The Door-in-the-Face Persuasive Message Strategy: A Meta-Analysis of the First 35 Years

A random-effects meta-analysis was undertaken to examine the effectiveness of the Door-in-the-Face (DITF) persuasive message strategy on compliance. Results indicate an overall significant effect of the DITF strategy on verbal compliance (k=78, r=.126), but an insignificant effect for behavioral com...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCommunication monographs Vol. 79; no. 3; pp. 316 - 343
Main Authors Feeley, Thomas Hugh, Anker, Ashley E., Aloe, Ariel M.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Abingdon Taylor & Francis Group 01.09.2012
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Communication
Compliance
Door-in-the-Face
Mass Media Effects
Meta-Analysis
Persuasion
Prosocial
Social Responsibility
Systematic review
Verbal communication
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Summary:A random-effects meta-analysis was undertaken to examine the effectiveness of the Door-in-the-Face (DITF) persuasive message strategy on compliance. Results indicate an overall significant effect of the DITF strategy on verbal compliance (k=78, r=.126), but an insignificant effect for behavioral compliance (k=39, r=.052). In terms of verbal compliance, the DITF strategy works significantly better than controls for different samples, across varied communication media, and for prosocial causes. Additionally, the DITF technique is more successful than controls for volunteering/research than other target behaviors (e.g., monetary donation). For both verbal and behavioral compliance outcomes, the toughness (measured as amount of baseline compliance) of the donation context negatively predicted the magnitude of the DITF effect. It is argued social responsibility theory best accounts for observed moderator factors.
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ISSN:0363-7751
1479-5787
DOI:10.1080/03637751.2012.697631