As soon as we feel the tide of emotional arousal that flows from scarcity
influences, we should use that rise in arousal as a signal to stop short.
Panicky, feverish reactions have no place in wise compliance decisions.
We need to calm ourselves and regain a rational perspective. Once that
is done, we can move to the second stage by asking ourselves why we
want the item under consideration. If the answer is that we want it
primarily for the purpose of owning it, then we should use its availab-
ility to help gauge how much we want to spend for it. However, if the
answer is that we want it primarily for its function (that is, we want
something good to drive, drink, eat, etc.), then we must remember that
the item under consideration will function equally well whether scarce
or plentiful. Quite simply, we need to recall that the scarce cookies
didn’t taste any better.
READER’S REPORTFrom a Blacksburg, Virginia, Woman
“Last Christmas I met a twenty-seven-year-old man. I was nineteen.
Although he really wasn’t my type, I went out with him—probably
because it was a status thing to date an older man—but I really didn’t
become interested in him until my folks expressed their concern about
his age. The more they got on my case about it, the more in love I be-
came. It only lasted five months, but this was about four months longer
than it would have lasted if my parents hadn’t said anything.”
Although Romeo and Juliet have long since passed away, it appears
that the “Romeo and Juliet effect” is alive and well and making regular
appearances in places like Blacksburg, Virginia.
Robert B. Cialdini Ph.D / 203