Minority Influence and Innovation: Antecedents, Processes and Consequences

Social groups form an important part of our daily lives. Within these groups pressures exist which encourage the individual to comply with the group’s viewpoint. This influence, which creates social conformity, is known as ‘majority influence’ and is the dominant process of social control. However, there also exists a ‘minority influence’, which emerges from a small subsection of the group and is a dynamic force for social change.
Minority Influence and Innovation seeks to identify the conditions under which minority influence can prevail, to change established norms, stimulate original thinking and help us to see the world in new ways.
With chapters written by a range of expert contributors, areas of discussion include:


processes and theoretical issues


the factors which affect majority and minority influence


interactions between majority and minority group members

This book offers a thorough evaluation of the most important current developments within this field and presents consideration of the issues that will be at the forefront of future research. As such it will be of interest to theorists and practitioners working in social psychology.

Robin Martin is Professor of Social and Organisational Psychology at Aston University.

Miles Hewstone is Professor of Social Psychology and Fellow of New College, Oxford University.

Part 1. Introduction. R. Martin, M. Hewstone, Introduction: Theory and Research on Minority Influence. Part 2. Processes and Theoretical Issues. A. Quiamzade, G. Mugny, J.M. Falomir-Pichastor, F. Butera, The Complexity of Majority and Minority Influence Processes. W.D.Crano, Majority and Minority Influence in Attitude Formation and Attitude Change: Context/Categorization-Leniency Contract Theory. H.P. Erb, G. Bohner, Consensus as the Key: Towards Parsimony in Explaining Majority and Minority Influence. Z.L. Tormala, R.E. Petty, V.L. DeSensi, Multiple Roles for Minority Sources in Persuasion and Resistance. Part 3. Factors Affecting Majority and Minority Influence. A.Mucchi-Faina, Ambivalence and Social Influence. A. Gardikiotis, R. Martin, M. Hewstone, The Impact of Source Consensus on Majority and Minority Influence. R. Martin, M. Hewstone, P.Y. Martin, Consequences of Attitudes Changed by Majority and Minority Influence. W. Stroebe, Majority and Minority Influence and Information Processing: A Theoretical and Methodological Analysis. Part 4. Dynamic Interplay Between Majority and Minority Factions. J.M. Levine, H.S. Choi, Newcomers as Change Agents: Minority Influence in Task Groups. C.M. Smith, R.S. Tindale, Direct and Indirect Minority Influence in Groups. R. Prislin, Dynamics of Change: Minority Influence Makes the World Go Around. F. Aime, L. Van Dyne, Bringing Social Structure to Both Sides of An Issue: How Proximal and Distal Ties Interact with Minority and Majority Positions to Affect Influence in Workgroups. A.W. Richter, C.A. Sacramento, M.A. West, Dissent Within and Among Groups in Organizations: Lessons for Group Empowerment and Organizational Innovation. Part 5. Epilogue. M. Hewstone, R. Martin, Minority Influence: From Groups to Attitudes and Back Again.