Cialdini and Carnegie: Six principles of persuasion in psychology

¶ … psychology and on the subtopic of persuasion. This author has decided to pursue this topic because of the importance of understanding the subject of persuasion. It is used in everything from sales to simply convincing someone of your opinion. While the works of individuals like Robert B. Cialdini have been trailblazers in our historical memories, it is the opinion of this author that in many ways Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People is still one of the best. While not a clinical psychologist, Carnegie was self-taught in many ways in psychology and like Cialdini gathered his observations from years of on the job and on the spot observations that are attested to by the continued reliance upon his book and principles as taught worldwide by the Dale Carnegie Institute.

Recent Discoveries/Developments

Robert B. Cialdini and Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion

One of the most influential psychology text on the art of persuasion was by Robert B. Cialdini in Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. In three years that Dr. Cialdini spent researching and writing the book, he went "undercover" applying for training and jobs and training at used car dealerships, telemarketing companies and fund-raising organizations in order to observe many real-life situations of persuasion in order to put together a set of commonalities upon which to establish a group of universal principles. Additionally, the book reviews some of the most important experiments theories and experiments in social psychology (Cialdini, 2006, xi-xiv). In the book, he posits six universal laws of persuasion. These principles may work independently, together or at different rates during the persuasive relationship.

These laws are as follows:

1) Reciprocity-People feel a sense of obligation to give back to other people who have benefited or given to them (ibid., 17). This sense of obligation can be exploited to keep the person coming back by continually benefiting them.

2) Social Proof-People decide what they should or will do by duplicating and observing the conduct of other people (ibid., 114). This is sort of like "keeping up with the Jones family" and is a status issue.

3) Authority-People rely upon those who have perceived superior knowledge in the way of guidance regarding what decision(s) should be made. These kind of people need to be told what to do by someone they see as an expert.

4) Consistency-Once a person has made a choice or taken a stand, they encounter personal and interpersonal pressure to behave consistently with that commitment of purpose (ibid., 57). Most people will not resist this pressure and are convinced after the initial persuasion.

5) Scarcity-Opportunities will appear more valuable to a person when they are less available to them as choices (ibid., 237). Absence does seem to make the heart grow fonder, even if outside of romance.

6) Liking-People often prefer to say "yes" to those they know and like in their lives (ibid., 167). As we will see earlier, this is spot on in terms of the approach of Dale Carnegie.

One might think that such prognostications about persuasive psychology would simply be the province of American business schools. However, it was the subject of a 2012 course at the James Boswell Institute of the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands. The description of the course "From delivering the most engaging speech in the limelight to brokering the best possible deal behind the scenes to inspiring your audience, you need to be able to do it all if you ever want to reach the top.

How do you get other people to do what you would like them to do? This course focuses on everything from personal speaking skills to mediation and from negotiation to inspirational leadership. Learn how to become a leader in discussions and debates, and bring people together in a common vision.

After completing this program you will be a better speaker, a more formidable negotiator and a leader who can inspire others." While this is for an English course, most of the same principles are happening as there was in Cialdini's research, so it does appear that there are commonalities that can be applied across the spectrum ("Powers of persuasion," 2012).

Personal Opinion of this Author on the Topic

As stated in the introduction, this author believes in the superiority of the Dale Carnegie approach. The success of the method worldwide speaks volumes for it in terms of its ability to teach people how to success in sales, marketing and persuasive speaking. Truly, the ability of a person to connect on a personal level is at the basis of many of Cialdini's findings and are simply variations on these themes set own by Carnegie in 1936. Also, while a common person who is not so versed in psychology and its doctrines be intimidated by the Cialdini approach, it is much more natural to ingest the Carnegie message easily and to remember it. As they internalize it, then they should immerse themselves in the Cialdini approach in order to round out their approach to the subject of persuasive psychology and its study and use as a tool in so many fields.

Conclusion

To sum up, the author wrote a short social science topic paper/essay that falls within the field of psychology and on the subtopic of persuasion. This author has decided to pursue this topic because of the importance of understanding the subject of persuasion. It is such a useful tool and is used in everything from sales to simply convincing someone of your opinion. It has universal implications. By first mastering the Carnegie approach and then that of Robert B. Cialdini, it is certain that almost anyone can succeed in the art of psychological persuasion. The works of these two specialists is central to the curriculum of many classes dealing with the business applications of the psychology of persuasion across the spectrum.