Samples of Robert Greene’s 48 Laws of Power explained with the psychological processes described by Robert Cialdini
In one of my earlier articles, I wrote about a time when I accidentally hired a ‘con artist’ for the marketing manager position. This was a major learning experience, especially with regard to recognizing the importance of intentionally taking note of negative vibes about a person even when, at first blush, their behavior seems entirely normal.
I recently found myself in a similar position when I hired a gardener. The gardener came across as enthusiastic and charming. He shared his passion for gardening, he offered suggestions and he touted his connections with garden suppliers. This time, in contrast to my experience with the Indian con man, I was immediately aware of my feelings of irritation in response to his behavior, even though it seemed as though he was just trying to be a ‘nice guy.’
Because the gardener had been referred by a friend, I initially gave him the benefit of the doubt. Very soon, however, I noticed that appointments were often canceled, and occasionally he didn’t show up at all. Whenever he did accomplish even a modest amount of work, he would immediately send me an invoice. After the second invoice, I canceled the remainder of the project and notified my friend that I didn’t find the gardener to be reliable.
One year later I found out that the same gardener had scammed other people. It turns out that he left my friend and her family in a precarious situation, with huge financial exposure and high levels of psychological distress.
We have all been in a position where we had to protect ourselves from the manipulative behavior of others. One approach is to analyze the behavioral strategies of manipulators in order to uncover their dishonest intentions. This analytical approach offers a cognitive defense that we can use to protect ourselves.
But what about using our embodied detection system? As a matter of fact, it is our sensorial system that manipulators often try to exploit to persuade us. If they are not successful with this tactic, however, they turn their focus to our cognitive systems in an attempt to distract us from what our senses are trying to tell us.
In his book, Pre-Suasion (1), Robert Cialdini, one of the world’s most prominent experts on social influence, explains how influencers shape our mental states (emotions, thoughts, motivations, etc.) even before they begin their core influencing campaign. Cialdini describes the following processes that influencers employ to prepare the minds of others for the persuasive assault that will follow:
Prime people’s cognition by exposing them to stimuli that are favorably associated with the core message of the influencer.
Carefully direct the attention of people so that they focus on the influencer’s message, and are inhibited in their ability to consider aspects that might negatively impact the influence attempt.
Share concepts that people associate with something positive, and that can be easily linked to the influencer’s core message so that people associate the message with favorable feelings.
Shape the context or frame the message in such a way that it influences how people will perceive what is to come next.
Leverage a strong sense of unity or group identity to increase receptivity and inhibit critical thinking.
In his earlier book, Influence (2), Cialdini also explores six different tactics people use to have others comply with their requests. He organized them by the six classic principles of social influence: Scarcity (limiting the time that a service or a product is available, or making a service or product exclusive), Reciprocity, Commitment, and Consistency (lowball, bait and switch, and foot-in-the-door techniques), Authority (related to obedience), Social Validation or Social Proof (related to conformity) and Liking and Similarity.
Years later he introduced a seventh principle, Unity, referring to an identity that both the influencer and the influenced share. This sense of unity makes people vulnerable to the influence of those with whom they are perceived to have a shared identity.
While Cialdini relates persuasion and influence tactics to psychological processes, Robert Greene, in his book, The 48 Laws of Power (3), describes 48 influence strategies that complement Cialdini’s writings. By reading the two Roberts books, one can gain an understanding of how Greene’s laws work through the psychological processes described by Cialdini.
To illustrate this assertion, I have synthesized and analyzed 6 of the 48 laws from Robert Greene’s book with the psychological processes and influence principles that Cialdini describes in his books. I will also share different approaches that work as a counterweight and antidote to these less-than-honorable manipulation strategies. Let’s start with the first law.
Law 1: Never Outshine the Master
Although this first law refers to superiors, it can also be effective in making people who may not be your superior but nevertheless possess superior knowledge or skill, feel comfortable in your presence and adopt a cooperative mindset.
This slightly different take on the law chimes nicely with the principle of Authority, as it refers to expert endorsement of a product or service. An influencer can target a potential ‘endorser,’ and use adulation to turn them into the promoter of whatever the influencer is hawking.
