Some of these techniques have been used successfully; others have led to negative results. Controlled gossip, for example, is one of the methods that has been used successfully under the right conditions. Threats and terrorism, or any other kinds of fear-inducing acts, although used successfully in some situations, are potentially dangerous and susceptible to boomerang effects. They have been shown to be of little long term value in changing opinion.

NOTES

1. See Thomas Perry Thornton, "Terror As a Weapon of Political Agitation," in Chapter VI of this casebook.

AUDIENCE SELECTION

The essays in this section emphasize the need for a proper understanding and selection of target groups in PSYOP campaigns. The lead essay, "Groups and Attitude Change," explains how groups exert pressures on members in a way that tends to generate resistance against persuasive messages and appeals originating from outside the group. "Prestigious Persons and Key Communicators" characterizes the influential persons in a society who function as information "gatekeepers" and opinion leaders with respect to the flow of information. "Reindoctrination Centers" suggests that in some situations the selection of a smaller, more homogenous group is required for effective persuasion. In spite of the effort that may go into selecting a discrete target group for a specifically tailored propaganda message, other groups not intended to be part of the target may also receive the message. Such groups and the problems related to them are discussed in "The Unintended Audience." Consideration of the environmental conditions affecting the receptivity of target groups to PSYOP messages and appeals is the focus of "The Decision to Defect."

GROUPS AND ATTITUDE CHANGE*

BY RICHARD H. ORTH

This essay explores the effects that groups have on the perpetuation of people's attitudes and on their resistance to attitude change. This purpose should be considered within the context of the basic principles of the formation of norms and group needs.

This essay explores the effects that groups have on the perpetuation of people's attitudes and on their resistance to attitude change. This purpose should be considered within the context of the basic principles of the formation of norms and needs of the group.

**

A person's reference group provides his social identity. When he

*Original essay by Richard H. Orth.

**Reference group is a group serving an individual as his frame of reference for selfevaluation and attitude formation (cf. Robert K. Merton, Social Theory and Social Structure [New York: The Free Press of Glencoe, 1957]).

asks "Who am I?" or when he is asked "Who are you?", most often the answer will be in terms of his reference group. Thus, overseas he may reply "I am an American," when this reference group is the most salient, that is, the one that is most obviously called upon in the situation. He is just as likely to reply "I am a soldier," if the military is his most salient reference group in the context of the question. Simply stated then, the reference groups provide social identification for the member, even though the particular group that serves as the person's reference varies, depending on which one is most salient at the moment.

GROUP ACHIEVEMENT

A group often helps to achieve some goal. The individual who is a member of the group (sharing the goals of the group) thus benefits from the achievement orientation of the group. For example, a labor union serves its members in gaining economic goals. To the extent that the individual member ties his goals to the achievement of the group, he is reminded of his group membership when these goals are the part of any communication directed at him.

GROUP COHESIVENESS

Another principle of groups and group membership involves the cohesiveness of the group: the more cohesive the group, the more power it has over its members. There are many sources of cohesiveness. For example, a group may be cohesive due to: (1) personal attraction among its members, (2) effective performance in a task, or (3) prestige accrued to individuals by the fact of membership. In any of these cases, the group provides satisfaction for its membership. Because it provides satisfaction, the group takes on the values of the members. The members, then, are really conforming to their own values as embodied by the group.

There is some variation in the degree to which individual members adhere to the values of the group. The member who is confident of his place within the group does not feel as much pressure to conform as one who is not confident of his place. In other words, in order to further benefit from the activities of the group, those individuals who feel that their group position is tenuous strive to solidify their positions by adhering firmly to group norms.

Moreover, when attraction within a group is strong, a favorable disposition toward other members of the group develops. Consequently, members of the group will show more trust and attribute more credibility to each other as sources of information than they will to individuals from outside the group. In the process of changing attitudes or opinions, this means that communicators from inside the group will be more effective in influencing that change than communicators from outside the group.

SOCIAL IDENTIFICATION AND PERSUASION

What does the fact that reference groups provide social identification mean to the process of changing attitudes? Clearly, a person's attitudes are in large part determined by his self-perceptions. He must act and feel in accordance with what he thinks he is. For example, if a man perceives himself to be a soldier, he acts and feels as a soldier, not as a civilian. We have often seen how a soldier out of uniform may temporarily act somewhat differently, but when he is reminded of his reference group, he will quickly revert to the behavior expected of him. This consideration is most important in attempting to change the attitudes of an individual to a point where they are in opposition to those sanctioned by his reference group. One factor that clearly enters the picture here is the salience of the group. As the situation above illustrates, when the salience of the group is low, its effects on the individual are also low. Assuming an individual can be made to forget that the military is his reference group, his attitudes formed as a result of membership in that group will be much more vulnerable to change than they would otherwise. However, manipulating the salience of the individual's group is difficult at best, and hence the PSYOP planner must usually work within the existing framework of group salience.

