| The Foot-in-the-Door Technique
There are a number of compliance techniques in psychology. One of these compliance techniques is the foot-in-the-door technique. What is the foot-in-the-door technique?
The Foot-in-the-Door Technique Definition:
The foot-in-the-door technique involves making an initial smaller request before making a larger request.
The Foot-in-the-Door Technique Example:
For example, a solicitor could first ask a person to sign a petition. Then, a few weeks later the solicitor could ask the person to make a donation.
Research Findings Concerning Charitable Donations:
There are a number of studies concerning the foot-in-the door technique and charitable donations. For example, Schwarzwald, Bizman, and Raz (1983) investigated the effectiveness of the foot-in-the-door technique for door-to-door fundraising. In their study, some of the participants were first asked to sign a petition before being asked to make a donation to the organization (foot-in-the-door condition). Others were not asked to sign a petition before making a donation (control condition). The request to sign a petition was made two weeks prior to the request to make a donation. They found that a greater percentage of people made a donation in the foot-in-the-door condition than in the control condition. Also, they found that making the small request to sign a petition resulted in more money being donated than not making this request.
The findings from scientific studies on the foot-in-the-door technique have been mixed. Although some studies have found that the foot-in-the-door technique can increase donations, other studies found no statistically significant effect for the foot-in-the-door technique on donations (see Bell, 2003).
Nonetheless, it may be good to use the foot-in-the-door technique in fundrasing. It may be a good fundraising method.
Bell, B. (2003). The Social Psychology of Fundraising (4th
ed.). Portland, Oregon: Blue Fox Communications.
Schwarzwald, J., Bizman, A., & Raz, M. (1983). The Foot-
in-the-Door Paradigm: Effects of a Second Request Size
on Donation Probability and Donor Generosity.
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 9, 443-450.