Mere measurement and persuasion.

It is well known that the act of asking a question influences the response, and this is known as the mere measurement effect. From a recent study, it appears that asking a seemingly harmless question can also influence behaviour, even though the respondent is not aware of it. However, if they think they are being persuaded (ie the question is not seen as being harmless), they resist changing their behaviour.

People often over-predict the likelihood of their performing socially desirable behaviours (such as volunteering) and under-predict the chances of doing something socially undesirable (drinking too much). However, questions about behavioural intentions are not seen …