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Social Influence
People influence each other constantly, in a variety of different ways.
Social Influence Strategies
One social influence strategy is the foot-in-the-door technique (see the
“Attitudes” section for a complete explanation). Three other strategies include
manipulating the reciprocity norm, the lowball technique, and feigned scarcity.
Manipulation of the Reciprocity Norm
The reciprocity norm is an implicit rule in many
societies that tells people they should return favors or gifts given to
them. A person or group can manipulate this norm to make it more likely that
people will buy a product or make a donation.
The Lowball Technique
The lowball technique involves making an
attractive proposition and revealing its downsides only after a person
has agreed to it.
Feigned Scarcity
Researchers have found that when something is hard to get, people want
it more. This observation is often manipulated by groups and people who want
to sell something. They imply that a product is in scarce supply, even when
it is not, in order to increase demand for it.
Elements of Persuasion
People often try to change others’ attitudes through persuasion. There are
four elements involved in persuasion: the source, the receiver, the message, and
the channel.
The Source
The person who sends a communication is called the source.
Persuasion is most successful when a source is both likable and
credible. Credible sources are those that are trustworthy or that have
expertise.
An expert source is particularly likely to increase persuasion when a
communication is ambiguous.
Sources are considered less trustworthy if they seem to have a vested
interest in persuading people. On the other hand, sources seem more
trustworthy if they provide counterarguments for their position.
The Message
A message is the content of a piece of communication. Some
messages are more persuasive than others:
- Messages that provide both arguments and counterarguments for a position are more persuasive than one-sided messages.
- Messages that arouse fear are likely to be persuasive if people think that rejecting the message will bring about a highly undesirable consequence and that accepting the message will prevent a highly undesirable consequence.
The Receiver
The target of a persuasive message is called a receiver. Certain
factors influence the persuasiveness of a message for receivers:
- If receivers are forewarned about a message, they are less likely to be persuaded by it.
- Receivers are more likely to be persuaded by messages that are compatible with their own existing attitudes.
- Receivers are less likely to be persuaded by messages that try to alter a strongly held attitude.
The Channel
The channel is the medium used to send the message. Newspapers,
television, the Internet, radio, movies, direct mail, word of mouth,
magazines, and billboard advertisements are just a few of the different
media through which people might encounter a persuasive message. The
medium can influence the persuasiveness of the message.
Means of Persuasion
Some effective means of persuading people include:
- Repetition of the message
- Endorsement of the message by an admired or attractive individual
- Association of the message with a pleasant feeling
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