The influencer steps out of the limelight, by not “outshining the master,” and lets the other person (the endorser) do their bidding. This strategy makes both the targeted endorser and those around them receptive to what is yet to come.
Additionally, it relates to the Associative Conditioning principle as the message of the influencer is now linked to the high-status person and becomes more appealing to those who covet a similar status or who admire the endorser.
This strategy also establishes a sense of control in the targeted endorser and a sense of trust in the ‘master’ from others. If the targeted person then buys into whatever the influencer is selling, others will be inclined to blindly follow suit.
This acts as a shortcut to establishing Social Proof, one of the principles of influence, as people try to derive guidance from the behavior of others. The high-status person becomes a live testimonial, encouraging others to follow suit.
Antidote
The antidote for this manipulation tactic is to remain modest regarding your own accomplishments in the presence of the influencer and detect the influencer’s efforts to turn you into an instrument of manipulation.
When you detect that this is happening, avoid becoming an example for others. Refrain from sharing your perspective, and ask those around you what they would do. This way, people will be more inclined to think for themselves, and you will have helped them to question the message of the influencer before they make their own decisions.
When you notice that someone else is put in the position of the ‘master,’ redirect focus to the behavior of the influencer, and critically question what they are asking you to do.
Law 6: Court Attention at All Costs
This law advises influencers to stand out from the crowd, as invisibility will not advance their influential power. This is a common strategy for influencers who want to attract followers on social media. The law emphasizes the importance of purposefully directing the attention of targets to your cause, and favorably priming their minds.
Grabbing attention and maintaining the focus of others are prerequisites for powerful influence. At the same time, this priming inhibits the ability of the target(s) to focus on something else that might elicit critical thinking, something that the influencer wants to avoid at any cost.
The initial object of attention will ultimately be perceived as the cause for buying into the manipulation attempt. Using law 1 as an example, the high-status person would be seen as the cause for the target’s decision. This means that people will not notice that the influence tactic used by the influencer was the real cause for their willingness to comply.
Antidote
The antidote for this manipulation tactic is to intentionally take a step back from the focal point of the influencer, and ask critical questions regarding the core issue, product, or service.
Law 12: Use Selective Honesty and Generosity to Disarm Your Victim
Regarding this law, doling out acts of altruism, kindness, and slivers of the truth will instill trust in others and lower their defenses. The Reciprocity principle creates a deeper psychological understanding of this law, as it lowers our inclination to defend ourselves, while at the same time, it makes us feel obligated to comply with the influencer’s request.
As a result of these influences, we tend to get trapped in confirmation bias, looking for the good in the influencer and negating the influencer’s bad intentions. We use our favorable view of the influencer as a justification for our compliance with their suggestions. These influence tactics also play on our sense of gratitude, making us view the influencer as a benefactor, or making us feel guilty when we resist compliance.
Antidote
The antidote to this manipulation tactic is to pay close attention to the heroic acts of ‘honesty’ and ‘generosity’ of someone when their behavior diverges from their core intentions (especially, when we get the sense that the acts of the influencer don’t seem genuine but rather performative).
The antidote also involves returning kindness and honesty in a way that is different than the influencer would have you respond. This will lower feelings of guilt, reduce the sense of obligation, and help you to keep your guard up.
Law 17: Keep Others in Suspended Terror — Cultivate an Air of Unpredictability
This law illustrates how an influencer can use unpredictability to their advantage to make it harder for people to challenge or control the influencer’s actions. Elusivity makes the influencer seem more powerful.
Creating a sense of unpredictability corresponds to the influence principle of Scarcity. By creating the impression of scarcity, the influencer makes it more difficult to anticipate what will happen in the future, which plays on the uncomfortable feelings of urgency and fear of missing out.
Scarcity has another side effect: It heightens people’s positive value judgment of the message, product, or service that the influencer is peddling, or of the influencer himself (or herself). Together, unpredictability and admiration strongly channel our focus toward the object of interest, similar to the way we feel when we fall deeply in love with someone. The feelings that are elicited by a sense of scarcity can blind us to the negative aspects of what we covet.
