Spiral of Silence Theory and Implications for Leaders
.Ooh, doesn’t the Spiral of Silence Theory sound intriguing? It’s a term used in mass communication (i.e. media) education. The spiral of silence theory basically describes how those whose voices are viewed as the most popular, often voices from the majority view, get repeated and retold. While those in the minority of opinion, become silenced because they are afraid of not being accepted by those viewed as popular or in power.
The Theory
The theory goes on to describe how popular voices become louder and viewed as more popular, and the unpopular voices spiral into silence. As journalists study this theory, they are cautioned to make sure they don’t accidentally silence the voice of the less popular and those who may not be in power. It’s often a piece of the ethics portion of the journalism curriculum because it’s viewed as unethical to represent only one side of the story.
You can learn more on Wikipedia about the background and theory as it applies to mass communication. However, because it’s a great visual for many, the spiral of silence can be applied to other disciplines as well. Let’s apply this concept to leadership and teams. If the leader says something and doesn’t create a culture of trust where others can push back, the majority voice will be the leader’s voice.
In teams, one person who dominates team decisions by constantly offering up his or her opinion may silence others who would like to contribute but who feels his or her views are less valued.
What Can We Do?
As leaders and team members, what can we do ensure everyone on the team has a voice? We can:
- Prepare people ahead of meetings. Tell them you plan to ask them to contribute during a certain portion of the meeting. Give that person time to prepare, and you are more likely to hear thoughtful ideas.
- When you see someone sitting silent during a meeting, and you know that person has an opinion, gently ask for him or her to share. You can do this by saying, “Tiffany, we’ve had some conversations around this. You had some really good ideas when it came to this piece of the project. I particularly liked what you had to say about X. Could you tell the rest of the team a little about what we’ve talked about?”
- Explicitly check-in with folks during the meeting. “Your opinions and thoughts are valuable. We need to hear all sides. Help me understand what we may be missing before we finalize our discussion.”
- Also, check-in after the meeting. “That was a fast and furious discussion. Are you feeling okay with where we are headed?”
Rarely do people silence other people on purpose. Sometimes, however, we do accidentally silence those around us, and then we create a space where others may believe their voice doesn’t matter. We need everyone’s voice if we are going to make the best decisions for our teams and companies.
Your Challenge
Your challenge this week is to identify opportunities to help your teams. Identify and hear all the voices in your work groups. Identify any spirals of silence that may be happening.
Keynote speaker, trainer, and consultant, Sarah Gibson, helps organizations leverage the power of communication, teamwork and diversity to improve engagement and transform teams. To buy her book or inquire about her speaking programs, please visit www.sarahjgibson.com.
