suffer for their cause.

Question 12

How is commitment important for minority influence

Answer 12

Minority influence is more powerful if the minority demonstrates dedication to their position, for example, by making personal sacrifices.

This is effective because it shows the minority is not acting out of self-interest.

Question 13

How is flexibility important for minority influence

Answer 13

Relentless consistency could be counter-productive if it is seen by the majority as unbending and unreasonable. Therefore, minority influence is more effective if the minority show flexibility by accepting the possibility of compromise.

Question 14

Evaluation, evidence
- Moscovici

Answer 14

A strength of minority influence is there is research to support the theory.

Moscovici’s study found that participants were significantly more likely to conform to a minority if the participants around them were consistent in their view (8.4% conformity rate) than if they’re inconsistent (1.3% conformity rate).
This means that being consistent and unchanging in their view as a minority is more likely to influence the majority than if they chop and change their mind.

However research such as Moscovici’s can be criticised as the study was a lab experiment, which lacks external validity. This is an issue because it means that the explanation it supports may not apply to minority influence in real world settings, so consistency may not be such key factor in the success of minority influence in the real life situations.

Question 15

Evaluation, alternatives

Answer 15

However, there is alternative research for the minority influence which suggests the process is a little more complex.

For example, identification depends on the group. Maas found that when homosexual minority groups were fighting for homosexual rights this was not as effective as when heterosexual minorities were rallying for homosexual rights.
This was due to the heterosexual majority identifying with the heterosexual minority group.

This suggests that how minorities are influenced is more complex than originally thought and may be altered due to the situation. Minority group success depends on more than just consistency, flexibility and commitment.

Question 16

Evaluation, theoretical issues

Answer 16

However, one issue with the theory of minority influence is that the theory could be considered to have low explanatory power.

For example, in real life, member’s of women’s rights, gay rights and animal rights organisations, members of pressure groups such as Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth are very different from participants in laboratory experiments. They operate in different settings with different constraints.
They often face much more determined opposition. They are committed to a cause; they often know each other, provide each other with considerable social support and sometimes devote their lives to changing the views of the majority.

This implies that this explanation may not be fully representative of real life minority groups seeking to influence the majority.

Question 17

Evaluation, application

Answer 17

One strength is the practical applications of this theory.

For example, (research and add in an example of a minority group who have brought about change to society - see below - outline what they’re fighting for and what accomplishments they have had so far).

This means that the minority influence has been useful to society because it has brought about real and lasting social change, benefitting the lives of many individuals within society.

Example 1: LGBT+ rights movement - addressing inequalities experienced within the LGBT+ community.
Example 2: Green movement - reducing the environmental impact of household waste.