Opinion and communicative scenarios: Influence of contextual factors on the sociopsychological processes of the spiral of silence

Abstract

This study aims to investigate how contextual factors can affect the socio-psychological processes specified by the Spiral of Silence theory, such as the fear of isolation and opinion congruency. The contexts for this research were divided into online environments-social networking sites (Twitter, Facebook, and Orkut), chat rooms, and online discussion forums-and face-to-face communication. Data were obtained through an online survey about civil union between same-sex couples. Based on 226 completed forms, the data collected were then subject to statistical treatment to test our hypotheses. The analysis of the data revealed that expression of opinion, in association with socio-psychological factors that operate in the spiral of silence, is linked to a set of factors related to the specific characteristics of each environment in which the opinion is expressed. Thus, the communication configuration affects individuals' willingness to express their views, so the spiral of silence occurs differently in each context.