Why questions work better than answers

In 2017, an Australian ad campaign to persuade consumers to reduce plastic straw consumption crashed and burned. The campaign didn’t fail because Australians aren’t bothered about the 8 million tonnes of non-biodegradable plastic that gets dumped into the world’s oceans every year. It bombed because the human subconscious mind cares about its autonomy more.

When the failure drove the Last Straw campaign team back to the drawing board, a behavioural science analysis showed that the campaign’s instructive headline “Stop using plastic straws” was responsible for triggering the subconscious brain’s reactance bias and blocking receptors to the otherwise clear and simple message. (Neuroscience research shows that the subconscious system forms 95% of the brain’s decisions and behaviours.)

With a better understanding of the powerful subconscious reactance bias barriers and a learned psychological technique to deal with it, known as Motivational Interviewing, the Last Straw team changed the campaign headline to ask, “Do you need a straw?” The shift to a simple question effectively disarmed the reactance defences responsible for the initial failures. The revised campaign succeeded quickly, achieving a 90% reduction in plastic straw consumption over two years. The environmentally responsible consumer buying behaviour has been sustained since.

But why did the shift to a simple question work?

Two clinical psychologists, Dr William Miller and Dr Stephen Rollnick, developed the answer. Their work in the difficult field of changing human addiction behaviour revealed that logical persuasion or traditional confrontational approaches didn’t work much because they triggered defensiveness and resistance to change (the reactance bias). A more empathetic, collaborative and querying approach that empowered the mind to explore its own motivations and resolve ambivalence and dissonance internally got far better results. Change best happened when the mind wasn’t pressured or judged.

The mental jujitsu of the MI method exploits open-ended questioning to cause the mind to query its own intrinsic motivation for existing beliefs and associated behaviours and self-discover and adopt plausible paths to different choices. Because the open-ended questions that the MI technique uses drives internal interrogation and produces answers the mind is willing to own, the subconscious trusts it implicitly and allows the self-directed thought to examine and change behaviour without triggering resistance. For these reasons, the choices that the MI technique steers tend to stick.

The reactance bias is a powerful survival-driven subconscious instinct to retain control and resist perceived threats to personal agency. The bias is so strong it frequently and illogically rejects even significantly beneficial propositions. Large-scale research studies showed that smokers stubbornly resist campaigns to quit smoking, not because they don’t understand the significant health hazards of smoking, but because their subconscious minds defy the associated threat to choice. Similarly, despite serious COVID-19 health risks, young people worldwide defied mask-wearing regulations for similar reasons.

The MI questioning method works because the mind is also driven by another primal survival need: certainty. Predictable environments are as key to survival as control, so the mind instinctively reacts to uncertainty by seeking ways to restore predictability. A question opens a gap that the subconscious interprets as uncertainty to resolve. This gap activates cognitive processes that launch internal change talk—an intrinsic interrogation of existing beliefs and the plausible paths that support them, as well as any dissonance requiring adjustment.

While the tool was researched and developed to help people with addictive behaviour problems switch choices, its principles have proved to be universally successful making it a powerful influence tool for anyone who needs to persuade effectively.

An MI course for business: Learn to apply the MI technique for commercial advantage

To help organisations apply the MI method as an influence tool, ThinkWorks has developed a short MI application programme for business. Whether you need to empower your leaders to influence employees or stakeholders or equip sales and marketing people to persuade customers better, this programme develops the actionable skills to achieve your influence goals.

Programme attendees will learn:

• Open-ended questions: Learn how to ask authentic questions that initiate an internal interrogation process responsible for triggering dissonance and intrinsic motivators to change beliefs and behaviours.
• Affirmations: Discover ways to reinforce the internal change talk that pushes belief and behaviour change talk forward.
• Reflective listening: Master the skill of listening empathetically and reflecting back key insights to maintain momentum.
• Summaries: Learn how to summarise key change talk points to guide the mind to take action.

To find out how to tailor the programme to meet the specific needs of your organisation or for further information, email jonh@thinkworks.co.za or call +27 83 251 0716.

About: Jonathan Hall is the CEO of ThinkWorks, a consultancy that helps organisations move minds with influence science. ThinkWorks blends the disciplines of strategy, behavioural science, and brand art to produce messaging tactics that persuade effectively. Jonathan is a graduate of Wits Business School, has trained in strategic modelling at Aix-Marseille University in France, and is certified in behavioural economics, brand and narrative science. He is also the author of e-books The Power of Brand Story and BrainSell. Jonathan’s work has earned several accolades, including an IMM Marketing Company of the Year award, a Deloitte Best Company to Work For award, and a PSA Innovator of the Year award.