Experiment no.1
Group Builders Non-builders
Task 1. Create an origami crane or an origami frog
2. Bid on their product between 0 and 100 cents
3. Bid on the experts’ product
1. Bid on the builders’ product
2. Bid on the experts’ product
Bids for builders’ creations
$0.23 $0.05
2011 - Michael I. Norton, Daniel Mochon, Dan Ariely
Involve users in the creation process as it can lead to higher willingness-to-pay
Take away message:
Experiment no. 2
Group No. 1 No. 2 Control
Task 1. Spend an hour on extremely boring tasks
2. Talk to another subject (actually an actor) and convince him that the tasks were interesting and engaging.
Same as group no.1
1. Spend an hour on extremely boring tasks
Reward $1 (equivalent to $8 in present day terms)
$20 (equivalent to $162 in
present day terms)
-
Rating Tasks:
More + than group no. 2 and the control group
- -
1959 - Festinger & Carlsmith
Cognitive Dissonance
"I told someone that the task was interesting“
Vs.
"I actually found it boring."
• The $20 condition => an obvious external justification => less dissonance
• The $1 group => no other justification.
fun
“This must be worthwhile because I’ve spent time on it!
And now that I’ve kicked in $20, it must be valuable because only an idiot would kick in $20 if it wasn’t!”
Take away message:
• When making a purchase, players know it is unwise to spend money.
• But, they justify their purchases to help convince themselves that they are not foolish.
• The only solution is to keep paying to keep playing.
Experiment no.3
1997 Fogg, BJ, & Nass, C.
Group No. 1 No. 2
Task 1 Answer a series of questions with the help of computers
Computers Helpful when answering participants’ question
Unhelpful, offering unclear answers
Task 2 Switched roles and the machines began asking the people for assistance with their questions.
Results Performed almost twice as
much work for their machines
People vs. Machines
• Mutual give and take is also observed when humans interact with machines.
• We invest in products and services for the same reasons we put effort into our relationships.
Take away message:
You have the opportunity to leverage this central trait of human behavior – reciprocity.
Ask for an investment in your product after the reward.
Wrap-up
1. We Irrationally Value Our Efforts.
2. We Avoid Cognitive Dissonance.
3. We Give Back (Even To Machines).