All of us try to persuade at times, and some managed to, while others don’t. New research has revealed a technique that is easy to perform and at the same time, double the chances that someone would say “yes” to the request.
Term as the ‘But you are free” technique, this simple approach simply reaffirms people’s freedom to make a choice. When we request someone to do something, we have to give them the idea that they are free to say no as well. From the study, it has been shown that people respond more positivity in the face of the technique, such as donating more to charitable causes or agree more readily to a survey.
The exact words used are not important, and even over email, this technique still has an effect, albeit somewhat reduced. The “But you are free” technique essentially panders to people’s need to have a freedom of choice to decide for themselves. When our request seems to take away such freedom, people reacts more defensively and thus become more close-minded. Moreover, respecting others’ freedom of choice has a side-effect of making them happier, thus increasing the likelihood of them acceding to the request. Great.
Category(s):Mental Health in Asia
Source material from Psyblog
