role of social influence

• how minorities exert influence - consistency 


  • consistency - the minorities stay unchanged and consistent
  • eg. suffragettes campaigned from 1903-1914
• how minorities exert influence - synchronic and diachronic


  • synchronic consistency - everyone does the same
  • eg. suffragettes were all protesting for the right to vote
  • diachronic consistency - done over a long period of time
  • eg. suffragette movement lasted for 11 years
• how minorities exert influence - augmentation principle 


  • augmentation principle - engaging in extreme activities that present risk, showing greater commitment and make majority pay more attention
  • eg. emily davison throwing herself in front of a horse and died
• how minorities exert influence - flexibility


  • flexibility - minority are prepared to adapt their point of view and accept reasonable and valid counter arguments
  • eg. conciliation bill, failed to be finalised so there were more bills and eventually the right to vote happened in 1918
• how minorities exert influence - nemeth ski accident study

  • Ps put into groups of 4 (1 confederate) who had to agree the amount of compensation they would give the victim of a ski accident
  • inflexible condition (confederate) argued for a low rate of compensation
  • flexible condition (Ps) argued low rate of compensation but then compromised to offer slightly higher
  • results = inflexible - minority had little / no effect on majority. flexible - majority was more likely to change their view and go along with the minority
• how minorities exert influence - snowball effect


  • snowball effect - if you hear something new you may think more deeply about it which is important in the process of conversion to a minorities viewpoint. the more this happens the faster the rate of conversion
  • eg. the suffragettes began with a small group of women demanding change and creating the women's social and political union (WSPU) which lead to other women acknowledging the cause and taking part
• how minorities exert influence - social cryptoamnesia

  • social cryptoamnesia - a failure to remember the origin of a change, in which people know that a change has occurred in society, but forget how this change occurred
  • eg. suffragettes were inspired by the suffragists who were a peaceful protesting group but were less prominent because they didnt cause conflict