Have you ever wondered why some people use reverse psychology to convince others?

The answer lies in the reactance , a curious psychological phenomenon that leads us to make decisions in a non-rational way.

What is reactance in Psychology?

Reactance is a psychological phenomenon related to motivation and heuristics, that is, the mental shortcuts by which we make decisions without going through a phase of reflection based on logic.

Specifically, reactance is a tendency to reject norms or indications coming from others and which are perceived as a limitation of personal freedom. In short, it is an emotional reaction to real or apparent impositions.

Moreover, the reaction is not only a phenomenon that occurs in individuals, but can also manifest itself collectively, for example, in the face of political or economic events.

The concept of heuristics

Reactance is not so much rational as emotional , since it is a response to a perception of change, rather than being based on a logical analysis of the present and the best options that can be taken in that situation.

This ties in with the fact that many of the decisions and actions we take are not so much based on rational reasoning as on emotions.

The characteristics of the psychological reactance

These are some of the characteristics and psychological effects of this phenomenon.

1. Gives rise to manipulation

The psychological reaction can be anticipated by people who have a special interest in convincing someone. This makes it used to present an undesirable option in which there are apparent rules and make the other option, the one you really want to “sell” to the other, seem more attractive in comparison.

2. It makes psychological experimentation difficult

There is a type of psychological reactance called the Hawthorne effect that makes it difficult to conduct experiments or research based on observation of human beings.

This is because people who volunteer to be observed in this kind of study, knowing that they are being observed, stop acting naturally and spontaneously simply because they think about the forecasts and patterns that the researchers they are observing are working with.

In some way, they react to being observed, and “disobey” the premise of acting naturally, which causes them to act in a way that is unrepresentative of their usual way of feeling, thinking or behaving.

3. The greater the importance of the element, the greater the reaction

If the option that is threatened by the rules is highly valued , the emotional reaction will be greater and more violent or disruptive.

4. The greater the imposition, the greater the reactance

It has been proven that in cases of reactance, this can appear even when the behavior that is limited or “forbidden” was not even valued very much before . The greater the feeling that something is threatening one’s freedom, the greater the reaction against this imposition.

5. The expectation of freedom

People less used to sticking to rules tend to have a higher level of reactance, because their expectations regarding their level of freedom are higher.

6. A key role in reverse psychology

Reactance is also taken into account by people who use reverse psychology to influence the behaviour of others. This strategy consists of taking advantage of the type of thinking based on emotionality that occurs during the reactance to prevent someone from making a decision in a rational way.

Thus, a perfectly acceptable and even desirable option is presented as an apparent type of imposition, and this makes the interlocutors or audience feel inclined towards the opposite option.

This phenomenon is commonly used both in dealing with disobedient children and in political argument and propaganda.

7. The vision you have of the other influences

The reactance is especially strong when the schemes to which one has to adapt come from someone or something (such as an institution) that is not perceived as legitimate . For example, if there is a series of measures taken by a government that is perceived as illegitimate, the reactions against these new laws will be greater.

8. Depends on the number of freedoms threatened

This phenomenon depends not only on the intensity of the perceived imposition, but also on the amount of freedoms that are compromised. Thus, a rule that affects the capacity to acquire products and at the same time the amount of options to choose to make purchases will be seen as a greater imposition and the reactance will be greater.