I picked up this book after seeing it referenced on somebody’s “must read” list, and then again seeing it used as a teaching aid for a negotiation course that I am teaching. I read the fifth edition, but I do hope it will be updated in the future.
In short, this book explains why so many people use certain techniques to get you to comply with their requests. Cialdini calls these people “compliance professionals” and leaves it up to you whether to consider it a duragatory label or not. This book shows clear evidence and background for the assertions within (the author is a professor of psychology with a focus on social psychology) and he outlines many interesting studies that reinforce his points.
He explains why humans behave the way they do when responding to requests for compliance, and gives thorough descriptions of the main “weapons” of social influence (and also defenses that we can employ).
Throughout this book I found myself remembering instances in my own life when I faced these situations, and it was surprising how commonly these “weapons” are used. I guess that was what struck me the most: I had expected the science of influence to be a bit more sophisticated than it is.
Granted, the world has changed, and I think an updated version exploring the age of misinformation, cult leadership, and social media influence (and influencers) would be informative. As the author writes in his book, the world is filling up with more information at an accelerating rate, and we need the right skills to process the input we’re getting (or even to decide whether to process it in the first place).
This was an educational book for me. Thoughtfully included were some summaries at the end of each chapter which will be helpful later on to quickly refresh what I picked up.
On a side note, living in Japan I have noticed that several of these “weapons” of influence are much rarer than in the United States. It is interesting that different cultures have different susceptibilities when it comes to how they are influenced.
Next I’m headed back into the fantasy realm, with The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison.
