Social Influence - Minority Influence Flashcards
What is minority influence?
A form of social influence in which a minority of people persuade others to adopt their beliefs, attitudes and behaviours. It leads to internalisation or conversion, in which private attitudes are changed as well as public behaviours.
What are some real life examples of minority influence?
Suffragettes
Rosa Parkes
What was Moscovici study?
- Ppts were all females.
- They were put into groups of six to identify colours.
- They were shown 36 blue slides, with differences in brightness of the colour
Asked if they were blue or green
What are the finding of Moscovici study?
The consistent condition produced the most minority influence, with 8.42% of the ppts answering ‘green’
In the inconsistent condition, it was only 1.25%
In the control condition, only 0.25%
Conclusion: the minority can influence the majority.
What are 3 disadvantages to Moscovici study?
Lacks ecological validity.
Biased sample.
Limited real-world application.
(Moscovici found three behavioural styles of influential minorities) what is consistency?
According to minority influence research, the influence of a minority is most effective when it is consistent. This leads the majority group to question their own stance as the minority is so confident.
(Moscovici found three behavioural styles of influential minorities) what is commitment?
Minorities can exert influence by showing dedication, i.e. being willing to make sacrifices if necessary
This gives the minority’s message credibility because people are unlikely to be prepared to suffer for a cause which is not worthwhile
Gradually respect for the minority view grows and the majority is converted.
(Moscovici found three behavioural styles of influential minorities) what is flexibility?
Merely to adopt a rigid position could lead to the perception of the minority as being dogmatic and narrow minded.
Majority opinions shifts more if the minority is flexible.
Members of the minority need to be committed but prepared to adapt their point of view and accept reasonable and valid arguments. E.g. gradual commitment – recycling paper first and then introducing other recycling initiatives later.
What is the snowball effect?
When a minority succeeds in attracting enough supporters, it is transformed into the new majority.
Evaluate consistency.
Empirical evidence to support the importance of consistency - Moscovici showed a consistent minority opinion had greater effect than an inconsistent opinion however it had been criticised for lacking population validity as it was a of females - Wood et al carried out a meta analysis of 100 similar studies and found minorities who were seen as being consistent were most influential - Increases the village that consistency is a major factor.
Evaluate flexibility.
Empirical evidence – Nemeth and Brilmayer study the role of flexibility in a simulated jury station group members discussed the amount of conversation awarded in a ski accident when a confederate was stiff with their view it had no effect but when they compromised it showed a shift towards the majority - however there could be situational variables - flexibility is important but it depends on the situation.
Evaluate commitment.
Leave a strongly confident in our opinions - provide supportive evidence. Participants were told others agreed with them on that opinion. Participants were then given information against their opinion and their attitude were measured again - participants were less willing to change opinions if the minority agreed showing minority influence - suggesting minorities and more persuasive because the message has been more deeply processed.
