The Spiral Of Silence

Something interesting that I learned while watching my peers present their topics was the concept of the spiral of silence. This concept is when people's willingness to express their opinion is affected by other people's perceptions of the idea and whether it is socially accepted by the majority. When people don't think that their opinion will be accepted by most of the people they are with, they are more likely to remain silent and not share their thoughts on a subject. 

This concept is rooted in a fear of social isolation. The concept arose from research on the 1965 German federal election campaign. Surveys were launched by Noelle Neumann and her staff in order to track and collect data on the public's political opinions throughout the campaign. The shocking part of Neumann’s findings was that throughout the study, it was difficult to gauge public opinion and make assumptions about the winner of the election. It wasn't until the end when there was a major swing in the results that a winner became apparent. This is interesting, as voters' opinions were unlikely to be shifted so drastically in such a short period of time. This raised the question of why people were so hesitant to share their voting intent prior to the election. This reinforced the idea of the spiral of silence. When people have an unspoken fear of their opinion being unpopular, they remain silent and refrain from voicing their opinion out of fear of social isolation or criticism. 

The idea has over time been revealed to be more of a mental game than a reality. People are more afraid of the idea of isolation that they generated in their mind and that fear is what contributes to the silence. This concept is also interesting from the other perspective, however. When people remain silent from one viewpoint, the other opposing opinion gains this false sense of confidence. With no one speaking out in opposition of their opinion, their ideas grow and increasingly gain support. The silent majority has been seen before. The spiral of silence is rooted in shame and a lack of confidence. In today's society, where we all have freedom to speak freely, we should be more open to thought-inducing conversation with people who may share opposing views. Confidence in your beliefs is the first step.