ABSTRACT

Culture has an enormous capacity to absorb those who fall into its bosom. This appetite to digest and mould all it consumes means that a strong culture can eradicate individual differences, at least at the superficial level. The larger the culture or institution, the more standardized its demands, the more total its capacity to assimilate. Large groups are conservative in outlook and follow traditional norms. But suppose the group is penetrated by a few who are distinctly different in some particular feature. At first nothing may happen because a few individuals may be insignificant in relation to the mass. But once the few come together to form a coherent body, the situation changes. Small teams have a character of their own and are disposed to create their own norms. Sizeable minorities even have the potential to effect change in larger groups, for mathematically they alter the ratio between conservatives and innovators.