The Susceptibility of Africans to Persuasive Strategies: A Case Study of Nigeria

Persuasive technology has become popular in recent years as an effective tool for changing behavior. However, research on the African population is scarce. Consequently, we conducted a study among 88 participants to determine their persuasion profile using Nigeria as a case study. Specifically, we investigated their level of susceptibility to Cialdini’s persuasive strategies—Authority, Commitment, Consensus, Liking, Reciprocity and Scarcity—which are currently being applied in persuasive technology design. Moreover, we investigated how gender moderates the responsiveness of Nigerians to these strategies. The results of our analysis showed that Nigerians are susceptible to all six strategies, with Commitment, Reciprocity, Authority and Liking being the most persuasive strategies, and Consensus and Scarcity being the least persuasive strategies. Moreover, males are more susceptible to Commitment and Authority than females. Finally, we compared our finding with that of a similar study in the literature. Our main contribution to knowledge is the uncovering of the persuasion profile of Nigerians with respect to Cialdini’s persuasive strategies. Hitherto, this demographic has been understudied in persuasive technology research.

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