Can people change?
The psychology behind identity change
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🏷️ Categories: Habits, Behavior.
It was 1966. No one knew it at the time, but two psychologists named Jonathan Freedman and Scott Fraser were about to conduct an experiment that would reveal something fundamental about human psychology: how people change.
It all started with a very simple question.
They wondered whether asking someone to do something small (something easy to agree to) could open the door for that same person to later say yes to something much bigger. What they found was surprising and would eventually become one of the most well-known principles in social psychology.
The foot-in-the-door effect.
The foot-in-the-door experiment
Here’s how the experiment worked…
The scientists went door to door making a simple request. Sometimes it was signing a document; other times, placing a small road safety sticker on a window. Things that required little effort or commitment. A few days later, they returned. But this time, the request was different: install a huge, ugly, eye-catching sign in the front yard. A sign that said something like “Drive Carefully.”
There was another group that was asked to put up the large sign from the beginning, without any prior request.
And here’s the interesting part.
Those who had agreed to the small request first (signing the document or placing the sticker) accepted the large sign in many cases, while those who received the large request immediately almost all said no.
Why?
Big actions are often born from small commitments.
When someone agrees to do something, their identity adjusts to that accepted change. It doesn’t have to happen consciously, but it still affects them. They begin to see themselves differently. They perceive themselves as “the kind of person who does this sort of thing.”
And when your identity starts to shift, your actions shift too.
Putting up a huge road safety sign suddenly is a drastic change, but doing it after you’ve already joined the initiative by placing a sticker feels different. It feels much closer to who you already are. And that’s how, little by little, we change.
And this idea applies to our lives in more ways than you can imagine.
Why we do what we do
For a long time, we’ve believed that personal change requires huge amounts of motivation and willpower. Science points to something simpler: the most effective change begins with an action so small that it barely creates resistance.
This explains why micro-habits work so well.
Think about it this way: if you decide to work out for an hour every day, you may feel a lot of resistance. It seems like too much effort and too much commitment. However, if you commit to just five minutes of exercise, the barrier drops dramatically. It’s almost embarrassing to refuse.
Even if you underestimate them, those five minutes are incredibly valuable.
They begin shaping what you consider acceptable.
The initial goal isn’t a major physical transformation. Five minutes aren’t enough for that, but they do create a major mental shift: you begin aligning yourself with the version of yourself you want to become. Just like the person who put up a sticker, the next step of installing the sign feels coherent.
The same thing happens in other areas:
Diet: starting with one tiny change may seem insignificant, but it reinforces your perception of yourself as someone who takes care of their health. It’s not about transforming your entire diet overnight, but about moving in the direction of someone who eats healthy.
Writing: writing a single page, or even a paragraph, can be enough to stop thinking of yourself as someone who “wants to write” and start acting like someone who writes.
Exercise: going for a walk or taking the stairs instead of the elevator may seem like very little, but it changes your relationship with physical activity — you’re no longer a sedentary person. A close friend of mine began his physical transformation with that simple gesture.
You don’t need massive effort to create massive change. In fact, it’s the opposite: the smallest change is the one most likely to create bigger changes. Just like in the experiment, first you place a sticker, then a sign.
Start small.
What should you do now?
Freedman and Fraser’s experiment leaves us with an important lesson: we don’t change because of huge decisions. We change because we first accept something small, and that initial small “yes” opens the door to a potentially much bigger change.
If you want to write, don’t aim to write a book. Start with a simple journal.
If you want to eat better, don’t aim for the perfect diet. Start by cutting out sugar.
If you want to train, don’t begin with intense gym sessions. Start by walking.
For big changes, small beginnings.
Be aware of that.
Want to learn more? Here are 3 related ideas to go deeper:
How to change habits (without needing willpower or huge effort)
Why 90% of New Year’s resolutions fail (and what to do to actually succeed)
✍️ Your turn: In what areas of your life are you trying to put up a “big sign” without first placing the “sticker”? What small “yes” could you give yourself today to make that change easier in the new direction?
💭 Quote of the day: “He may come to view himself, in his own eyes, as the kind of person who does this kind of thing. Once he has complied with a request, his attitude may change.” — Freedman, J. & Fraser, S. (1966), Compliance without pressure: The foot-in-the-door technique.
See you next time! 👋
References 📚
Freedman, J. & Fraser, S. (1966). Compliance without pressure: The foot-in-the-door technique. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 4(2), 195–202. URL