Bandwagon effect

The bandwagon effect works through a self-reinforcing mechanism, and can spread quickly and on a large-scale through a positive feedback loop, whereby the more who are affected by it, the more likely other people are to be affected by it too.[7][9]

A new concept that is originally promoted by only a single advocate or a minimal group of advocates can quickly grow and become widely popular, even when sufficient supporting evidence is lacking. What happens is that a new concept gains a small following, which grows until it reaches a critical mass, until for example it begins being covered by mainstream media, at which point a large-scale bandwagon effect begins, which causes more people to support this concept, in increasingly large numbers. This can be seen as a result of the availability cascade, a self-reinforcing process through which a certain belief gains increasing prominence in public discourse.[9]

The bandwagon effect can take place in voting:[15] it occurs on an individual scale where a voters opinion on vote preference can be altered due to the rising popularity of a candidate[16] or a policy position.[17] The aim for the change in preference is for the voter to end up picking the "winner's side" in the end.[18] Voters are more so persuaded to do so in elections that are non-private or when the vote is highly publicised.[19]

The bandwagon effect has been applied to situations involving majority opinion, such as political outcomes, where people alter their opinions to the majority view.[20] Such a shift in opinion can occur because individuals draw inferences from the decisions of others, as in an informational cascade.[21]

Perceptions of popular support may affect the choice of activists about which parties or candidates to support by donations or voluntary work in campaigns. They may strategically funnel these resources to contenders perceived as well supported and thus electorally viable, thereby enabling them to run more powerful, and thus more influential campaigns.[12]

American economist Gary Becker has argued that the bandwagon effect is powerful enough to flip the demand curve to be upward sloping. A typical demand curve is downward sloping—as prices rise, demand falls. However, according to Becker, an upward sloping would imply that even as prices rise, the demand rises.[7]

The bandwagon effect comes about in two ways in financial markets.

First, through price bubbles: these bubbles often happen in financial markets in which the price for a particularly popular security keeps on rising. This occurs when many investors line up to buy a security bidding up the price, which in return attracts more investors. The price can rise beyond a certain point, causing the security to be highly overvalued.[7]

Second is liquidity holes: when unexpected news or events occur, market participants will typically stop trading activity until the situation becomes clear. This reduces the number of buyers and sellers in the market, causing liquidity to decrease significantly. The lack of liquidity leaves price discovery distorted and causes massive shifts in asset prices, which can lead to increased panic, which further increases uncertainty, and the cycle continues.[7]

In microeconomics, bandwagon effects may play out in interactions of demand and preference.[22] The bandwagon effect arises when people's preference for a commodity increases as the number of people buying it increases. Consumers may choose their product based on others' preferences believing that it is the superior product. This selection choice can be a result of directly observing the purchase choice of others or by observing the scarcity of a product compared to its competition as a result of the choice previous consumers have made. This scenario can also be seen in restaurants where the number of customers in a restaurant can persuade potential diners to eat there based on the perception that the food must be better than the competition due to its popularity.[4] This interaction potentially disturbs the normal results of the theory of supply and demand, which assumes that consumers make buying decisions exclusively based on price and their own personal preference.[7]

Decisions made by medical professionals can also be influenced by the bandwagon effect. Particularly, the widespread use and support of now-disproven medical procedures throughout history can be attributed to their popularity at the time. Layton F. Rikkers (2002), professor emeritus of surgery at the University of Wisconsin–Madison,[23] calls these prevailing practices medical bandwagons, which he defines as "the overwhelming acceptance of unproved but popular [medical] ideas."[10]

Medical bandwagons have led to inappropriate therapies for numerous patients, and have impeded the development of more appropriate treatment.[24]

One paper from 1979 on the topic of bandwagons of medicine describes how a new medical concept or treatment can gain momentum and become mainstream, as a result of a large-scale bandwagon effect:[25]

• The news media finds out about a new treatment and publicizes it, often by publishing pieces.
• Various organizations, such as government agencies, research foundations, and private companies also promote the new treatment, typically because they have some vested interest in seeing it succeed.
• The public picks up on the now-publicized treatment, and pressures medical practitioners to adopt it, especially when that treatment is perceived as being novel.
• Doctors often want to accept the new treatment, because it offers a compelling solution to a difficult issue.
• Since doctors have to consume large amounts of medical information in order to stay aware of the latest trends in their field, it is sometimes difficult for them to read new material in a sufficiently critical manner.

One who supports a particular sports team, despite having shown no interest in that team until it started gaining success, can be considered a "bandwagon fan."[26]

As an increasing number of people begin to use a specific social networking site or application, people are more likely to begin using those sites or applications. The bandwagon effect also affects random people that which posts are viewed and shared.[27]

This research used bandwagon effects to examine the comparative impact of two separate bandwagon heuristic indicators (quantitative vs. qualitative) on changes in news readers' attitudes in an online comments section. Furthermore, Study 1 demonstrated that qualitative signals had a higher influence on news readers' judgments than quantitative clues. Additionally, Study 2 confirmed the results of Study 1 and showed that people's attitudes are influenced by apparent public opinion, offering concrete proof of the influence that digital bandwagons.[28]

The bandwagon effect can also affect the way the masses dress and can be responsible for clothing trends. People tend to want to dress in a manner that suits the current trend and will be influenced by those who they see often – normally celebrities. Such publicised figures will normally act as the catalyst for the style of the current period. Once a small group of consumers attempt to emulate a particular celebrity's dress choice more people tend to copy the style due to the pressure or want to fit in and be liked by their peers.