What are the reasons behind our decision to say ‘yes’ to a request? Are we making that decision out of our own free will or are there some hidden ‘compliance tactics’ at play? When and how do such compliance tactics work and how can we say ‘no’ to safeguard our own best interests?
These are some of the themes explored by Marketing and Psychology professor Dr. Robert B. Cialdini in his bestselling page turner of a book “Influence – The Psychology of Persuasion”.
I will admit it – once I started reading the book, I was hooked. Every time Dr. Cialdini introduced a new compliance tactic and brilliantly explained how it worked, I couldn’t help but curse myself if I had been a victim of such a trick in the past. Of course, I used to think, how can I be such an idiot?
From political shakedowns such as the Watergate Scandal, the Korean War, Jonestown Mass Suicides etc. to simple psychological experiments conducted on every day tom, dick and harry exposing our automatic obedience to authority, ‘Influence’ is full of revealing research studies that gives the reader a glimpse of how Influence is wielded by its most adept practitioners in real life situations.
These are some of the themes explored by Marketing and Psychology professor Dr. Robert B. Cialdini in his bestselling page turner of a book “Influence – The Psychology of Persuasion”.
I will admit it – once I started reading the book, I was hooked. Every time Dr. Cialdini introduced a new compliance tactic and brilliantly explained how it worked, I couldn’t help but curse myself if I had been a victim of such a trick in the past. Of course, I used to think, how can I be such an idiot?
From political shakedowns such as the Watergate Scandal, the Korean War, Jonestown Mass Suicides etc. to simple psychological experiments conducted on every day tom, dick and harry exposing our automatic obedience to authority, ‘Influence’ is full of revealing research studies that gives the reader a glimpse of how Influence is wielded by its most adept practitioners in real life situations.
My only complaint with the book would be the fact that while it introduces the reader to many new fascinating social phenomenon such as Social Proof, Psychological Reactance and the importance of self-image in fulfilling a commitment, it merely verbalizes other phenomenon which one has been practicing intuitively. I use the word ‘merely’ with much caution.
Take for example the Rejection-then-Retreat technique:
“Suppose you want me to agree to a certain request. One way to increase your chances would be to first make a larger request of me, one that I will most likely turn down. Then, after I have refused, you would make the smaller request that you were interested in all along. Provided that you’ve structured your requests skilfully, I should view your 2nd request as a concession to me and should feel inclined to respond with a concession of my own – compliance with your 2nd request.”
As someone who has participated in many negotiation scenarios, this is a no-brainer for me, you don’t blurt out what you want at the very start – it is no longer a negotiation then. Having said that, the different examples in which this technique is used do add value to its verbalization. Still, I wish Dr. Cialdini would have reserved that space for a better phenomenon.
If I had to pin-point the one feature that makes the book worth reading, then I would unhesitatingly point to the ‘How to Say No’ parts given at the end of each chapter. What makes the book valuable is not that it has incredibly detailed research on the most persuasive compliance tactics being used out there, but that it also includes counter-strategies.
I hate to be cheated. Dr. Cialdini shares my hate. That’s why, I suppose, he wrote this book. Read it and you won’t help but feel a little cleverer than before.
If I had to pin-point the one feature that makes the book worth reading, then I would unhesitatingly point to the ‘How to Say No’ parts given at the end of each chapter. What makes the book valuable is not that it has incredibly detailed research on the most persuasive compliance tactics being used out there, but that it also includes counter-strategies.
I hate to be cheated. Dr. Cialdini shares my hate. That’s why, I suppose, he wrote this book. Read it and you won’t help but feel a little cleverer than before.