The ‘pre-suasion’ tactic, Framing and Context Shaping, in which the influencer presents his/her message as a gain or loss, is a common way that the influencer tries to increase someone’s sense of urgency as a means to assuring compliance with their influencer’s requests.
Antidote
The antidote to this manipulation tactic is to stay grounded and emotionally detached from what is being framed or contextualized in such a way that you are able to resist the sense of urgency or fear of missing out.
Question your level of dependency on the influencer, or on what the influencer is trying to get you to buy into. Establish clear guardrails and stay focused on your own goals, as these aspects will function as your safeguards during such encounters.
Understanding that unpredictability is often used by influencers to destabilize someone. Maintain a steady response. It will likely infuriate the influencer, but that’s a good sign. Finally, seek clarity through questioning the urgency and the value of what is being promoted.
Law 31: Control the Options — Get Others to Play with the Cards You Deal
We jump ahead to law 31, as, in a way, it addresses an issue similar to that associated with the previous law, Manipulation through Framing and Context Shaping. This law advises an influencer to prepare and present a limited number of options, all of which benefit the influencer’s goals, some of which promote compliance, and others that the targets would not choose under any circumstances.
Additionally, the influencer is encouraged to frame the message in such a way that people will focus only on the ‘favorable’ options. People appreciate it when they are given a few options, but not too many, as it gives them the illusion of autonomy without the feeling of being overwhelmed.
Similar to the previous law, law 31 relates to the persuasion process of Framing and Context Shaping in that it primes the direction of the target’s attentional focus. Cialdini refers to this tactic as “channeling attention” before a decision needs to be made. It gives the influencer control over the thinking processes of others from the very beginning of the influence campaign.
In his influence principle, Commitment and Consistency, Cialdini explains that the tactic works because people naturally try to avoid cognitive dissonance by staying committed and consistent, thereby projecting mental stability. Searching for options at the same time that one is being funneled toward a small set of options can create a sense of discomfort, and is, moreover, experienced as an effortful endeavor.
Antidote
The antidote to this manipulation tactic is quite obvious: Broaden the range of choices you are willing to consider, even if makes you feel uncomfortable to explore beyond the options and guidance offered by the influencer.
Another option is to critically question the options that the influencer is offering. This might be as easy as it sounds, as influencers routinely prepare themselves for your critical questioning.
When you don’t need to make an immediate decision, take a pause and examine other options when you have more time and energy to consider alternatives. Be aware, however, that the influencer will pressure you to decide during the influence campaign. If you don’t want to decide on the spot, redirect the conversation, or immediately step away from the situation.
Law 24: Play the Perfect Courtier
We now move backward in the list to examine Law 24. Playing the perfect courtier refers to mastering the art of managing relationships by pleasing others as a courtier would do in the company of royalty. In this sense, it is related to the first law, Never Outshine the Master. It goes further, however, by advising the influencer to avoid bragging, but rather to appear mellow and laid back, to use flattery, to promote oneself through appropriate social behavior, to refrain from being a critic, to dress well, and to control one’s emotions.
Through this behavior, the influencer banks goodwill within their environment, a technique that is related to the Reciprocity principle. People eagerly support those who are well-liked, which immediately connects to the influence principle of Liking. A third influence principle can be associated with this law as well, namely Social Proof. People often look to others to see whether they can trust someone, especially when they feel insecure.
By creating an image of someone who is both knowledgeable and credible, the influencer evinces a sense of authority, which, in turn, primes people to adhere to the influencer’s advice without questioning it. The law is also linked to what Cialdini describes as “setting the stage beforehand,” as a key to successful persuasion.
Additionally, a courtier creates strong bonds with those of status and influence and therefore is perceived as being part of the in-group. This cultivation of a shared identity follows the influence principle of Unity. People are more inclined to favor those with whom they share kinship or group identity.
Antidote
The manipulation tactics of a courtier are abundant, which means that the antidotes are equally copious and wide-ranging. As a first step, it is advisable to become acquainted with the methods described above to develop a strong radar for tell-tale signs.
Likewise, having well-defined values and firm boundaries will serve as a protective shield. Stay grounded when people use flattery, and don’t let yourself be lured into their gossip. Prioritize integrity over power plays, and maintain a network of genuine relationships that can counteract the influencer’s behavior. Don’t try to beat them at their own game; counter-manipulation will only turn you into one of them.
