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Title: Influence (rev) : The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini ISBN: 0-688-12816-5 Publisher: Quill Pub. Date: 07 October, 1998 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.66 (128 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Excellent! Highly recommended.
Comment: This book is primarily about how marketers and sales professional manipulate our minds for their benefits. The topics covered are extensive, including contrast principle, mimic tricks of photuris/blenny, rule for reciprocation, reciprocal concessions (rejection then retreat technique), consistency (willingness to believe in the correctness of a difficult choice, once made), foot in the door technique, committing power of public/written statements, manipulation and exploitation of customers' self image, principle of social proof (draw of the crowd vs pluralistic ignorance when people feel most uncertain and unfamiliar), effect of repeated contact on liking (condition dependent), application of common goals for conflict solving, good cop/bad cop ploy, conditioning and association, the strength of authority pressure, scarcity principle (limited freedom to something makes it more desirable), Romeo and Juliet effect, etc etc. What makes it so outstanding from it's kind is that 1) it's so well written with many vivid examples and few jargons that most readers with no or little psychology background can enjoy it much. 2)In the end of each chapter there's a section named "how to say no", something you seldom find in other psychology book. That's certainly a plus coz knowledge without application amounts to nothing.
In a word, a page turner and a must read particulary for everything in the city jungle.
Remarks: I like the opening adages of some chapters much. To quote some:
Chapter 3 Committment and Consistency: It is easier to resist at the beginning than at the end. Da Vinci
Chapter 4 Influence: Where all think alike, no one thinks very much. Lippmann
Chapter 5 Liking: The main work of a trial attorney is to make a jury like his client. Darrow
Chapter 7: The way to love anything is to realize that it might be lost. G.K. Chesterton
Rating: 4
Summary: Useful and interesting.
Comment: *Influence: the Psychology of Persuasion* is one of the most useful books I have read in a long time. Its author, Robert Cialdini, a psychology professor at Arizona State University, applies his technical background to the task of explaining in everyday terms a subject that impacts all of us: persuasion, and the psychological principles that make it work. Sales professionals are a natural audience for this book; they will find in it the explicit theory and scientific research behind what they have already been doing for years by instinct and trial-and-error. For the rest of us, this book is a powerful defense against those manipulators who seek to exploit our psychological vulnerabilities to get us to comply with their desires.
Cialdini's basic theoretical perspective is that, to deal with a complex world, our brains have automatized responses to various phenomena. In the long-run and in general, these mental mechanisms are practical tools, enabling us to live in society harmoniously and to make decisions quickly and with minimal effort. In specific cases, however, they can misfire, leading to bad decisions. Hence our vulnerability to people who know how these mechanisms work when we do not.
After introducing his subject, the author tackles six of these "weapons of influence" in six chapters. He first explains what they are and how they are used, utilizing personal anecdotes, scientific studies and vivid real life examples to make his case. Much of this is fascinating stuff. For example, according to Cialdini, some of the very techniques advertisers and salespeople use today were used during the Korean War to seduce American POWs into collaborating with their Chinese captors. And the Hare Krishna Society, its fundraising efforts in the 1960s frought with public relations problems, owed its dramatic turnaround in the 1970s to the adoption of solicitation tactics based on shrewd psychology. Cialdini then rounds off each chapter by suggesting what we can do to defend ourselves. He is not a behavioral determinist; half of not falling prey to our unconscious responses is simply being aware that they exist and then taking action to circumvent them or to leverage them in our favor.
For the record, I must state that this book is not perfect. Cialdini sometimes interprets human psychology in ways that I do not believe are warranted given the studies he cites. But endnotes and an ample bibliography are included for readers who are interested in doing further research. Taken with a grain of salt, I believe *Influence* is a worthy read--whether you are a sales professional, or someone who is unwilling to be an easy mark for one.
Rating: 5
Summary: Great book which can help you a lot
Comment: What I can say in simple words... Ono of the best books I have ever read. Cialdini is highly seasoned professional.
Shiloh
also fan of motivational book you can view at amazon.com
The Rainbow Butterfly
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Title: The Psychology of Persuasion: How to Persuade Others to Your Way of Thinking by Kevin Hogan ISBN: 1565541464 Publisher: Pelican Pub Co Pub. Date: January, 2003 List Price(USD): $22.00 |
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Title: Get Anyone to Do Anything : Never Feel Powerless Again--With Psychological Secrets to Control and Influence Every Situation by David J. Lieberman ISBN: 0312270178 Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin Pub. Date: 11 May, 2001 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene ISBN: 0140280197 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: 05 September, 2000 List Price(USD): $17.00 |
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Title: Never Be Lied To Again : How to Get the Truth In 5 Minutes Or Less In Any Conversation Or Situation by David J. Lieberman ISBN: 0312204280 Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin Pub. Date: 10 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: The Art of Seduction by Robert Greene ISBN: 0142001198 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: 07 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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