We've briefly reviewed some background on just what attitudes are, and the components that go into them. For the rest of the module, I want to focus on some really important issues that have to do with how you change these attitudes. Because after all, that's usually a key component of your advertising or communication strategy. So in this section, I'm going to review a few of the basic dimensions that researchers have discovered that make it more likely that people will be persuaded by your messages. The first is the principle of reciprocity. We are more likely to give if first we receive that's why including money in a male survey questionnaire.
In some cases, as little as a nickel or a dime, increases the response rate compared to surveys Come without any financial incentives in the envelope. Another basic is scarcity. Like people items are more attractive when they aren't available. In one study, researchers asked people to rate the quality of chocolate chip cookies. participants who only got one cookie liked it better than to those who evaluated more of the same kind of cookie. This helps to explain why we tend to value limited edition items.
Another basic is authority we believe an authoritative source much more readily than one that is less authoritative. That explains why the American public's opinion on an issue can shift by as much as 2% when the New York Times, but not the National Enquirer runs an article about it. Yet another basic is consistency. People try not to come contradict themselves in terms of what they say and do about an issue. And a study students at an Israeli University, who solicited donations to help disabled people, double the amount they normally collected in a neighborhood. If they first asked the residents to sign a petition, supporting that cause two weeks before they actually asked for the donations.
If you're in sales, you may recognize this as the famous foot in the door technique. Liking we agree with those whom we like or admire, in a study, good looking fundraisers, raised almost twice as much as other volunteers who were not as attractive. So we talked at length in the last module about the importance of physical attractiveness. Here's a concrete example of that. And finally, consensus. In general, we consider what others do before We decide what to do.
So another study found that people are more likely to donate to a charity if they first see a list of the names of their neighbors who have already done so. So don't make the Ask without considering factors that encourage people to comply with your request.