BEYOND CONFLICT AND DISCREPANCY - COGNITIVE BIAS IN MINORITY AND MAJORITY INFLUENCE

The authors studied effects of majority and minority support on persua sion for nondiscrepant positions. In two experiments, students (N = 18 8) read messages on previously unknown attitude objects. These message s were attributed to numerical majorities (high consensus) or minoriti es (low consensus). The results show that consensus information can bi as systematic processing of message content. High consensus evoked pos itively biased cognitive responses that focused on message content (co nvergent processing), whereas low consensus elicited negatively biased processing that pertained to new aspects of the issue (divergent proc essing). Post-message attitudes were more positive under high consensu s than under low consensus; this effect was mediated via thought valen ce but not via thought convergence. In Experiment 2 these effects were replicated if consensus information preceded message processing but n ot if it was presented after message processing. Furthermore, in both experiments, cognitive activity was lower if consensus information was presented (vs. not presented) before the message.