Compliments: We are phenomenal "suckers for flattery" and tend to believe praise, even if it's clearly false, and like those who provide it.

Joe Girard: World's "greatest car salesman" sent "I like you" cards to customers monthly.

Contact and Cooperation: Increased familiarity through repeated contact often leads to increased liking, especially when contact involves cooperation toward common goals.

School Desegregation: Simple contact (busing) often increased prejudice when competitive environments fostered hostilities. However, cooperative learning (e.g., "jigsaw classroom") increased liking and reduced prejudice.
Good Cop/Bad Cop: The "Good Cop" gains the suspect's liking by appearing to be on their side and cooperating, making them more likely to confess.

Conditioning and Association: We tend to like people or things that are associated with positive things (even if the association is superficial) and dislike those associated with negative things.

Example: Ancient Persian messengers bringing bad news were killed.
Weathermen: Often blamed for bad weather, even though they only report it.
Celebrity Endorsements: Products are linked to popular figures to transfer positive feelings.
Luncheon Technique: People become fonder of people and things experienced while eating.

How to Say No:

Focus on the request itself, separating it from feelings about the requester.
Be alert to a sense of "undue liking" for a compliance professional – if you like them more than expected under the circumstances, it's a signal to evaluate the offer critically.
Mentally separate the requester from the merits of their offer.

5. Authority: Directed Deference

Principle: We tend to obey authority figures, even if their commands conflict with our moral compass.
Efficiency: Obedience to authority is often a sensible shortcut for making decisions, as authorities often possess greater knowledge and power.
Vulnerability: We can be exploited when this automatic obedience is triggered by mere symbols of authority, rather than genuine authority.
- Milgram Experiment: Subjects were willing to deliver increasingly severe electric shocks to a "Learner" (confederate) when instructed by an "Experimenter" (authority figure in a lab coat), even when the Learner expressed extreme pain.
- Rectal Earache: A nurse administered ear drops rectally because the doctor's prescription said "place in R ear," illustrating mindless deference to authority.
Symbols of Authority: These can trigger automatic compliance even in the absence of genuine authority.
1. Titles: (e.g., Doctor, Professor, President).
  - Example: A man introduced as a "professor" was perceived as taller than when introduced as a "student."
  - Can make people seem more credible and knowledgeable.
2. Clothes: Uniforms (e.g., security guard, police) and expensive business suits can convey authority and status.
  - Example: People were more likely to comply with requests from someone dressed as a security guard.
  - Jaywalking Experiment: People were more likely to follow a jaywalker dressed in a business suit.