07 Mar Haters gonna hate. Cheaters gonna cheat. Liars’ pants gonna burn.
Word choice matters. Studies prove it. (Writers exult.)
We like to think of ourselves as good (smart, helpful, caring, funny—fill in the blank) people. So it’s not surprising that praising character produces more of the desired behavior.
When children are praised for being helpers, they are more likely to do helpful things than when their actions are praised as helpful.[1]
Messaging that encourages “being a voter” rather than “voting” increases voter registration and turnout.[2]
It works in the negative as well. “Don’t be a cheater” deters cheating far more than “Don’t cheat.”[3]
This phrasing brings into focus the kind of person the listener is (or wants to be, or doesn’t want to be): If I cheat now and then, I’m still not a dishonest person, at least not in my mind. I can preserve my moral self image while engaging in dishonest behavior. But “don’t be a cheater” highlights the link between dishonest behavior and an undesirable identity.
There are caveats. Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck (author of Mindset) says that praising effort that leads to success helps people (especially children) escape a fixed view of ability: “You worked hard” rather than “you’re so smart” or “you’re so talented.”
And a recent study (see abstract here) found that encouraging girls to “do science” rather than to “be scientists” increased their engagement in science.
Read more about it here.
References
[1] https://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/pressrelease/want_a_young_child_to_help_or_be_a_helper_word_choice_matters
[2] https://sparq.stanford.edu/solutions/dont-just-vote-be-voter
[3] https://stanford.app.box.com/s/u5hk2n5qe8kn8jji9sezmm6xsmjx6kid
No Comments