Enhancing the Cohesion and Influence of Minority Opinions Through Clustering: A Social Network Experiment.

ABSTRACT: Minority opinions can be of crucial importance to the diversity, productivity, and harmony of a group, but are often left unattended and unheard. Previous methods that tried to enhance minority influence are usually overly forceful and low on ecological validity. To overcome these pitfalls, we proposed a new intervention method called minority clustering and examined its effects with a social network experiment (N = 456). Minority clustering was implemented by increasing the network connections among participants with initial opinions that deviated from the mainstream opinion and forming an opinion cluster among these minority members. Our results show that minority clustering significantly slowed down the rate at which minority members shifted toward majority opinions, thereby sustaining

SUBMITTER: Wu B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12702592 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature