The Spiral of Silence Theory by Elizabeth Noelle-Nuemann

1. Wake up
folks..
&
Welcome

2. Spiral of
Silence
by
Elisabeth NoelleNuemann

3. Elisabeth Noelle-Nuemann
(1916-2010)

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A German political scientist.
Most famous contribution is
the model of the spiral of
silence, detailed in The Spiral
of Silence : Public Opinion –
Our Social Skin.
The model is an explanation
of how perceived public
opinion can influence
individual opinions or
actions.

4. Alexis de Tocqueville
French political thinker
 the holders of minority
opinions join the
masses, “more
frightened of isolation
than of committing an
error”


5. Spiral of Silence
Spiral of silence
occurs when
individuals hold an
opinion but fail to
express it.
 Perception of
minority viewpoint.
 Self Censorship
from fear of
isolation


6. Spiral of Silence

The ones who perceive to be
holders of a majority opinion form
social groups.

These groups “punish” the
“vulnerable” individuals who are
perceived to be of a minority
opinion by various means of
silencing.

7. Spiral of Silence

8. Climate of opinion

9. 




Public opinion changes across time, in
relationship to people’s monitoring of the
‘climate of opinion.’
If the majority of people hold an opinion
opposite one’s, then one may be hesitant to
voice one’s opinion in public.
This is especially true if one perceives that
one’s opinion is likely to lose more support
in the future.
Thus, if people who have opinions similar
to one’s also do not speak out in public, one
will observe a decreasing amount of
publicly voiced support for one’s opinion.
Over time, one perceives that support for
one’s opinion spirals downward, hence the
name of the theory.

10. Public opinion - ‘pressure to
conform’

11. As social beings, most people are afraid of
becoming isolated from their environment. They
would like to be popular and respected.
 In order to avoid becoming isolated and in order
not to lose popularity and esteem, people
constantly observe their environment very
closely. They try to find out which opinions and
modes of behaviour are prevalent, and which
opinions and modes of behaviour are becoming
more popular. They behave and express
themselves accordingly in public.


12. Social Anxiety
Fear of being negatively
evaluated by others
 Cognitive deficits negative self images
 Public & Private Self
consciousness


13. Role of an operationalised fear of
isolation in the spiral of silence.
The more a person
fears negative
evaluation, the less
discrepancy there will
be between the
person’s opinion and
perception of the
predominant opinion.
 The more a person
fears negative
evaluation, the less
likely he or she will be
to discuss a minority
opinion.


14. Fear of Isolation
Social animals dread isolation
 Our social nature causes us:

◦ to fear separation and isolation from our
fellows
◦ to want to be respected and liked by them

15. Other Possible Reasons:

Efficacy:
◦ people may decline to voice an opinion
because they believe doing so will not matter,
not because they are experiencing fear (the
belief that performing a particular behaviour
will not achieve a desired outcome).