Specification: The role of social influence processes in social change.

The work of Moscovici (1969) and Nemeth (1986) concluded that a consistent, committed and flexible minority is most effective in influencing an individual. However, minority groups also play an important role in facilitating social change by influencing an entire society to change its attitude, behaviours and beliefs.

 Social change refers to the ways in which a society (rather than an individual) develops over time to replace beliefs attitudes and behaviour with new norms and expectations.

Psychology in Everyday Life

History has provided many real-life examples of circumstances in which consistent individuals have challenged and questioned the values and norms of society. Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela led civil rights movements and were consistent in their views against apartheid for many years, which helped bring about social change.

When Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a while male passenger in the 1950s, she was arrested for violating US law. This event helped trigger the civil rights movement to end the racial segregation laws in America. The case of Rosa Parks demonstrates that people who are willing to make a sacrifice (in her case being arrested) to show their commitment to the cause and as a result are more influential in bringing about a social change. Another real-world example of social change is seen with the suffragettes who were consistent in their view and persistently used educational and political arguments to draw attention to female rights. They remained consistent for many years and despite opposition continued protesting and lobbying until they convinced society that women were entitled to vote. Many of the suffragettes made significant sacrifices for their cause, risking imprisonment and even death through extended hunger strikes and thereby making their influence even more powerful. Over time their minority influence influences people to consider the issue, leading to social change and all adults gaining the right to vote.

Social Change

There are a number of processes that can be used to explain there, and many more, examples of social change which have occurred throughout history.

1. Consistency – displaying consistency of viewpoint and intended outcome is beneficial in bringing about social change, as a consistent message appears more credible and can help to convince a majority.

2. Deeper Processing – the more people think about the issue at hand, rather than blindly accepting it, the more they will, in turn, be able to challenge the existing social norms to bring about change.

3. Drawing Attention – in order for a social change to occur, the majority must first of all be made aware of the need for change.

4. The Augmentation Principle – when the majority pays attention to the selfless and risky actions being taken by the minority group and is more likely to integrate the group’s opinion into their own personal viewpoints due to the personal sacrifice made by the minority.

5. The Snowball Effect – once the minority viewpoint has got the attention of some of the majority group members, more and more people begin paying attention and the minority viewpoint gather momentum, much like a snowball growing in size when rolled along a snowy field.

6. Social Cryptoamnesia – the majority knows that a social change has occurred but the source of the change and the message itself have become dissociated through the process of social cryptoamnesia and they do not recall how it has happened.

7. Normative Social Influence – social change can be encouraged by reporting the behaviour or attitudes of the majority, to urge others to follow suit for normative reasons (e.g. to fit in with the majority).

8. Gradual Commitment – once a small instruction has been followed, it is harder for larger requests to be declined. This is often referred to as ‘the foot in the door technique’ and means that people effectively find themselves adopting a new way of behaving gradually over a period of time.

Evaluating Social Change

Minority influence can often act as a barrier to social change. Bashir et al (2013) were interested in investigating why so many people resist social change even when they believe it to be needed. It was found that some minority groups, such as environmental activists or feminists, often live up to the stereotypes associated with those groups, which can be off-putting for outsiders. This means that the majority often does not want to be associated with the minority for fear of being stereotypically labelled.

There is research support for the role of normative social influence as a process for social change. Nolan et al (2008) conducted a study which spanned one month in California and involved hanging messages on the front doors of people’s houses in San Diego encouraging them to reduce energy consumption by indicating that most other residents in the neighbourhood were already doing this. As a means to control, some houses received a message about energy usage but with no reference to the behaviour of other people in the area. It was found that the experimental group significantly lowered their energy consumption, showing that conformity can lead to positive social change.

Minority influence and majority influence may involve different levels of cognitive processing. Moscovici believes that a minority viewpoint forces individuals to think more deeply about the issue. However, Mackie (1987) counters this, suggesting the opposite to be true. She suggests that when a majority group is thinking or acting in a way that is different from ourselves we are forced to think even more deeply about their reasons. This, therefore, casts doubt on the validity of Moscovici’s minority influence theory, suggesting it may be incorrect.

Methodological issues may undermine the links drawn between social influence processed and social change. For example, many of the research studies providing an explanation for social change, such as those conducted by Asch, Milgram and Moscovici, can themselves be criticised for issues in their methodology ranging from low generalisability to demand characteristics. This means that there are doubts about the validity of some of the processes involved in social influence and social change due to the research informing the theories. 

Possible exam questions

1. What is the key term which refers to the behaviour of a minority when they are willing to make a personal sacrifice such as risking their own safety in order to bring about a social change? (1 mark) 

a) gradual commitment

b) flexibility

c) the augmentation principle

d) the snowball effect 

2. Explain what is meant by social change, in reference to social influence. (2 marks)

3. Many examples of social change come from real‐world, naturalistic incidences that have not been manipulated experimentally. Explain what is meant by the term ‘ecological validity’. (2 marks)

4. For many years smoking indoors at public venues such as restaurants, pubs and even on public transport was lawful behaviour. Over time, this became more and more unacceptable and it is now against the law in the UK to do so. 

Using your knowledge of the processes of social influence, explain how this social change relating to smoking has occurred. (4 marks)

5. Social influence research helps us to understand how it is possible to change people’s behaviour. For example, psychology can influence how campaigns to persuade people to eat healthy meals are structured. 

With reference to this example of social change, explain how psychology might affect the economy. (4 marks)

6. Explain how a minority can bring about social change. (4 marks)

7. When Mariyah was a young girl, not many people on her housing estate used to return their glass milk bottles to the curb for recycling collection. Now, Mariyah’s household has three bins that are collected each week by the local council refuse lorries, who segregate all household waste for recycling including glass, tins, paper and cardboard. 

With reference to consistency, commitment and flexibility, explain how the minority viewpoint of the importance of recycling has become so widely accepted by the majority. (6 marks)

8. Read the item and then answer the question that follows.

The following article appeared in a national newspaper recently:

Great Britain’s opinions on homosexuality

– is this the largest social change in the last 30 years?

In the UK, views on homosexuality have changed significantly over time, when until the 1960s it was a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment. Thirty years ago, almost 65% of the British public were against same sex relationships thinking they were morally inappropriate. Today, homosexuality is widely recognised and accepted with the majority of British people supporting new changes to the law on both gay marriage and adoption by same sex parents.

With reference to the newspaper article above, explain how social influence can lead to social change. (6 marks)

9. A small environmental group wants to persuade more individuals to use public transport or to ride bicycles in their local town, instead of using their cars to reduce carbon emissions. 

Using your knowledge of the role of minority influence in social change, what advice would you give the environmental group? (6 marks)

10. Explain how social influence research helps us to understand social change. (6 marks)

11. Outline and evaluate the role of social influence processes in social change. (16 marks)