SPIRAL OF SILENCE THEORY

SPIRAL OF SILENCE THEORY

ELISABETH NOELLE-NEUMANN

SPIRAL OF SILENCE?

ASSUMPTIONS OF THEORY (WEST & TURNER, 2010): Masyarakat melayan individu yang pelik dengan pengasingan; takut kepada pengasingan berleluasa Society threatens deviant individuals with isolation; fear of isolation is pervasive Ketakutan kepada pengasingan menybabkan indv cuba untuk mencapai keselarian dgn pendapat umum pada setiap masa. This fear of isolation causes individuals to try to assess the climate of opinion at all times

Perlakuan publik dipengaruhi oleh penilaian pendapat umum Public behavior is affected by public opinion assessment Andaian lain (Narimah, 2010): 1. Orang ramai tahu pandangan yang utama 2. Orang ramai mengubah pandangan mereka mengikut tanggapan mereka tentang pandangan yang utama

SPIRAL OF SILENCE?? The term spiral of silence refers to the increasing pressure people feel to conceal their views when they think they are in the minority. Noelle-Neumann believes that television accelerates the spiral, but to grasp the role of the mass media in the process, it is crucial to firstly understand people's extraordinary sensitivity to the ever-changing standard of what society will tolerate.

WHAT ACCELERATES THE SPIRAL OF SILENCE? The building blocks that Noelle-Neumann uses to construct her model of public opinion: Human ability to judge/measure trends of public sentiment. Individuals' justifiable fear of isolation. People's hesitancy to express minority views.

THE ROLE OF THE MASS MEDIA It is believed that the media accelerate the muting of the minority in the spiral of silence. Mass media is powerful in shaping the mind of it s society. It could change one s perceptions/believes. Bagaimana media boleh mempengaruhi pendapat majoriti/ menenggelamkan pendapat minoriti?

CIRI BERITA MEDIA/ CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NEWS MEDIA: Ubiquity Media adalah sumber maklumat yang menyeluruh media are pervasive sources of information Cumulativeness Proses media mengulangi sesuatu isu merentas program dan masa Process of the media repeating themselves across programs and time

- consonance Semua media adalah sama dari segi sikap, kepercayaan dan nilai Similarities of beliefs, attitudes, and values held by the media Setiap ciri tersebut menjadikan pendapat majoriti lebih didengar. Sementara pihak yang tidak ingin tersingkir terus mendiamkan diri

KEADAAN YANG MENENTUKAN SESEORANG MENYUARAKAN PENDAPAT: Pandangan Majoriti: Mereka yang menyokong Ramalan trend masa depan: Kesanggupan Kesamaan: Orang ramai lebih sanggup berkongsi pendapat Nilai kendiri: Nilai kendiri yang rendah yang rendah Gender dan status: Selalunya gol. lelaki dari kumpulan pandangan majoriti lebih sanggup menyatakan pendapat berbanding penyokong pandangan minoriti menyuarakan pendapat bergantung kepada tren akan datang dengan orang yang mempunyai pandangan yang sama membuatkan seseorang berdiam diri (tidak menyuarakan pendapat) atasan dan menengah lebih mudah menyuarakan pendapat

HYPOTHESIS 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The trend of opinions in the social environment. Looks at an individual s willingness to express an opinion publicly. The assessment of the current distribution of opinion and the actual distribution are clearly divergent. Present assessment of public opinion Continuation of the fourth and provides implications for future assessment of public opinion.

THE CRITICS

1. PEOPLE WHO WILL NEVER BE SILENCED: THE HARD CORE AND AVANT-GARDE Early critics of the spiral of silence pointed out that there are people who will never be silenced. Even though their cause appears hopeless, they continue to voice their opinions. Noelle-Neumann now describes two types of individuals who form this vocal minority that remains at the top of the spiral in defiance of threats of isolation. She calls them the hard core and the avant-garde.

HARD-CORE NONCONFORMISTS: those who "have been overpowered and relegated to a completely defensive position in public (Takeshita & Mikami, 1993). Already beaten down, they have nothing to lose by speaking out. People in the hard core cling to the past and regard isolation as the price they have to pay.

THE AVANT-GARDE The intellectuals, artists, and reformers who form the vanguard of new ideas. Unlike the hard core, they seek public response, even though it's usually negative. "Those who belong to the avant-garde are committed to the future and thus by necessity, are also isolated; but their conviction that they are ahead of their time enables them to endure (Noelle-Neumann, 1974). The hard-core and avant-garde minorities as the only hope for future swing in public sentiment.

2. A CULTURE THAT A PERSON LIVES IN GREATLY AFFECTS THEIR WILLINGNESS TO SPEAK OUT

SAMPLE OF STUDY/ PAST RESEARCH: Exploring the spiral of silence in the virtual world: individuals' willingness to express personal opinions in online versus offline settings By Xudong Liu and Shahira Fahmy. 30 December 2010.

THE OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY: This study extends the understanding of the spiral of silence theory by taking into account the impact of new media on virtual behavior motivation. It explores individuals' willingness to express opinions online and offline and tests how the constructs proposed by the spiral of silence theory work in each setting.

THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY Results of the study suggests: when the likelihood of speaking out online increases, the likelihood of speaking out in a real setting also increases, and vice versa. the congruency of current opinions with one's own opinions predicts the willingness to speak out off line. congruency of future and current opinions did not predict the willingness to speak out in the online setting. while experiencing fear of isolation predicted by the willingness to speak out online, it did not affect offline outspokenness.