Persuasive Technology:Using Computers to Change What we Think and Do

Author: B.J.Fogg

Captology:
Its an acronym based on the phrase “computers as persuasive technologies”
“Captology focusses on the design, research and analysis of interactive computing products created for the purpose of changing people’s attitudes or behaviors”

Kairos -Greek word that means “finding an oppotune moment to present an idea” (in greek mythology-Kairos was the youngest son of Zeus,”the god of the favorable moment”)

Computers can persuade by acting as tools, media and a social actors

Computers as Persuasive tools:
Types:

  • Reduction [motivation by simplifying (one-click shopping)]
  • Tunneling [leading a person through a step by step process (software installation)]
  • Tailoring [customization (information tailored to your preferences)]
  • Suggestion [ placement of information at the right location and at the right timing]
  • Self-monitoring [ applying computer technology to remove the tedium of tracking (heart rate monitors)]
  • Surveillance [persuasion through observation (Autowatch)]
  • Conditioning [Reinforcing target behaviors (computer games -reward points)]

Computers as Persuasive Media:Simulation:

  • Simulated cause and effect scenarios [Offers exploration and insight ( Rockett’s New School:depending on the positive or negative choices one makes, a different narrative unfolds)]
  • Simulated environments [creating spaces for persuasive experiences (Tectrix VR Bike:Pedaling to explore the virtual world (the faster you pedal, the faster you travel through the virtual world) and you also exercise in the process.
  • Simulated objects [The ‘baby think it over’ Infant simulator is designed to persuade teens to acoid becoming parents. Drunk Driving simultor simultes the conditions of drunken driving.]

Computers as Persuasive Social Actors:
More attractive technology (interface or hardware) will have greater persuasive power than an unattractive one.
Computers can influence a person throught language and praise and acknowledgement.

The Stanford study:
The personality study

  • Created dominant and submissive computer personalities

  • Chose as participants people who were at extremes of dominant or submissive

  • Mixed and matched computer personalities with user personalities

  • Result: Participants preferred computers whose “personalities” matched their own.

The affiliation study:

  • Participants were given a problem to solve and assigned to work on the problem wither with a computer they were told was a “teammate” or a computer that was given no label
  • For all participants , the interaction with the computer was identical, the only differnece was whether or nott the participant believed the computer was a teammate.
  • The results compared to responses of other participants: people worked with a computer labeled as their teammate reported that the computer was more similar to them, that it was smarter, and that it offered better information. These participants were more likely to choose th problem solutions recommended by the computers.

Credibility and computers/Credibility and www:

Credibility=Perceived trustworthiness + Perceived expertise

Types of credibility:
Presumed: General assumptions in the mind of the perceiver
Surface: Simple inspection or initial firsthand experience
Reputed: Third-party endorsements, reports, or referrals
Earned: Firsthand experience that extends over time.

Elements that increase website credibility: (Stanford web credibility studies,2002)
Experise elements:
Site provides quick response to customer service questions (+1.8)
Site looks professionally designed (+1.5)

Trustworthiness elements:
Site lists organization’s physical address (+1.7)
Site gives contact numbers (+1.6)

Elements that decrease website credibility: (Stanford web credibility studies,2002)
Expertise elements:
site is rarely updated with new content (-1.7)
site has link that doesn’t work (-1.4)
Typographical error (-1.3)

Trustworthiness elements:
Site makes it hard to distinguish ads from content (-1.9)
Site links to a site you think is not credible (-1.4)
Site automatically pops up new windows with ads (-1.6)

Types of web credibility:
Presumed: domain name that ends with .org
Surface: a site that looks professionally designed
Reputed: a site that won an award from PC Magazine
Earned: a site that consistently provided accurate information over the past year.