The Spiral of Silence and Fear of Isolation

Abstract

This research explores the relationship between fear of isolation and allied concepts derived from the communication apprehension (CA) literature-CA-trait and CAstate-on opinion expression. The study took place during the final run-up to the Fall 2002 U.S. Congressional elections, and the research topic focused on the debate surrounding the possibility of the United States invading Iraq. The results suggest that (a) CA-trait, CA-state, and fear of isolation are empirically distinct; (b) these constructs differentially predict opinion expression; and (c) customary ways of assessing opinion expression in past research likely have underestimated conformity effects.

Expressive behaviors across discursive spaces and issue types

“…The minimal support Glynn, Hayes, and Shanahan (1997) find in their meta-analysis of studies of spiral of silence has led them to advise researchers to focus on observations of actual opinion expression instead of hypothetical willingness. Other researchers have made similar observations and recommendations (Hayes, 2007;Neuwirth et al, 2007). This study will adopt this alternative approach and study opinion expression as an actual response to a range of issues associated with politics and livelihood.…”

“…Most of the SOS studies follow a similar approach in asking survey respondents to indicate their willingness to engage in conservations with strangers under a hypothetical situation (Neuwirth, Frederick, & Mayo, 2007). The minimal support Glynn, Hayes, and Shanahan (1997) find in their meta-analysis of studies of spiral of silence has led them to advise researchers to focus on observations of actual opinion expression instead of hypothetical willingness.…”

Expressing Opinions about the Refugee Crisis in Europe: The Spiral of Silence and Crisis Communication

“…Noelle-Neuman's theory on how the media influences people's willingness to speak their minds in public has been subject to many studies all over the world. However, the theory has been criticized in terms of conceptualization (Neuwirth et al, 2007), design (Matthes & Hayes, 2016), and generalization (Scheufele & Moy, 2000).…”

“…Noelle-Neuman (1984) raised the question of the importance of personal traits related to the spiral of silence phenomenon (Neuwirth et al, 2007;Scheufele & Moy, 2000). Controlling some of these aspects by inclusion in the analysis were political interest, education, gender, and age.…”

“…The spiral of silence theory is so complex and contains so many assumptions that the whole theory has never been (and probably never will be) comprehensively tested (Matthes & Hayes, 2016). Scholars have, over the years, separated the model into manageable parts, but still, after almost 40 years of research, we find research criticizing everything from the assumptions and the generalizability to the design and how to measure key concepts of the theory (Hayes, 2007;Matthes & Hayes, 2016;Neuwirth, Frederick, & Mayo, 2007).…”