social change

• what is the process of social change through minority influence?

  1. drawing attention to the issue
  2. cognitive conflict
  3. consistency of position
  4. augmentation principle
  5. snowball effect
  6. social cryptomnesia
• outline the importance of drawing attention to an issue for social change

  creates conflict between majority and minority

  • motivates people to reduce conflict and adopt views
• outline the importance of cognitive conflict for social change

  conflict between majority group's current beliefs and beliefs of minority

  • majority thinks more deeply
• outline the importance of consistency of position for social change

  express arguments consistently

  • more influential when over time and with others
• outline the importance of the augmentation principle for social change

  if willing to suffer for their views, emphasises commitment

  • taken more seriously by society
• outline the importance of the snowball effect for social change

  minority has small effect and spreads widely so more people consider it

  • reaches a "tipping point" leading to wide scale social change
• outline the importance of social cryptomnesia for social change

  people have a changed memory but doesn't remember how

  • lose memory of events leading to change
• how does social change occur through majority influence

  • behavioural choices are related to group norms e.g. normative social influence
  • people perceive something as the norm so alter behaviour to fit in
• outline what perkins & berkowitz found about majority influence

  • conformity is based on perceived norm
  • social norms intervention which corrects the misperception
• what is the process of social norms interventions?

  • identify a widespread misperception relating to risky behaviour
  • address misperception (perception correction strategies)
  • communicate to target population the action norm
  • recipients moderate own behaviour
• outline evaluation point 1 for social change

  minority influence is slow

  • suffragettes
  • strong tendency to maintain status quo
  • latent than direct (potential for change)
• outline evaluation point 2 for social change

  research support

  • led to reduction in energy consumption in a community
  • conformity and normative social influence leads to change
  • increases internal validity
• outline evaluation point 3 for social change

  minority seen as "deviant"

  • don't want to be associated with stereotypical minorities
  • attention directed to source rather than the message
  • effects are fragile, flexibility is important