MINORITY AND MAJORITY INFLUENCE IN FREELY INTERACTING GROUPS - QUALITATIVE VERSUS QUANTITATIVE DIFFERENCES

Minority and majority influence were studied simultaneously within the context of freely interacting groups. It was hypothesized that minori ties would act as a rein, reducing the degree of polarization in major ity members' attitudes. The direction and magnitude of attitude change on a social issue in unanimous groups were compared to those of group s with either one or two minority members. In addition, the secondary effects of minority influence on cognitive processes, predicted by Nem eth (1986), were assessed using two thought listing tasks-one involvin g an issue discussed by the group and a second involving an issue that was not previously discussed. Results supported the 'minority as a re in' analogy as well as the predictions made by Nemeth. However, it app ears that minority influence manifests itself differently depending on whether or not individual members have to defend their position durin g group interaction.