Why People are Influenced:

Moving to the critical review of the two theories, the first reason people are influenced is the motivation differences between the receiver, who is best defined by Social Judgement Theory, and the sender, who is best defined by the Jowett and O’Donnell Model. Going back to the example from the introduction, if Jill is generally sleeping well, then any received messages about a new mattress would not likely result in her buying a new mattress. In this case, Jill’s ego-involvement on the topic of sleep is low, so messages about a new mattress will likely fall within her latitudes of acceptance or noncommitment (Griffin, 172). Even though Jill’s interest in sleep is low, subtle shifts in beliefs are more easily achieved in a person without a strong belief on a topic (Griffin, 174). On the other hand, if Jill is sleeping poorly, then she is particularly interested in messages about sleeping better. Now Jill’s ego-involvement is high, so according to Social Judgement Theory it is harder to change her existing beliefs and behaviour (Griffin, 173). Therefore, even though Jill cares more about sleep, she is harder to influence because she is more ego-involved in the topic. Regardless of the receiver’s motivation, influence is possible, but the sender’s approach would be different. In the aforementioned example, Jack and the Basper advertising team would be in the role of the sender and would have their own motivations that are best described by Jowett and O’Donnell’s distinction between propaganda and persuasion. Since Jack cares about Jill’s wellbeing, his attempt to change Jill’s beliefs are persuasive in nature. To support this claim, Jowett and O’Donnell describe persuasion as a change in beliefs made in a “voluntarily fashion” because of a mutual need being fulfilled between the sender and the receiver (Jowett and O’Donnell, 21). In contrast, the Basper marketing team has a self-interest in making a sale, so the motivation is likely propaganda in nature. Jowett and O’Donnell describe propaganda as prioritizing the interests of the sender, or the sender’s organization, sometimes at the expense of the receiver (32). Therefore, why the sender is creating a message may change the outcomes for the receiver because the receiver’s needs might not be fulfilled. If the receiver is not fulfilled, then she becomes more or less ego-involved in the topic and might be prone to misunderstanding new information.

Second, people make errors of judgement because of their ego-involvement. If Jill is not very interested in sleep, then new beliefs around sleep will be easier for her to accept because of the concept of assimilation. Social Judgement Theory describes assimilation like a rubber band that snaps new ideas closer to the receiver’s beliefs than they really are (Griffin, 175). If that new information comes from propaganda, then it can be particularly influential. For example, after Jill’s chat with Jack, she decides to do some research on Google about the best mattress, and she finds a great article referring to Jack’s suggested mattress, Endless, is poorly made. Unfortunately, the website was created by the marketing team at Basper to encourage sales, even though it appears independent. Basper’s marketing team conceals their identity to create black propaganda, which is information that is wrong and from a false source (9,31). Whereas, if Jill cared about sleep, then she is more likely to assume new information contrasts her beliefs more than it does (Griffin, 175). Jill is suspicions about the site, so she looks at a few more results on her Google search. Unfortunately, Basper’s marketing team uses a gatekeeper, Google, for good advertising placement. A gatekeeper of information is not often neutral when used by propaganda (Jowett and O’Donnell, 19). A person’s ego-involvement changes how the receiver of new information understands new information and how the sender can achieve a goal, whether is it a slight change in beliefs or an action. Jill, not sure why she is so worked up about sleep, decides to ask her other friends.

Unfortunately, Jill has stumbled into the third reason why people are influenced, which is her friends and the misjudgments caused by them. First, while Social Judgement Theory calls Jill’s friends the reference group, and the Jowett and O’Donnell Model calls them the group norm, the group identity terms are interchangeable between theories. In fact, the longest lasting and most impactful changes to a person’s behaviour comes from the “social process” of reference groups (Griffin, 177). To expand with Jowett and O’Donnell, these groups are formed because of shared values, something more entrenched in a person’s identity than a simple belief or an attitude. To reduce uncertainty, people “succumb to peer pressure” and “often adopt the attitudes and behaviours of their peers” (Jowett and O’Donnell, 25). Therefore, Jill is quick to align her values and behaviours with her friends. Second, people make misjudgments because of reference groups. Jill already knows that Jack likes the Endless mattress. Nevertheless, after talking to only one more friend, Susan, who shares similar values, Jill is convinced that the Endless mattress is the way to go. Social Judgement Theory refers to this misjudgment as pluralistic ignorance or when people think others are doing or thinking something that they are not doing or thinking (Griffin, 178). In comparison, the Jowett and O’Donnell Model describe resonance as a point of commonality between people within a reference group to change the beliefs of the individuals (25). As a result, Jill’s uncritical mind looks to the thoughts and actions of the herd. Group identity is likely the most important reason why an individual is influenced.