I IS FOR INFLUENCE: Rob Yeung

Book review: I IS FOR INFLUENCE: The New Science of Persuasion, Rob Yeung

Robert Gwyn Palmer
Monday, September 12, 2011
10:11 AM

How to Win Friends and Influence People was one of the hugest bestsellers of all- time. Here, psychologist Dr Rob Yeung offers us a 21st-century tool kit so we can use the power of our experience, our language and our physical appearance to get what we really want out of life.

A lifetime of observation and myriad international social experiments provide some astonishing findings: praising children for their paintings at school makes them do worse in the future; buying expensive wine decreases our enjoyment of it; and if you’re offered two chocolates with your coffee in a restaurant, watch out because it might stimulate you to offer a whopping 21 per cent tip. It’s a fascinating and slightly terrifying subject, but just remember that our Prime Minister spent seven years working as a PR guru before you dismiss it.

Macmillan Paperback £11.99