Social Identity

Amanda Porter
12 Angry Men

GROUPTHINK VS. MINORITY INFLUENCE
 
The jury situation depicted in 12 Angry men had a dish of symptoms that would normally lead to a separatethink phenomenon. For example, the majority of the assemblage had a belief in the moral correctness of their decisionâ€"they were tough a bad person, they had a stereotyped view of the multitude who opposed them (bleeding heart, do-gooders).  There was extreme pressure to conform, an illusion of agreement (at least in the beginning), many of the jurors engaged in self-censorship (they didnt initially voice their opinions) and strong personalities that were trying to push the group in a certain direction.
 Despite these symptoms, the minority was capable to override the majority and sway the vote to NOT GUILTY.  So this was a rare case of minority influence in which a minority of individuals arouse influence the groupâ€" kinda than the reverse. 
 So what were the factors that gave rise to this phenomenon?
 
 CONSISTENCY
Hendry Fonda, the leader of the minority opinion, always remained reproducible in his opposition to the majority.  In other words, he neer hesitated or wavered, but always stood firm in his conviction. This makes stack think more deeply about the issue.



  Other people probably make the attributionâ€"as Joseph Sweeney did (the old man) that if a person is willing to stand up against the entire group and face ridicule, and so he must have virtually important points to make.  So this kind of consistency against the majority can lead others to augment their faith in the minoritys beliefs.
 AVOID APPEARING RIGID
Although the minority has to be consistent, at the homogeneous time, they have to avoid appearing rigid and inflexible to the majority. In other words, if they are consistent, but still dedicate minded, then it doesnt put the majority on the defensive, and makes them more open to the minority. Fonda clearly did this by saying that he didnt of necessity think that the majority was wrong, but just that he...If you want to fix a full essay, order it on our website: Orderessay



If you want to get a full essay, wisit our page: write my essay .