Persuasion Fall 2013 Computer Science TA Orientation Persuasion

Persuasion Fall 2013 Computer Science TA Orientation

Persuasion – what is it? • Influencing or convincing another person to • agree with an opinion • perform a desired action

Source • Dr. Robert Cialdini • Influence • https: //www. youtube. com/user/influenceatwork? feature=watch video with animation • http: //www. influenceatwork. com/ home page • https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=c. Fd. Cz. N 7 RYbw Science of Persuasion

How does this apply to me / my class? • What are we trying to persuade our students • to do? • to believe? • What are we “selling” to our students?

Some answers to those questions • the idea that this course is going to be useful to them • that they can program • that they can do this without cheating • that they will learn to program in this class • That they can do this assignment • That they should start assignments early • That they can get assignments in on time

1. Reciprocation • obligation to give back when you receive • favors / invitations • makes society function! • what “gifts” can we give our students? • • • hints small extensions bonus “Magic Excuses” Please get them approved first – so everyone gets them!

#2 Scarcity • People want more of things they can have less of • What resource do we have which is scarce? • time! office hours! emailed answers! • make this fact clear to the students • Don’t assume you can email me at midnight and get an answer in 10 minutes • What will they lose if they don’t use your available help?

#3 Authority / Expertise • People follow credible knowledgeable experts • Spend a little time at the first class describing your experience (establish your credentials) • you could describe how you learned to program • follow the guidance in other slide show – don’t fake it if you don’t know • Tell them a little about some of the programs you have written • I will give you a boost in lecture “the TEAM who teaching CS 115”

4. Consistency • People like to be consistent with their prior behavior • try to get a small agreement, a small favor first • when asking for more, person will be more willing to do it because they had already done the first one • “Please read the next chapter” - small task • “and do the homework at the end” – larger task

#5 Liking • People are more willing to do things for people who are like themselves • We like people who • similar to us • give us compliments • cooperate with us • Ask students in teams to get to know each other

6. Social pressure / Consensus • People look at what other people do/think • Inform students what percentage of the students in the class • got their homework in on time • got over 80% on a program assignment • were on time for lab meetings

Think • Think of other ways to apply these tactics to your classes • How do these tactics work on you? • When do you see these tactics in real life?