Minority Influence

• What is the focus of Part 5 in the study material?

  Minority Influence including reference to Consistency, Commitment, and Flexibility
• Who conducted a study into minority influence?

  Moscovici
• What was the aim of Moscovici's study?


  • To observe how minorities can influence a majority
• What type of experiment was Moscovici's study?


  It was a lab experiment
• How many confederates were in the group during Moscovici's study?


  Two confederates
• How many participants were in the majority group during Moscovici's study?


  Four participants
• What were participants shown in Moscovici's study?


  36 blue slides, each with a different shade of blue
• What were participants asked to identify about the slides?


  Whether the slide was blue or green
• What did the confederates do during the trials?


  They deliberately said the slides were green on two-thirds of the trials
• What was observed in Moscovici's study?


  The number of times that the real participants reported that the slide was green
• What was the finding when confederates were consistent in their answers?

  About 8% of participants said the slides were green
• What was the finding when confederates answered inconsistently?

  About 1% of participants said the slides were green
• What does Moscovici's study demonstrate about consistency in minority influence?


  • Consistency is crucial for a minority to exert maximum influence on a majority
  • A consistent minority view leads to greater influence
• Why does consistency make the minority's views more compelling?


  It makes the opposition think that the views of the minority are real and serious
• What is the augmentation principle?


  It suggests that the minority's determination to remain consistent indicates their views are worth considering
• What are the two types of consistency mentioned in the study?

  • Diachronic consistency: Consistency over time
  • Synchronic consistency: Consistency among group members
• What is diachronic consistency?


  When the group remains consistent over time without changing their views
• What is synchronic consistency?


  When all members of the group have the same views and support each other
• How does commitment influence minority influence?


  • Commitment suggests the minority's view is valid
  • Encourages the majority to explore the minority's viewpoint
• How does flexibility influence minority influence?


  • Flexibility makes the minority appear reasonable and cooperative
  • Inflexibility can make the minority seem extreme and less appealing
• What did Martin et al (2003) find about opinion change?


  People were less willing to change their opinion after listening to a minority group
• What does the augmentation principle suggest about minority views?


  Minority views hold risk and force the audience to reconsider their own views
• What are the real-life applications of consistency, commitment, and flexibility?


  • Inform minority groups on how to exert maximum influence
  • Strategies can help in social movements and advocacy
• What is a key issue with Moscovici's study?


  The reliance on artificial tasks and stimuli
• What does the lack of mundane realism in Moscovici's study imply?


  It means the tasks do not reflect real-life scenarios for minority groups
• What does ecological validity refer to in the context of Moscovici's study?


  It refers to the extent to which the results can be generalized to real-life situations
• What limitations does Moscovici's study have regarding its findings?


  • Lacks mundane realism
  • Lacks ecological validity
  • Findings may not generalize to real-life scenarios