Social influence processes in social change

• social change is the change that happens in society not in an individual level
• Mass et al

  • hetrosexual in a minority group where more likely to change hetrosexual males in majority groups than minority homosexual men
  • about the importance of gay rights
  • demonstrates importance of group member - ingroups for social influence process
• 1. drawing the majorities attention to an issue
• Moscovici - minority influence

  • commitment
  • flexibility
  • consistency
• 2. consistency

  all of the minority hold the same beliefs over time - draws attention to beliefs and creates uncertainty in the mind of the majority
• minority influence


  where one person, or a small group of people, persuade others to adopt their beliefs, attitudes or behaviours
• 3. deeper meaning


  people from the majority start to think about the issue more deeply
• 4. augmentation principle


  when minorities are more willing to suffer for their views - to show they are committed to the cause and are more likely to be taken seriously
• 5. snowball effect


  small effect that spreads until it reaches tipping point - which then grows leading to large social change
• 5. social cryptomnesia 


  after social change happens people remember the change but don't remember how it happened or who started change