Topic 5 - social change processes

social change

• change over time in our society in the way we function, this change is usually tangible ( increasing acceptance of homosexuality)

Normative social influence - stops social change

• NSI - change your behaviour to fit in

• if you want to fit, you will not likely want to engage in a behaviour that will be disapproved of by the group

• Desire to fit in → People conform to the majority view, even if they privately disagree. This means they avoid supporting minority groups who are trying to create change.

• Fear of social rejection → People may not openly support new ideas (e.g., climate activism, feminism, civil rights at the time), because they don’t want to be seen as “different” or “radical.”

• Maintaining the status quo → If the majority already follows a certain norm, NSI pressures individuals to stay with it, making it harder for minorities to influence.

• Social change requires resisting NSI — people must be willing to go against the majority, break social norms, and face rejection for minority influence to spread.

informational social influence - creates social influence

• ISI refers to changing your behaviour to what you think is correct / the correct way of behaving.

• If you believe your new behaviour is the right way of behaving, then you are more likely to resist the social pressures of the majority to stay the same.

• if you believe veganism is the right thing to do, you will likely change your social behaviour

• Desire to be right → People look to others (especially experts or the majority) when they are unsure what is correct.

• If a minority is seen as knowledgeable and providing evidence, their views can gradually be accepted.

• Over time, people adopt the new belief because they genuinely think it’s correct — this leads to a lasting change (internalisation).

• ISI works best when the minority is consistent, confident, and seen as credible

minority influence - creates social change

• creates social change as the small group is resistant to group pressure through commitment, flexibility, and consistency

• If in 3 3-way relationship, this will slowly change the mind of the majority

• Suffragettes:

  • Consistent (kept campaigning for years).

  • Committed (hunger strikes, arrests).

  • Eventually snowball effect → women got the vote.

  • Today, most people accept women’s right to vote without thinking of the struggle (cryptomnesia).

obedience - creates social change (governments can bring about social change)

• Once a minority has gotten big enough, it represents a significant number of people

• Once this reaches a tipping point, the group will want to be represented by the government, as they feel they are big enough to be paid attention to

• They will start lobbing at the government for more rights and protection, and laws to be introduced

• Once laws are introduced, people will start changing their behaviour - certain behaviours become a social norm which others can adopt

• People obey legitimate authority (e.g., governments, police, laws).

• When laws or rules change, people obey them → leads to rapid behaviour change.

• Gradual commitment: obeying small rules first makes bigger changes easier to accept.

• Authority figures act as role models, encouraging wider obedience.

evidence for the role of social influence processes producing social change ( Burgoon and Nemeth)

• this is how minority groups can cause social change

• Burgoon - deviant / unexpected behaviours of minorities grab peoples attention

• makes others think more deeply about the behaviour or ideas

• minorities violate social norms , people are forced to process the information more carefully

• leads to informational social influence - people change their views because they believe the minority might be right ( example - activist for climate change seen as deviant or unusual but their persistence made people think more deeply leading to wider acceptance and social change)

• conclusion - minorities can cause social change by being different enough to make people stop and think and question majorities views - ISI - people change beliefs after being convinced the minority might have valid information

Nemeth - social change happens when minorities dissent ( disagree with majority)

• their disagreement makes people search for more information and consider alternatives and think more deeply of the issue

• this deeper thinking can lead to a change in society ( civil rights activist who challenged racism made others reflect and search for information - eventually laws and attitudes changed.

evaluations for social change processes

✅ Strengths Strength 1 – Minority influence can create long-term change

• Point: A strength of social influence processes is that minorities can bring about lasting social change.

• Evidence: Nemeth (1986) argued that consistent, flexible minorities stimulate deeper thinking in the majority, even if change is slow.

• Explanation: By challenging the majority, minorities encourage careful evaluation of ideas, leading to internalisation rather than surface-level conformity.

• Link: This shows that social influence processes, especially minority influence, are effective mechanisms for enduring social change.

supported by real-life evidence

• Point: A strength of social influence processes is that they are supported by real-world examples of social change.

• Evidence: Campaigns that encourage pro-environmental behaviour or anti-smoking efforts often use normative messages showing that “most people are doing it,” which effectively changes behaviour.

• Explanation: This shows that social influence processes, such as normative influence, are not just theoretical—they actually work outside the lab to alter behaviour on a large scale.

• Link: Therefore, social influence processes are valid tools for understanding and promoting real-life social change.

❌ Weaknesses

Weakness – Social influence is context-dependent

• Point: Social influence does not work equally in all situations.

• Evidence: People are more likely to follow a trend or advice if it fits with what their friends or social group already do, but they often ignore it if it goes against their group’s beliefs or habits.

• Explanation: This shows that the effectiveness of social influence depends on social norms, who the influencer is, and the situation.

• Link: This means that social change processes are not always effective, because if people reject the influence due to their group norms, the intended social change may not happen.

Artificiality of research

• Point: A key weakness of social influence research is that much of the evidence comes from artificial lab studies.

• Evidence: Many experiments involve tasks like judging colours, reading scenarios, or following instructions in controlled settings, which are very different from real-world social change situations.

• Explanation: This means the results may not generalise to how people respond to minority influence, obedience, or normative pressures in real life, where stakes, emotions, and social dynamics are far more complex.

• Link: Because much of the evidence is artificial, it’s unclear whether social influence processes actually drive real-world social change. Lab findings may overestimate or oversimplify how behaviours and attitudes are altered in society.