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April 16, 2026Entropy3 citationsOpen Access

Ratio-Dependent Contrarian Activation in Opinion Dynamics

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SGSerge Galam

Key Points

  • This research aims to explore the role of mixed contrarians in shaping opinion dynamics within groups using the Galam Majority Model.
  • Utilized the Galam Majority Model to analyze opinion dynamics.
  • Incorporated two types of contrarians based on group size ratios (c3,0 and c2,1).
  • Derived explicit update equations for opinion changes and calculated fixed points and their stability.
  • Identified conditions under which majority/minority outcomes are achieved based on initial support ratios.
  • Demonstrated the dynamics can lead to a fifty/fifty outcome, indicating random winners.
  • Recovery of original results with uniform contrarians when c3,0 equals c2,1.

Abstract

I study the impact of mixed contrarians on the opinion dynamics of a heterogenous population with conformists using the Galam Majority Model. Activation of contrarians is a function of the majority/minority ratio in the local groups of discussion. Restricting the group size to 3, two types of contrarians are included in respective proportions c3,0 for configurations with ratio 3 to 0 and c2,1 for ratio 2 to 1. I then derive the explicit update equation and analytically obtain the fixed points, their stability, and the resulting full two-dimensional landscape of the dynamics of opinion. Setting c3,0=c2,1=c recovers the original results obtained with uniform contrarians. The findings allow for considering a wide spectrum of new disruptive strategies to secure either a majority/minority ending ensuring the opinion having the larger initial support to win, or a single attractor dynamics at fifty/fifty, which implies a random winner regardless of initial supports.

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Cite This Study

Serge Galam (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69e07c632f7e8953b7cbdab4https://doi.org/10.3390/e28040443
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