There are more laws that we could explore here, but you get the idea. The examples provided depict how influencers play on your affects (emotions, feelings, and moods), or your epistemic mental states (desires, beliefs, knowledge, etc.), in order to distract you from a negative affective state.
Examination of the influence process highlights the role of mentalization in detecting and resisting unwanted influence. Mentalization involves inferring the mental states of others through keen observations of their verbal and nonverbal behavior, while simultaneously monitoring one’s own mental states.
Mentalizing on an interpersonal level enables us to establish a behavioral baseline for others. Once we have established this baseline, we can detect changes in behavior that reveal fluctuations in the influencer’s mental states (4) such as:
Extreme variations in behavioral styles with different people, in different situations, or in the course of the same situation (e.g., being extremely polite to one person and completely rude to another).
Broad fluctuation between a relaxed composure and an agitation or heightened arousal, especially in response to requests for additional information or clarification.
Abandonment by the influencer of his or her personal values and motivational drives in favor of appeals to our own, in an attempt to convince us of something.
Attempts to characterize relational status in a way that is incongruent with the situation or the existing relationship (e.g., someone pretending to be your best friend when they just met you).
Use of a form of pseudo-mentalization (pretending to know how we feel, what we desire, or what we are thinking).
Likewise, intrapersonal mentalizing is necessary to establish an experiential baseline for ourselves, relative to which we can detect changes within ourselves (4) such as:
Sensing a heightened state of alertness activated by our survival instinct.
Sensing confusion and insecurity as an influencer may try to create cognitive dissonance. Alternatively, the influencer may attempt to make us doubt our own perceptions by gaslighting us.
Questioning our own behavior or beliefs. We may find ourselves entertaining thoughts such as “I never thought I would do or say something like that,” or “Why am I defending a position with which I don’t even agree?”
Sensing feelings of low self-esteem, as an influencer often focuses on personal aspects of about which you are insecure.
Sensing moral emotions. For instance, an influencer may try to make us feel guilty for failing to comply with a request.
Sensing reactance. ‘Reactance’ refers to an unpleasant motivational arousal to offers, people, rules, or regulations that threaten behavioral freedom of choice.
Considering the above, there are two sentences that you should learn to intuitively say to yourself (maybe even out loud) before complying with the requests of the influencer:
I need some time to think about this
I need some time to feel about this
To conclude, both Roberts’ books offer a comprehensive toolkit to manipulate others for personal gain. Robert Greene’s laws are the strategies, and Robert Cialdini’s pre-suasion ideas and influence principles form the tactics that allow for the psychological processes that cultivate a panoply of receptive, compliance-oriented mental states.
As a final thought, I would like to emphasize that this article was not intended as a Guide to Becoming a Better Manipulator. On the contrary, it is aimed at those who might otherwise fall prey to manipulation tactics. The game of power can be likened to an arms race in which both sides can win through a mutual understanding of how the game works.
For those who may still be tempted to employ influence strategies and tactics with less-than-honorable motives, there remain several ethical alternatives. Examples include: being authentic and transparent, building strong relationships with people, acting out of a sense of personal integrity, employing empathy and compassion, and offering practical wisdom. They might not seem as sexy as the 48 Laws of Power, but they are equally powerful, and will surely assist you in achieving an appropriate level of respect from others.
Determining whether an exercise of influential power is consistent with sound ethical practices depends on the answers to such questions as:
What is the motivation behind the attempted influence?
Are the influence tactics appropriate/warranted?
Does the influenced target have the power to resist?
And finding insightful and accurate answers to these questions depends, to a large extent, on our capacity for mentalization!
References:
Cialdini, R. B. (2016). Pre-Suasion: A Revolutionary Way to Influence and Persuade. Simon & Schuster.
Cialdini, R. B. (2021). Influence: The psychology of persuasion (Revised edition). Harper Business.
Greene, R. (2000). The 48 laws of power. Penguin Books.
van der Putten, A. A. J. T. (2023). Mastering Mentalization. ToM PRESS.