Minority influence

• Minority influence


  Individuals rejecting majority behaviour or belief and being converted to the views of a minority group
• Minority influence


  • Minority group tries to change views of majority group through informational social influence
  • If successful, results in internalization or permanent lasting change in beliefs
• Minority group changing majority opinion

  1. Slow process at first

  2. As minority group becomes larger, it gains legitimacy and attracts more people at a faster rate (snowball effect)

  3. Small minority can become majority view in relatively short time
• Behaviours minority group must adopt

  • Consistency (repeating same message again and again, called diachronic consistency)
  • Commitment (willingness to suffer for their views, known as augmentation principle)
  • Flexibility (appearing to consider valid counter-arguments and compromise slightly)
• Minority groups causing real social change

  • Gay rights movement
  • Environmental groups
  • Suffragettes
• Consistency is vital in persuading majority to side with minority, but even consistent minorities only persuaded 32% of participants in research
• Flexibility of minority group (slightly compromising position) made majority more likely to lower their position closer to minority's in research
• Criticism of research on flexibility - experimental situation may lack external validity compared to real-world situations