Minority Influence

Minority Influence: A form of social influence in which a minority of people persuades others to adopt their beliefs, attitudes or behaviours. Leads to internalisation or conversion, in which private attitudes are changed as well as public behaviours. They use consistency, commitment and flexibility to achieve this.

Consistency (Minority Influence): Minority influence is more effective when the minority keeps the same beliefs, both over time (diachronic consistency) and between all the individuals that form the minority (synchronic consistency). It helps draw attention to the minority view.

Diachronic Consistency: Consistency of minority views over time

Synchronic Consistency: The minority saying the same thing

Commitment (Minority Influence): Minority influence is more powerful if the minority demonstrated dedication to their position (personal sacrifices). It shows the minority isn’t acting out of self-interest. This is called the augmentation principle.

Flexibility: Relentless consistency can be seen as counter-productive if the majority views it as unbending and unreasonable. Therefore, minority influence is more effective if the minority shows flexibility by accepting the possibility of compromise. There needs to be a balance between consistency and flexibility.

The Process of Change (Minority Influence): Hearing something new can make someone think more deeply about it, especially if the source of the other view is consistent, committed and flexible. This deeper processing helps convert people to the minority view and the more this happens, the faster rate of conversion (the snowball effect).

Research Support for Consistency (Minority Influence): Moscovici et al’s blue/green slide asked groups of 6 to view a set of 36 blue-coloured slides and state whether they were blue or green. In one variable, 2 confederates consistently said the slides were green and the true participants gave the same wrong answer on 8.42% of trials. In the second variable, the minority only said green for 24 of slides and agreement with green fell to 1.25%. This shows consistent minorities are more effective in changing opinions.

Research Support for Deeper Processing (Minority Influence): Martin et al (2003) presented a message supporting a particular viewpoint and measured participant’s agreement. One group then heard a minority group agree with the initial view while another heard a majority agree. When participants were then exposed to a conflicting view and attitudes were measured again. People were less likely to change their opinions if they had listened to a minority group than a majority group.

Artificial Task (Moscovici): Moscovici’s task of identifying the colour of a slide is far removed from how minorities attempt to change the behaviour of majorities in real life such as in that of jury decision making.