Sequential Persuasion Strategies: Testing Explanations for and the Generality of the Legitimization of Paltry Favors Effect

Abstract

The legitimization of paltry favors effect (LPF) is a sequential persuasion tactic whereby small contributions toward some overall compliance-gaining goal are linguistically minimized. An experiment was conducted to test whether self-presentation concerns or barrier removal better explains the LPF. Participants (N = 145) were approached and asked to volunteer for international student programs. Message strategy (LPF/no LPF) and beneficiary party (first-person/third-person) were varied. The data revealed neither main effects for message strategy or beneficiary party, nor any interaction between these variables. Results question the generality of the LPF, as well as the appropriateness of utilizing the LPF in volunteer solicitation efforts. Limitations and implications are discussed.

Keywords:

• Compliance Gaining
• Legitimization of Paltry Favors
• Sequential Persuasion

Acknowledgments

The authors listed after Jayson Dibble contributed equally to this research and are therefore listed alphabetically.

This paper was presented at the 2011 annual meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA.

Notes

Note. Numbers in parentheses are percentages of participants complying with the request to volunteer within each condition. Ratios express frequency of “yes” responses to the total number of participants within that condition. Total N = 142.

Empathy and perspective taking were measured to facilitate a more thorough replication of Takada and Levine's (2008) study. However, these variables were dropped from the analyses because of inadequate reliability indices.

If the LPF is to replicate, compliance rates when using the LPF should exceed compliance rates without the LPF. This solicitor generated 36.8% (7/19) compliance when using the LPF and 55.5% (10/18) compliance when no LPF tag was used. Therefore, even a cursory inspection of her data revealed no evidence of the effectiveness of the LPF strategy.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jayson L. Dibble

Jayson L. Dibble (PhD, Michigan State University, 2008) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communicology at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa where the remaining authors are master's students.