Spiral of Silence
Spiral of Silence Theory
• Developed by German political scientist
Elisabeth Noelle Neumann in late 1940s
• Theory aims to explain the growth and
spread of public opinion
Spiral of Silence
• Noelle-Neumann defined public opinion as
“Attitudes one can express without running into
the danger of isolating oneself,” particularly in
relation to morally or politically loaded topics.
What is the Spiral of Silence ?
• The term spiral of silence refers to the
pressure that people feel to conceal their
views when they think that they are in the
minority.
Context for the Theory
• Noelle-Neumann used this theory to seek to
explain the rise of Nazism in Germany
Spiral of Silence
• She argued that in addition our five senses,
humans have a “quasi-statistical organ,” or
sixth sense that monitors what others around
us are thinking or feeling.
Spiral of Silence
• Why do people deploy this sixth sense ?
Because they fear isolation
Spiral of Silence
• Noelle-Neumann drew heavily on the work of
social psychologist Solomon Asch who
undertook the line experiment below to
measure conformity
Spiral of Silence
• In an experiment, Asch found that in 18 trials,
75% of the subjects conformed at least once.
• Why did the participants conform so
readily? When they were interviewed after the
experiment, most of them said that they did not
really believe their conforming answers, but
had gone along with the group for fear of
being ridiculed or thought "peculiar".
Role of Media in Theory
• Noelle-Neumann argues that media
accelerates the silencing of the minority in the
spiral of silence
• This is because opinions supported by
influential media are overestimated
Beyond Agenda-Setting
• Media not only tell us what to think about,
but provide us the “socially sanctioned view of
what everyone is thinking”
• This, she argues can create a false consensus
because those who disagree are rendered
silent
To speak or not to speak
• Noelle-Neumann argues that when people see
that their view is popular/spreading, they tend
to speak out thus reinforcing the trend and
vice versa
• Asked people if you are traveling and the
person next to you begins to speak about
abortion, would you talk to this person or
would you rather not talk ?
To speak or not to speak
Findings:
• Those who feel that they are in the majority are willing to
speak out
• Willingness to speak out depends on perception of future
trends
• Low self esteem causes views to be muted
• Males, young adults and people of middle to upper classes
more likely to speak out
• More willing to speak to those who might share their views
• Existing laws encourage people to express their opinions
when they feel outnumbered
How does the Spiral Work ?
• Components
• Human ability to ascertain trends in public
sentiment
• Individuals’ fear of isolation
• People’s fear of expressing minority views
Who cannot be silenced ?
• Hard-core nonconformists
• Avant garde
Critique of the Spiral of Silence
• Theory presumes rather than tests fear of
isolation
• Factors other than fear of isolation might be at
work
• Focus on national environment rather than
reference group environment
• Artificial nature of plane/train test