Nathalie Nahai - The secret psychology behind social behaviour

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@NATHALIENAHAITHE WEB PSYCHOLOGIST LTD.
THE SECRET
PSYCHOLOGY
SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR
behind

We’ve all seen them

From bizarre memes…

…to videos that go viral for no apparent reason

So what is it that makes us share content socially?

1
SOCIAL CONTENT

1. Carrier for emotional contagion
SOCIAL CONTENT

2. Indicate the mood of the sharer
SOCIAL CONTENT

3. Provoke curiosity
SOCIAL CONTENT

You can use psychological principles to
get people to read, watch and share anything….

So how do you create shareable, clickable headlines?

Number / Trigger word
+

Adjective
+

Adjective
Keyword
+

Adjective
Keyword
Promise+

Adjective
Keyword
Promise
KILLER HEADLINE
+

TRIGGER WORDS
Weird
Surprising
Secret
Mystery
Effortless

TRIGGER WORDS
Weird
Surprising
Secret
Mystery
Effortless
Painstaking
Strange
Outrageous
Odd
Amazing

TRIGGER WORDS
Weird
Surprising
Secret
Mystery
Effortless
Painstaking
Strange
Outrageous
Odd
Amazing
Bizarre
Essential
Incredible
(It’s not what
you think)

EXAMPLE
Subject:

EXAMPLE
Subject: Frying eggs

EXAMPLE
You could write an article entitled:

EXAMPLE
-“How to fry an egg”

EXAMPLE
-“How to fry an egg”
-“Why I love frying eggs”

OR APPLY THE FORMULA:

“13 unbelievable ways you can fry a small egg with a sock”

number

number
trigger word

number
trigger word
adjective

number
trigger word
adjective
keyword

number
trigger word
adjective
keyword
promise

4. Act as social commentary
SOCIAL CONTENT

4. Act as social commentary
5. Create a shared cultural experience
SOCIAL CONTENT

When social content reaches critical mass,
it becomes a ‘meme’

MEMES
Words, thoughts, beliefs, music, theories,
rituals, fashion, recipes, and any
norms that people pass on
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/anthropology-in-practice/why-do-we-share-viral-videos
“ ”

MEMES
Ideas or content that have
successfully spread via imitation
“ ”

Social content serves a function

SOCIAL CONTENT
It reflects not only who we are,
but also who our friends are, and
what they will accept
“ ”

So why do we share some things, and not others?

There are several psychological reasons
behind why and how we share

2
WHY & HOW WE SHARE

1. Social validation & self-esteem
WHY & HOW WE SHARE

REINFORCEMENT
The more social reinforcement we receive
that certain actions are appropriate, the
more likely we are to adopt those actions
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/anthropology-in-practice/why-do-we-share-viral-videos
“ ”

2. To change our emotional state
WHY & HOW WE SHARE

EMOTION
Nielsen (2014). Tech-or-treat: Consumers are sweet on mobile apps, Q3 2014 Report. http://acnielsen.Co.Uk/us/en/insights/news/2014/tech-or-treat-
consumers-are-sweet-on-mobile-apps.Html

3. Seek out information
WHY & HOW WE SHARE

INFORMATION

HOMOGENOUS
INFORMATION

HOMOGENOUS
INFORMATION
Confirms existing views

HOMOGENOUS
INFORMATION
Comforting

HOMOGENOUS
INFORMATION
Comforting
Reinforces our perspectives

HOMOGENOUS
INFORMATION
Comforting
Encourages stasis

We amplify people we agree with

We love homogenous info because of homophily

“Love of the same”
The tendency of individuals to associate
and bond with similar others
“ ”
HOMOPHILY

HOMOPHILY
Chu, S. C., & Kim, Y. (2011). Determinants of consumer engagement in electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) in social networking sites. International journal of
Advertising, 30(1), 47-75.
“ ”
A homophilous source is
more likely to be perceived as credible,
trustworthy, and reliable…

HOMOPHILY
…The effectiveness of
communication from a homophilous
source may be greater
Chu, S. C., & Kim, Y. (2011). Determinants of consumer engagement in electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) in social networking sites. International journal of
Advertising, 30(1), 47-75.
“ ”

Which is why adverts like this work so well

BUT on the other hand…

HOMOGENOUS HETEROGENOUS
INFORMATION
Comforting
Encourages stasis

INFORMATION
Comforting
Encourages stasis
Challenges our views

INFORMATION
Comforting
Encourages stasis
Uncomfortable

INFORMATION
Comforting
Encourages stasis
Uncomfortable
Alternative perspectives

INFORMATION
Comforting
Encourages stasis
Uncomfortable
Alternative perspectives
Encourages growth

Challenging people’s preconceptions can
have a powerful emotional impact

4. Affiliate to reduce stress
WHY & HOW WE SHARE

BUT it can lead to destructive behaviours

So why is social media so addictive?

