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influence
A small request makes you agree to more.
A 1966 study found that homeowners were four times more likely to agree to a large, ugly sign in their yard if they had previously agreed to a small, inconsequential request.
The foot-in-the-door phenomenon happens because you have an internal drive to be consistent. Once you perform a small act of compliance, you shift your self-perception to match your actions, making larger requests harder to refuse.
Your self-image is being manipulated by your own past behavior.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Freedman and Fraser, 1966, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
- What the check found
- The 'ugly sign' study (Freedman & Fraser, 1966) is a landmark in psychology. The 17% to 76% result supports the claim of a ~4.5x increase, but the quote is missing from the provided reference material.
- Confidence
- Contested
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.