10/50 super interesting classic psychological effects that will benefit you for a lifetime

1. Learned helplessness (giving up after repeated setbacks)

refers to the psychological state and behavior of a person who, after experiencing failure and frustration, feels powerless and loses confidence when faced with problems.

Example: When Dudu was a child, he always had a lot of ideals, but every time he told his father about his ideals, his father would always say, “Look at you...you're not cut out for it; you...it's not realistic;...” Sometimes, he even got beaten up. Later, Dudu never mentioned his dreams again...

2. The Pygmalion effect (what you wish for is what you get)

is also known as the expectation effect or the Rosenthal effect. It refers to the expectation or prediction formed by people based on their perception of a situation, which will cause the situation to have an effect of adapting to this expectation or prediction. What you expect, you will get. A lot of what you get now is actually the result of past “future expectations”.

In short, the psychological suggestion of expectation can prompt people's cognition and behavior to change in the same direction, thereby making the expectation come true.

Example: When Nini was a child, her parents noticed that she was not very confident about her appearance because the average appearance of her classmates was quite high. Later, her parents and teachers often told her, “Nini, you are really pretty, and your grades are improving, I'm really happy for you!” As a result, Nini became more and more confident, and every time she looked in the mirror, she felt that she had become more beautiful. Gradually, Nini really became more and more confident and beautiful, and she set higher and higher standards for herself, and even her grades got better and better.

3. The Aronson effect (happy when praised, discouraged when praise is withdrawn)

refers to the psychological phenomenon in which attitudes gradually become negative as rewards decrease and gradually become positive as rewards increase. It is manifested in people's preference for people or things that constantly increase their likes, rewards, and praise, and their dislike for people or things that constantly decrease their likes, rewards, and praise.

Example: There is a large old oil tank in the courtyard of an industrial area. After school at noon, the children like to jump and dance in the tank, making a lot of noise. Many people tried to dissuade them, but to no avail. On the contrary, the children became even noisier. One day, an old man said, “Let's make a bet. Whoever jumps the loudest gets a toy gun.” Sure enough, the winner successfully got the prize. The next day, the old man changed the gift to two milk candies. The children were not very interested and perfunctorily jumped around. The winner took the candies. On the third day, the old man changed the gift to two peanuts. As a result, the children were unwilling and said, “No more, no more, it's not interesting, I want to go home and watch TV.” Through clever psychological weakening, the old man was able to solve the problem of “naughty children making a racket” that had been bothering everyone.

4. The southern wind effect (treating people warmly)

Also known as the warmth principle, it refers to the fact that in interpersonal communication, a gentle communication style can make people feel psychologically comfortable, while an “icy” communication style will make people resentful. To be more specific, interpersonal communication should focus on respect and care, pay attention to methods, and get along with each other gently.

Example: If you want a friend to help you with something, if you use a demanding or bossy tone, the other person may not be willing, but if you speak nicely to the other person and praise them, they will usually agree to help you. This also applies to getting along with partners and strangers.

5. The sour grape effect (the spirit of Ah Q)

refers to the phenomenon that when a person's genuine needs cannot be met and they feel frustrated, in order to relieve their inner anxiety, they make up some “reasons” to comfort themselves, to eliminate tension and reduce stress, to free themselves from negative psychological states such as dissatisfaction and anxiety, and to protect themselves from harm.

Example: Ah Q was beaten up badly, but he didn't dare to fight back. So he said to himself, “At least I was beaten up by someone!” He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth cheerfully and walked away with his hair blowing in the wind.

6. Self-reference effect (This is the real deal, I have to write it down.)

Refers to the phenomenon that the memory effect is better when the memorized material is related to the self than when it is encoded under other conditions. For example, when exposed to something new, if it is closely related to ourselves, we will be motivated to learn it and it will be less likely to be forgotten.

Example: Duo Duo has recently been studying design. When he happened to see a good design tutorial in the library, he couldn't put it down and spent two days studying it. He remembers the main points vividly.

7. Role effect

Refers to the phenomenon that when a person is in a certain role or when the role changes, there is usually a psychological or behavioral change caused by this role (or the change in role).

Case: Duo Duo, who used to be playful and mischievous, has not only performed seriously in his studies since becoming monitor, but also actively presided over various affairs in the class and took the initiative to organize public welfare activities in the class due to his role change. His sense of responsibility and self-confidence have both increased, and he is now a different person.

8. The “sharpening effect” (the influence of concepts on cognitive processes)

refers to the phenomenon that a person's existing values can have a positive effect on their perception. Specifically, when people's values are activated in the presence of the object of perception during the process of social perception, the effect of these values on perception is very obvious.

Example: If a teacher teaches a student to be honest from an early age, this will cause the student to judge and perceive according to the value of honesty in the perception process in the future. At that time, even if there is a very insignificant manifestation with honest information, we will be awakened by the implicit personality view and think that this is an honest person, and may also have the qualities of kindness, love, easy-going, and gentleness.

9. Punishment and reward effect (carrot and stick)

Refers to the phenomenon that by implementing external means of reinforcement or weakening on the target person's behavior, one can influence their psychological activities such as self-evaluation, which in turn leads to reinforcement or weakening of their behavior. To elaborate, praise, encouragement and trust can often stimulate a person's self-esteem and motivation; while appropriate, moderate and matter-of-fact punitive measures can prompt a person to correct their wrongdoings.

Example: Duo Duo's parents used rewards and interest-oriented measures to encourage his learning, while also taking punitive measures for more serious mistakes in life. Growing up, Duo Duo became a well-rounded, studious and motivated person.

Effects of the phenomenon

10. Hawthorne effect (self-suggestion when being watched)

Refers to the psychology of people deliberately changing their behavior or speech when they realize that they are being watched or observed.

Case: At the club, Duo Duo, who was having a good time chatting with friends, immediately tidied up his appearance, became quiet and gentlemanly, and politely said hello when he saw his crush, the senior girl, looking at him.