4. Affiliate to reduce stress
5. Dopamine loops
WHY & HOW WE SHARE

4.1

They all activate our dopamine systems

DOPAMINE
• Arvid Carlsson & Nils-Ake Hillarp (1958)  
National Heart Institute of Sweden
Carlsson, A., & Hillarp, N. Å. (1958). On the state of the catechol amines of the adrenal medullary granules. Acta Physiologica Scandinavica,44(2), 163-169.

DOPAMINE
• Critical for mood, attention, motivation, thinking,
moving, sleeping

DOPAMINE
• Critical for mood, attention, motivation, thinking,
moving, sleeping
• Causes pleasure-seeking behaviour

For example, post-conference drinks…

WANTING VS LIKING
Dopamine
“Wanting”

WANTING VS LIKING
Dopamine
“Wanting” 
Take action

WANTING VS LIKING
Dopamine
“Wanting” 
Opioid
“Liking” 
Take action

WANTING VS LIKING
Dopamine
“Wanting” 
Opioid
“Liking” 
Take action
Feel satisfied

WANTING VS LIKING
Dopamine
“Wanting” 
Opioid
“Liking” 
Feel satisfied
Take action

BUT social media can create dopamine loops

WANTING VS LIKING
Dopamine
“Wanting” 
Take action
Opioid
“Liking”

WANTING VS LIKING
Dopamine
“Wanting” 
Take action
Opioid
“Liking” 
Feel satisfied

So what’s happening?

DOPAMINE LOOPS
1. We seek more than we’re satisfied

DOPAMINE LOOPS
2. Anticipating vs. receiving reward

DOPAMINE LOOPS
3. External triggers

DOPAMINE LOOPS
4. Small rewards

DOPAMINE LOOPS
4. Small rewards
5. Unpredictable

This is why we’re such prolific users

So what can we learn from the way we use social?

3
PSYCHOGRAPHICS

PSYCHOGRAPHICS
Study and classification of people
according to their attitudes, aspirations,
and other psychological criteria
“ ”Oxford Dictionaries, 2015

PSYCHOGRAPHICS
• Personality 
Massive Facebook study

PSYCHOGRAPHICS
• Personality 
• Sentiment analysis 
Predicts stock market performance

PSYCHOGRAPHICS
• Personality 
• Sentiment analysis 
Predicts stock market performance
• Health 
Likelihood of heart attack

Our online behaviours reveal more than we think

The words we use and respond to can
expose our personality traits

PERSONALITY MATTERS
J. Hirsh, S. Kang and G. Bodenhausen (2012). Personalized Persuasion: Tailoring Persuasive Appeals to Recipients' Personality Traits. Psychological Science
published online 30 April 2012
Adapting persuasive messages to the
personality traits… can be an effective
way of increasing the messages’ impact
“ ”

The Big 5 
(a quick quiz)

DO YOU HAVE…
A high degree of intellectual
curiosity, creativity and a preference
for novelty and variety?
Costa, P. T. Jr., and McCrae, R. R. (1992). Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) and NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) Professional Manual.
Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
“ ”

1. Openness
THE BIG 5

OPENNESS
Innovation
Intelligence
Sophistication
Imagination
Creative

ARE YOU…
Organised, dependable and
self-disciplined? Do you prefer to plan
and aim for achievement?
“ ”

1. Openness
2. Conscientiousness
THE BIG 5

ARE YOU…
Energetic, positive, assertive & sociable?
Do you tend to seek stimulation in
the company of others?
“ ”

1. Openness
3. Extraversion
THE BIG 5

EXTRAVERSION
Strong
Outgoing
Active
Excitement
Attention

DO YOU HAVE…
The tendency to be compassionate
and cooperative rather than suspicious
and antagonistic towards others?
“ ”

1. Openness
3. Extraversion
4. Agreeableness
THE BIG 5

DO YOU HAVE…
The tendency to experience unpleasant
emotions easily, such as anger, anxiety,
depression, and vulnerability?
“ ”

1. Openness
3. Extraversion
4. Agreeableness
5. Neuroticism
THE BIG 5

NEUROTICISM
Safe
Reduce the anxiety
Uncertainty
Security
Protection

Who does this appeal to?

Specific words engage specific traits

You can research & segment your audience by
personality trait, based on linguistic patterns

If you want to design a trait-specific campaign…

TRAIT MOTIVATION

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Open

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Open Creativity & intellectual stimulation

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Conscientious

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Conscientious Efficiency & goal pursuit

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Extravert

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Extravert Excitement & social rewards

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Agreeable

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Agreeable Connection with family & community

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Neurotic

TRAIT MOTIVATION
Neurotic Safety & security

Useful tools to get started

TOOLS
1. Big 5 (IPIP-NEO): personal.psu.edu/j5j/IPIP

TOOLS
2. Various personality tests: discovermyprofile.com

TOOLS
3. From Facebook likes: applymagicsauce.com

TOOLS
4. From digital footprint: hogan-x.com

TOOLS
4. From digital footprint: hogan-x.com
5. Computerised text analysis: liwc.wpengine.com

bit.ly/websofinfluence

THANK YOU!
@NathalieNahai
NathalieNahai.com

Nathalie Nahai - The secret psychology behind social behaviour

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