Practise Edexcel Psychology questions on Moscovici’s minority influence, including consistency, flexibility, conversion and application to social change.
A major tourist site is experiencing an increase in the number of rats. A small group of local shop owners want to discourage people from dropping food waste, which is believed to attract the rats to the area.
Evaluate how the minority influence of local shop owners could change the behaviour of people dropping food waste.
You must make reference to the context in your answer.
AO1 (4 marks), AO2 (4 marks), AO3 (4 marks)
AO1
- Moscovici proposed that minorities influence others
through their behavioural style.
- Behavioural style involves consistency of opinion over
time and between members of the minority.
- Consistency gives an impression of certainty and causes
doubt in the majority norms.
- If the majority identifies with the minority they are more
likely to take the views of the minority seriously.
AO2
- The local shop owners could encourage people visiting the
area not to drop food waste near their shops through
using leaflets.
- The local shop owners could inform people of the benefits
of putting food waste in bins.
- The local shop owners could explain to people why
dropping food waste encourages rats into the area.
- The local shop owners could place signs around the
buildings reinforcing the message not to drop food which
is encouraging rats.
AO3
- Moscovici's study showed that when the majority
consistently judged the slides to be green rather than
blue, the majority followed them on 8.42\% of trials.
- Mass and Clark (1983) found that minorities caused a
change in private/opinions/attitudes before a change in
public behaviour.
- Minority influence does not always lead to social change;
minorities are not only lacking in social power but may
also be seen as "deviant" by the majority.
- The social impact theory predicts that as the size of the
majority grows, the influence of the minority decreases,
both in public and in private there is an attitude change.
Look for other reasonable marking points.
(12)