For example, a labor union often serves as an individual's reference group. His attitudes toward management in industry are guided by the union. In order for that individual's attitudes toward management to change, the union's power over him must decline or the union must cease to be his reference group. If he meets socially with people from management, he may be more likely to express favorable attitudes toward management. Indeed, the farther removed from reminders of his union membership, the more amenable he will be to attitudes contrary to those supported by the union. However, when a reminder of his union appears, it may bring about a multitude of other behaviors congruent with his reference group. He may suddenly begin to recall arguments against management that have been provided him by the union and may begin to use them to counter any management arguments in support of changing attitudes.

DEFENSE MECHANISMS

In addition to providing identity for its members, the group also provides defense mechanisms that aid in the perpetuation of group-centered attitudes. One such mechanism is the counterargument which in effect provides alternatives to the content of appeals persuading members to take on attitudes different from those in support of the group. If an individual is made aware of the fact that he is a member of a labor union, he begins to recall arguments in support of that role, using them to counter anti-union statements. These arguments often do not occur to him in the presence of other union members, or when his identity as a member of this group is not salient to him.

FORCED MEMBERSHIP AND PERSUASION

It should not be assumed from the foregoing that the easiest way to influence as individual is to try to cut him off from the other members of his group. As mentioned previously, an individual whose membership in the group is threatened usually adheres more strongly to the values of that group than members who feel their group position secure. Indeed, members of the group who operate on its periphery, if they value their membership in that group, are usually most adamant about adhering to group values. Furthermore, persuasion that runs counter to group values may be resisted even if membership in the group is compulsory rather than voluntary. For instance, an individual may be a member of a group because the group holds a threat over the individual. That does not mean that the individual enjoys membership, but he may be nonetheless committed to remain a member of the group. Ordinarily, the less an individual is committed-for whatever reasons-to remaining in the group, the more susceptible he is to persuasion that is counter to groupsupported attitudes. If he is committed to the group either for personal gratification or because the group holds a threat over him, then he will be highly resistant to persuasion that is counter to the group's attitude.

In an insurgency environment, this is clearly a problem for the psyoperator. He fully understands that a local population not supportive of an insurgent group in the area should be favorably disposed toward anti-insurgent propaganda. However, so long as the insurgents have control over or are active in an area, the local population may be coerced into some level of commitment and resist persuasion from the outside. In such a situation, it must be demonstrated to the local population that the insurgents do not have the capability to enforce commitment to their side before any successful PSYOP campaign can be launched. Again, this applies to individuals who are not attracted to the insurgent group.

In an environment where group pressures must be overcome, what hope does a psyoperator have of reaching individuals with his persuasion? First of all, he must know at whom to aim his campaigns. Often, there is a temptation to aim campaigns at individuals who are not in the core of the target group. Nothing could be more erroneous. Any argument that goes counter to the attitudes of a group should be aimed primarily at those individuals who are certain of their position. These persons operate with much more freedom than do peripheral members. They are much more innovative and likely to adopt new ideas. Moreover, they spread the more positive new ideas to other members of the group, and, by means of their central position within the group, they exercise a great deal of persuasiveness.

CULTURAL TRUISMS AND PERSUASION

Another factor mentioned above that must be kept in mind is that reemergence of the awareness of group membership will often bring with it recollection of group-supported arguments. These arguments can be

used to counter attempts at persuasion. However, there are some attitudes so universally held in a group that they are never threatened. Consequently, no arguments relating to them are ever presented. These are known as "cultural truisms." An example in American culture is the value of brushing teeth. Since no argument is ever brought up against brushing teeth, no counters to such an argument are readily available. If the psyoperator can locate such universally held attitudes, he may find a fertile area for persuasion campaigns. In this case, the saliency of the group to the individual would not matter.

SUMMARY

Several problems that membership in a group poses for effective persuasion have been discussed without entering into detail concerning the effects different kinds of groups may have on individual members (that is, potential differences between reference groups and membership groups, or between primary groups and secondary groups). It is enough for the psyoperator to be aware of the presence of group pressures on individuals to conform to the norms, values, and attitudes of the groups, and the effect this might have on PSYOP campaigns. Some sources of group pressures were mentioned in the hope that the psyoperator will use these to his benefit. However, many of these forces are interrelated and should be considered in terms of their potential consequences for each other. In the final analysis, it is not that communication will necessarily be ineffective in the face of group pressures. These pressures only require more work to overcome, and they limit the areas in which any effect can be expected.

PRESTIGIOUS PERSONS AND KEY COMMUNICATORS*

BY RICHARD H. ORTH

The prestigious persons and key communicators who are most likely to be perceived as trustworthy and credible communicants in their own social grouping are important in persuasion and may at times be crucial. They are central figures who have a large voice in determining the direction of future attitude trends.

PRESTIGIOUS PERSONS

The basis of difference between the prestigious person and the population on the whole is demographic, that is, the former tends, generally, to be richer, older, and better educated. To locate the prestigious person, a single classification is not sufficient. For example, although prestige is often associated with being a male, this does not mean that in certain cultures only males have prestige, nor does it mean that in all cultures

*Original essay by Richard H. Orth.