Ostracism increases social susceptibility
Open accessAbstract
Ostracism, the act of ignoring and excluding, is a universally applied tactic of social control. Individuals who detect ostracism often change their behaviors to be readmitted into the group, even if it means becoming excessively socially susceptible to influence. We tested whether ostracized individuals are more socially susceptible to a subsequent influence attempt. In this study, 65 undergraduates were randomly assigned to a 2 (Inclusion or Ostracism)×3 (Compliance tactic: foot‐in‐the door, target request only, door‐in‐the‐face) between‐participants design. The participants played Cyberball and were either included or ostracized, and then they were approached with a request to donate money. Despite no differences between the three tactics, ostracism increased compliance across all request types. Our discussion focuses on the implications for ostracism‐induced social susceptibility.
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A considerable number of Cyberball studies have found strong exclusion effects in between-subjects designs where one group received only the inclusion condition and another group received both inclusion and exclusion rounds.
“This view is informed by the considerable number of Cyberball studies that have found strong exclusion effects in between-subjects designs where one group received only the inclusion condition and another group received both inclusion and exclusion rounds (Boyes & French, 2009; Carter-Sowell et al., 2008; Geniole et al., 2011; van Beest & Williams, 2006).”
From Risk-taking and social exclusion in adolescence: neural mechanisms underlying peer influences on decision-making (2013) · cites this paper as Carter-Sowell et al., 2008
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- Authors
- Carter‐Sowell, A. R., Chen, Z., & Williams, K. D.
- Affiliations
- Purdue University West Lafayette (US)
- Corresponding author
- Carter‐Sowell, Adrienne R.
- Venue
- Social Influence
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2008-09
- Volume
- 3
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 143-153
- ISSN
- 1553-4510 (ISSN-L)
- 1553-4529
- OpenAlex
- W2062104800
- Cited by
- 233
- References
- 24
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 16 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 18 · 2022: 15 · 2021: 18 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 14 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 15 · 2016: 13 · 2015: 17 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 11
- FWCI
- 6.24
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Social Influence (publishedVersion)
- The HKU Scholars Hub (University of Hong Kong) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Science Foundation (0519209)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Psychology of Social Influence
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression
- Keywords
- ostracism, compliance, Cyberball, social exclusion, donation requests, social control
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