Influence: The psychology of persuasion review

Hey guys, havent posted in a while again, so let’s break the silence with this great piece “Influence: The psychology of persuasion” by Robert B. Chialdini.

The content of “Influence: The psychology of persuasion” includes 6 persuasion principles. 
We are primed to comply to them by nature, that is not to say that they are impossible to resist, but, they’re highly effective.
 
The awareness to those techniques could be used both to resist and apply them.

Decision factors

It was written by a Ph.D. in social psychology and a professor at the subjects of Psychology, business and marketing.
It is praised by Warren Buffet and Charlie Munger and many great others.
It is one of the influencing cornerstones in the industry meaning that many of the books in the field quote the principles and examples given here.
I didn’t need much more in order to decide that’s my next book.

Influence: The psychology of persuasion? What does it really contain?

Now that the praise for the book is finished, I’ll tell you what the book was like.
 
The principles discussed are ( definitions taken from amazon summary ):
  1. Reciprocation: The internal pull to repay what another person has provided us.
  2. Commitment and Consistency: Once we make a choice or take a stand, we work to behave consistently with that commitment in order to justify our decisions.
  3. Social Proof: When we are unsure, we look to similar others to provide us with the correct actions to take. And the more people undertaking that action, the more we consider that action correct.
  4. Liking: The propensity to agree with people we like and, just as important, the propensity for others to agree with us, if we like them.
  5. Authority: We are more likely to say “yes” to others who are authorities, who carry greater knowledge, experience or expertise.
  6. Scarcity: We want more of what is less available or dwindling in availability.
 
 

Example stories of the principles

Social Proof:
As I have listened to the book, I began understanding why I make certain decisions better.
At one case I even learned a method that could one day save my life ( In chapter of social proof ).
 
That info came to me through a case study on a murder that occurred in the middle of a big city in the U.S. 
When the crime was being committed 38 people were watching and didn’t do as much as move a finger or call the police to help the victim.
How could such an unimaginable thing happen?
And how do we make sure that a person indeed helps us in case of an emergency with all that indifference?
 
Reciprocation:
A case study about a town which took a mass suicide on the command of a religious leader.
What could make a mass of people listen to a certain person in such an extremist manner?
 
Consistency:
How American war prisoners that fought and spilled blood and tears for America were turned into pro Japanese. How those prisoners were quoted in the newspaper with pro Japanese sayings.
 
That and lots of other outrageous stories you’ll find in “Influence: The psychology of persuasion”.

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