Social processes in social change

Question 1

what is social change?

Answer 1

the way we develop as a society through a change in out thoughts, behaviours and attitudes

leads to new social norms

Question 2

how does minority influence play a role in social change?

Answer 2

If an individual is exposed to a persuasive argument under certain conditions, they may change their views to match those of the minority.

Moscovici (1980) referred to this process as a ‘conversion’, a necessary prerequisite for social change.

Question 3

what are the steps in how minority influence creates social change?

Answer 3

1. drawing attention to the issue
2. consistency of position
3. deeper processing (people who accept the status quo start thinking further)
4. the augmentation principle (minorities take risks to further the cause)
5. the snowball effect
6. social cryptomnesia occurs (people have a memory that change has occurred but some have no memory of the events leading to that change)

Question 4

how does conformity research link to social change?

Answer 4

dissenters made change more likely (asch)

majority influence and normative social change (campaigns provide info about what others are doing)

Question 5

how does obedience research link to social change?

Answer 5

disobedient models make social change more likely (milgram’s variation where confederates refused to give shocks)

gradual commitment leads to ‘drift’ (zimbardo - a smaller commitment makes it harder to resist a bigger one)

Question 6

how does conformity lead to social change?

Answer 6

by appealing to NSI by providing information about what other people are doing

Question 7

what did Nolan (2008) study?

Answer 7

investigated whether majority influence led to a eduction in energy consumption in a community: the researchers hung messages on the front doors of houses in San Diego, California every week for one month.
The key message was that most residents were trying to reduce their energy usage. As a control, some residents had a different message that just asked them to save energy but made no reference to other people’s behaviour.

Findings showed significant decreases in energy usage in the group that were informed ‘most residents’ were trying to reduce energy usage showing how conforming to a majority group can lead to social change.

Question 8

what did Nemertea (1986) study?

Answer 8

suggests that the effects of minority influence may only be indirect and delayed:

they are indirect because the majority is only influenced on matters related to the specific issue (recycling) and not the central issue itself (global warming).

effects of minority influence are delayed because the effects may not be seen in society for some time.

this suggests that minority influence has limited effect in the short-time and genuine social changes caused by minority influence only occur after long periods of time: minority influence is frequently more latent than direct as it creates the potential for social change rather than actual social change.

Question 9

what is a limitation of social change research?

Answer 9

The nature of deeper processing has been questioned - minorities seem as ‘deviant’ in the eyes of the majority, so people may avoid it

identification is overlooked - minorities can never be successful unless they attract the majority, so it is important the way minorities act to get their attention

methodological issues

minority influence is only indirectly effective - change happens slowly