Reactance

by Mike James

There are many ideas and techniques used to promote the gospel message. Podcasts, videos, TikTok, pamphlets, booklets, sermons, and more. One-on-one evangelism can be very fruitful, too. In a book I am presently reading dealing with change, I have come upon a concept that is important for us to understand in relation to evangelizing one-on-one.

This blog idea comes from Jonah Berger's book The Catalyst: How to Change Anyone's Mind. Berger addresses six major points to keep in mind when trying to change people's minds on something. One of these points addresses "reactance." Let's understand that.

Respectful conversations begin with listening, allowing others the freedom to consider faith without feeling pressured.

Reactance pertains to the psychological idea that when you push on someone, they have a tendency (usually) to push back. The reason people push back is that most of us don't like the idea of our freedom or decision-making being taken away from us. When you confront someone with a new idea or religion to follow because you are right and they are wrong, the normal reaction is to respond with reactance.

Many parents complain about their teenagers saying things like "They just don't listen!" We need to remember the teenage mind is developing as they move into adulthood, and they are beginning to be "little adults." Like adults, teens want to make choices and decide things for themselves. I'm not saying we should let them make any decision they want on anything, but giving teens a choice to choose from rather than laying down the law with your way or the highway may help avoid a negative reaction due to reactance.

To avoid reactance, you want to let people persuade themselves rather than you persuade them. How can we do that? One success story comes to us from the state of Florida and an anti-smoking campaign geared to teenagers. In the past, the state had tried pushing ads in the media about the dangers of smoking to your health, your teeth, and your ability in sports, but none of these attempts had much success.

What ended up working was that the state tried just providing the teens with information and letting the teens come up with their own actions. The state started to use media and ads to promote the idea that the cigarette lobby used lots of money to push their agenda among political leaders and ad men. For example, one commercial that was run had teenagers calling a magazine to run an anti-smoking ad. The magazine told the teens they would have to pay to run the ad, just like the cigarette company paid big money to get their ad in the magazine. When the teens objected, the magazine rep informed them the magazine was in the business of making money.

Through these types of ads, commercials, and information provided to Florida teens, the campaign organizers were allowing the teens to make up their own minds with the facts rather than force-feeding them to take proper action.

In just the first few months of the "truth campaign," as it was called, 30,000 Florida teens gave up smoking. The Florida program became a model nationally, and in time teen smoking rates nationally dropped 75 percent.

Berger addresses this idea of giving people choice to make their decisions: "agency." This sounds a lot like God giving man "free will." There are certain ways to give people agency. One way is to provide people with more than one choice in the matter—or giving them a menu. Rather than saying you must believe my gospel or come to my church, let them know there are many church groups out there that teach similar things to what I believe.

Point two is to "ask, don't tell." Rather than tell people Christmas is pagan and that they should not celebrate it, ask questions. So, do you celebrate Christmas? Why? Was Jesus born on December 25th? When you ask questions, you are now putting the onus on the other person to provide information or defend a position. You are not making it a confrontational situation.

The third thing you want to do is highlight a gap in the reasoning of the other person. Find something that is a disconnect between what they believe and what they do. So, you want to follow Jesus Christ and do what He did? Did you know He went to worship on Saturday rather than Sunday?

The final point is to listen first. Gain understanding of the other person before you begin to push any information out. By using active listening skills and just starting a relationship with someone with no strings attached, you build trust, which is essential for having anyone listen to you about anything.

Hopefully this brief blog on reactance will assist you in spreading the Word of God in season and out.

Sources:

The Catalyst: How to Change Anyone's Mind, by Jonah Berger (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2020).

"Tobacco Industry Political Power and Influence in Florida from 1979 to 1999," by Michael S. Givel and Stanton A. Glantz, 1999, working paper, University of California, San Francisco: Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education