Research Discovers A Trick That Motivates People To Change
Change It has never been easy, and even more so if we are not able to see the benefits that change brings us. Because it is an individual and personal process, no one can change another person if they do not want to change.
You just have to think of a father who tries to change his son by imposing rules and forcing him to be the way he wants him to be, well In many cases they have no effect because the son will look for a way to continue doing what he wants.
Change is something personal and depends on yourself.
The best way to change is when the person himself comes to visualize the negative consequences of his behavior, or when he is able to visualize the benefits. For this reason, coaching professionals are capable of empowering people in the process of change, so that they are aware of their own ability to achieve their goals and achieve positive and lasting changes in their lives, always through their own self-reflection.
Whether it’s to get in shape or to quit a harmful habit like smoking, changing behavior can be difficult Although there are many theories on how to motivate people to change, for example Prochaska and DiClemente’s Transtheoretical Model of Change, research seems to have found a way to motivate people to change. And it’s simpler than you thought!
A study published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology states that asking the perfect question can be enough to provoke change in a person. The researchers showed that a question that does not give the possibility of expressing the reasons why it accelerates the preparation of a person to carry out the change
This predisposition to change as a consequence of this type of question has been coined by the authors of the study as the “question-behavior effect.” To exemplify this, instead of telling and trying to explain to someone that they should invest in her retirement. The researchers’ theory suggests asking yourself: “Are you going to save money for your retirement?”
This question is a reminder that it is necessary to invest in retirement because otherwise one may regret it in the future, but it also causes discomfort to someone who is not saving for their retirement. In cases where the person is not engaging in healthy behavior, this type of question is really powerful
Questions are a powerful weapon for change
Questions can be powerful weapons for change. In fact, in Socrates’ time, he was already helping his disciples learn by asking them powerful questions that provoked self-reflection. What is known as the art of maieutics.
This technique consists of asking questions to a person until they discover concepts that were latent or hidden in their mind Through this dialogue, the person is invited to discover the answers on their own, and it is key to personal development. In coaching, this technique is called the “Socratic method” or “Socratic questions.”
In fact, the coach can work on many techniques or methods to improve performance, mood, attitudes, behaviors, motivations, etc., all of these being superficial aspects of true change. In order to talk about true change, we must work with the perceptions that people have, their way of interpreting the world.
When people manage to modify these perceptions, and as a consequence their behaviors, is when change really occurs. The powerful questions They can be a way to question one’s own schemes
How powerful questions work
The researchers who conducted the study found that effectively questioning things leads to significant and consistent behavior change. The results confirmed that direct questions influenced people to deceive themselves less and make lasting change
The key is in Cognitive Dissonance
According to the authors, the key is to ask questions that force you to choose between a definitive “yes” or a “no.” It is interesting to know that The researchers found that these questions were most effective when administered on a computer or in a paper survey It is possible that the reason why this occurs is “Cognitive Dissonance”.
Cognitive Dissonance Theory suggests that people have an inner need to ensure that their beliefs, attitudes, and behavior are consistent with each other. When there is inconsistency between these, conflict leads to disharmony, something that people strive to avoid. This lack of harmony or displeasure It can lead to an attempt to change behavior or to defend their beliefs or attitudes (even leading to self-deception) to reduce the discomfort they cause.
To learn more about this interesting theory, we invite you to read this article: “Cognitive dissonance: the theory that explains self-deception”
The answers “yes” or “no” do not give the possibility of clarifying the answer.
But of course, by presenting the questions in a way that answers “yes” or “no” on the computer or in pen and paper format, it does not give the possibility of clarifying the answer. For example, if they ask you if you are already training to get in shape and you answer “no”, you do not have the possibility of justifying yourself by saying “I haven’t been able to start this week, I will start next week”.
In summary, this study seems to indicate that questions that could be answered “yes” or “no” in paper or computer format could be a powerful weapon for change. because they do not give the possibility of explaining the motives or reasons why things are being done wrong The discomfort it would cause would be enough to make the change.
Even so, we must not forget that these conclusions are from a single study, and, therefore, science will have to continue investigating to know if these results are also shown in future research.
