Paper Topic:

Social Psychology

Running Head : SEQUENTIAL REQUEST STRATEGIES

The Foot in the Door Technique

The Foot in the Door Technique

The field of persuasion is said to be one of the most interesting , if not controversial s in the field of social psychology . Not only does it constitute a big bulk of our social interaction (such as asking favors ) but it also involves issues raging from advertising , public service announcements and even wartime propaganda . As such , persuasion figures and is studied under the broader concept of social influence in which the causes for human

change - in terms of attitude , beliefs and behavior - are examined . For instance , persuasion deals with effecting changes in our attitudes towards something or someone (Dugan , 2003

Persuasion is defined by Dugan (2003 ) as a form of power to effect or induce change in another individual through the exclusive use of symbols such as words . In the article entitled Persuasion , Dugan (2003 suggested that the thrust of the article should be on examining changes in people 's behaviors since the accompanying changes in beliefs and attitudes are taken to subsume the former (behavioral change

To be persuasive however , is a different matter altogether . People who often rely on persuasion in their line of work (i . e . salesmen ) find it imperative to know and learn about the different principles which operate behind the said concept . In the book entitled Influence : Science and Practice by Robert Cialdini (as cited from Dugan , 2003 the author names and discusses some of these principles . In the book , Cialdini found that people from all cultures tend to return favors and he consequently referred to this tendency as the law of reciprocity Another principle on the other hand stresses the fact that people tend to behave in ways that will conform to other people 's expectations Social proof is yet another principle . This states that people could take or not take action depending upon the behaviors that they observe on other people . Liking the person who would want to persuade you to take a particular course of action is also one important principle to be considered . For example , people are more likely to be influenced by someone they like . Authority figures also often elicit more positive responses in their persuasive efforts than do people who are not perceived as having authority . Lastly , persuasion could be effective and often successful in circumstances where opportunities are limited and scarce . This principle termed as the scarcity principle , often compels people to do things that they would not do otherwise (Dugan , 2003

The enumeration of the principles behind persuasion incontrovertibly leads to the citation of some of the most commonly used persuasive strategies . Sequential requests such as the Foot in the Door Technique (FITD ) and the Door in the Face Technique (DITF ) have now merited academic attention because of their usefulness in everyday situations These strategies which are often consisting of persuasive statements and requests rely heavily on the specific in which they are to be carried out (Straker , 2007...

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