Evaluation to social change

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P - research support for normative influences

Ev - Nolan et al aimed to see if they could change people’s energy-use habits. They found that there were significant decreased in energy uses in the first group compared to the second

Ex - this shows that conformity can lead to social change through the operation of normative social influence and is a valid explanation

P - minority influence can explain change

Ev - Nemeth claims that social change is due to the type of thinking that minorities inspire. When people consider minority arguments, they engage in divergent thinking, this is where the thinker actively searches for information and weigh up more options. They argue that this leads to better decisions and more creative solutions to social issues

Ex - shows why minority influence is valuable

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P - deeper processing may not play a role in how minorities bring about social change

Ev - Mackie presents evidence that it is minority influence that may create deeper processing if you do not share their views, when we find that a majority believes in something different, then we are forced to think long and hard about their arguments and reasoning

Ex - means that minority influence has been challenged, validity has been questioned