Brown, R. (2000). Group processes. Chapter 4: Social
influence in groups.
The Power of the Majority
The pervasiveness of conformity
- Distinguish between conformity involving private perceptual/cognitive
change (seeing the world differently) or one that is merely a behavioural
or public compliance (go with the flow)
- Berry: relates the degree of conformity to the natire of the economy in
different societies
Societies whose economies require high degree of interdependence
have greater pressure to conformity
Why do people conform?
- Festinger: social construction of reality
Our beliefes about the world are mini-theories, guiding our actions
and helping us to interpret social events
Social comparison
We turn to other people for information about the correctness
of our beliefs
When other aggree with us it offers reassurance that our
beliefs aren’t at variance with reality
People value uniformity in groups and will often behave so as
to maintain it
- Presence of important group goal
Iduces uniformity of action among group members, especially where
achievement of the goal is dependent on the aggregation of their
efforts
- Group has initial attractiveness for it members
The other people in the group + their opnions matter to the person
subjectes to the influence
The more they matter the more conformity should occur
- Deutsch & Gerard: normative influence
avoid possibility of social humilation
people prefer to be liked rather than disliked -> adapt their opinion
- Turner
Fundametal feature of group membership: provides people
with social identity (helps them to define who they are)
On being a deviate
- Those in majority direct most of their communication towards those in
minority trying to persuade them to change their position
, The greater the discrepancy, the more communication
If attempts are unsuccessful, other members of the group will dislike
deviants
The Influence of the Minority
- Festinger: social influence is a unidirectional process
Deviant individuals are seen as passive recipients of pressure from
the rest of the group
- Moscovici: groups change as a response to new external circumstances
If group wants to achieve a new goal, it adapts accordingly which
might result in changes within the group
Minority influence is possible as a group always contains potential
divisions
Deviants make those divisions explicit and fom the resulting
conflict new norms may emerge
- Minorities seem to have their strongest effects indirectly
after some delay
on some dimension of attitude/behaviour that is related but not
necessarily identical to the anticipated one
- minorities act as catalysts for change by provoking congitive conflict in the
majority
- reason why minorities (not) succeed:
amount of personal involvement the majority has in maintaining its
view
prevailing climaze of opinion in the group or culture concerned
Social categorization and minority influence
- Self categorization theory
People gravitate towards those in their ingroup but away from those
in outgroups
- Sometimes it may be more efficient to express a deviant pov from outside
the ingroup
When minority opinion is itself a deviant/unrepresentative position
within the outgroup
- Outgroup people can be influenced when they become temporarily re-
categorized as ingroup members (on the particular matter under debate)
Two Influence Processes or One?
- Moscovici: Conversion Theory
Majorities primarily elicit public conformity from individual group
members for social or informational dependence
influence in groups.
The Power of the Majority
The pervasiveness of conformity
- Distinguish between conformity involving private perceptual/cognitive
change (seeing the world differently) or one that is merely a behavioural
or public compliance (go with the flow)
- Berry: relates the degree of conformity to the natire of the economy in
different societies
Societies whose economies require high degree of interdependence
have greater pressure to conformity
Why do people conform?
- Festinger: social construction of reality
Our beliefes about the world are mini-theories, guiding our actions
and helping us to interpret social events
Social comparison
We turn to other people for information about the correctness
of our beliefs
When other aggree with us it offers reassurance that our
beliefs aren’t at variance with reality
People value uniformity in groups and will often behave so as
to maintain it
- Presence of important group goal
Iduces uniformity of action among group members, especially where
achievement of the goal is dependent on the aggregation of their
efforts
- Group has initial attractiveness for it members
The other people in the group + their opnions matter to the person
subjectes to the influence
The more they matter the more conformity should occur
- Deutsch & Gerard: normative influence
avoid possibility of social humilation
people prefer to be liked rather than disliked -> adapt their opinion
- Turner
Fundametal feature of group membership: provides people
with social identity (helps them to define who they are)
On being a deviate
- Those in majority direct most of their communication towards those in
minority trying to persuade them to change their position
, The greater the discrepancy, the more communication
If attempts are unsuccessful, other members of the group will dislike
deviants
The Influence of the Minority
- Festinger: social influence is a unidirectional process
Deviant individuals are seen as passive recipients of pressure from
the rest of the group
- Moscovici: groups change as a response to new external circumstances
If group wants to achieve a new goal, it adapts accordingly which
might result in changes within the group
Minority influence is possible as a group always contains potential
divisions
Deviants make those divisions explicit and fom the resulting
conflict new norms may emerge
- Minorities seem to have their strongest effects indirectly
after some delay
on some dimension of attitude/behaviour that is related but not
necessarily identical to the anticipated one
- minorities act as catalysts for change by provoking congitive conflict in the
majority
- reason why minorities (not) succeed:
amount of personal involvement the majority has in maintaining its
view
prevailing climaze of opinion in the group or culture concerned
Social categorization and minority influence
- Self categorization theory
People gravitate towards those in their ingroup but away from those
in outgroups
- Sometimes it may be more efficient to express a deviant pov from outside
the ingroup
When minority opinion is itself a deviant/unrepresentative position
within the outgroup
- Outgroup people can be influenced when they become temporarily re-
categorized as ingroup members (on the particular matter under debate)
Two Influence Processes or One?
- Moscovici: Conversion Theory
Majorities primarily elicit public conformity from individual group
members for social or informational dependence
