An examination of self-perception mediation of the foot-in-the-door effect

Bibliographic Data

ID6207634
AuthorsWilliam Dejong (0000-0003-4964-0466, Brandeis University, corresponding author)
Year1979
Volume37
Issue12
Pages2221-2239
Publication date1979-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Personality and Social Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-3514 • E-ISSN: 1939-1315
PublisherAmerican Psychological Association (APA) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1037//0022-3514.37.12.2221
OpenAlexW4242656173
LanguageEN
Citations received46
References cited26

In 1966, Freedman and Fraser demonstrated that an individual is more likely to comply with a large request for help if that person has previously agreed to an initial small request—a phenomenon they called the "foot-in-the-door " ef-fect. In the present survey, studies that have sought to replicate the foot-in-the-door effect are reviewed. The adequacy of a self-perception explanation for the foot-in-the-door effect is assessed by examining (a) the importance of the size of the initial request; (b) the effect of noncompliance with the initial re-quest; (c) the impact of salient external justifications for the initial act of compliance; (d) the impact of social labels on subsequent levels of compliance; and (e) attempts at actually measuring changes in self-perception. Alternative explanations of the foot-in-the-door effect are considered and rejected, and di-rections for future research are outlined. In 1966 Freedman and Fraser tested the notion that once an individual has complied with a small, sometimes trivial request, that person will be more likely to comply with a larger and more substantial demand made in the future—an effect they christened the "foot-in-the-door " phenomenon. During the last 12 years, social psychologists have con-tinued to be fascinated by those results. How is it that the simple act of assenting to a small request for help can dramatically increase, even double, the probability of a person's agreeing to give help in the future? Because the foot-in-the-door paradigm has become an important vehicle by which to study the link between self-concept and be-havior, it is important to take a step back and ask some basic questions about the progress of this research: (a) Is the foot-in-the-door Preparation of this article was supported in part

Cognitive psychology · Foot (prosody · Mediation · Perception · Social perception · Emotions and Moral Behavior · Law · Psychology · Psychology of Social Influence · Social Psychology · Stalking, Cyberstalking, and Harassment · Virtual Reality Applications and Impacts

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub