Minority influence

Minority influence

A form of social influence where a small number of people persuade others to adopt their beliefs, attitudes or behaviours.

Leads to internalisation or conversion where private attitudes are changed as well as public behaviours

Commitment

Minority influence more powerful if the minority demonstrates dedication to their position e.g. making personal sacrifices

Effective as it shows the minority is not acting out of self-interest

Consistency

Minority influence most effective if the minority keeps the same beliefs both over time and between all minority individuals.

Consistency is effective because it draws attention to the minority view

Synchronic consistency

They are all saying the same thing

Diachronic consistency

They have been saying the same thing for some time now

Flexibility

Relentless consistency could be counter-productive if it is seen by the majortiy as unbending and unreasonable.

More effective if the minority show flexibility by accepting the possibility of compromise.

Cognitive conflict

The majority are confused about what to think about the issue. Leads to deeper processing

Augmentation principle

Members of the majority group pay more attention as the minority group does an extreme act.

Snowball effect

The minority opinion gains momentum

Tipping point

When the minority becomes the majority

Social cryptoamnesia

Society forget the original issue

Can take decades

Consistency S Moscovici

Research support

32 groups 4 real, 2 confederates. 36 blue slides with varied intensity.

If confederates consistently said green, subjects agreed 8.42%

If confederates said 24 green and 12 blue, subjects agreed 1.25%

Showed that constant minority changes other people’s view.

Committment W Nemeth

Can be perceived negatively if there is no flexibility

Argued that is a minority repeats the same arguments with no compromise, they appear reigid.

An overly rigid display prevents conversion and the majority will dismiss them

Suggests that committment cannot work alone and needs other elements to work properly.

W Artificial situations

Moscovici’s slides task is unrelated to everyday life with a lack of mundane realism.

Other minority outcomes are related to juries where the outcome is a matter of life or death.

Lacking in external validity.

Flexibility S Nemeth

Research support

Ski-lift compensation.

When minority was willing to change the amount to go up, majority compromised.

When they stayed strong, there was no effect.

Supports flexibility.