The multi-edged sword of social proof among women
For better or for worse, does social proof play a bigger role in women’s lives?
“Fastest ways to make women want you” and “How to win over all the ladies in the room” are the results Google returned to me for the keyword search ‘social proof women.’ Social proof, or ‘informal social influence,’ is a popular behavioural phenomenon essentially meaning that people copy the actions of others.
I was trying to confirm my hunch that social proof plays a bigger role for women than men. But, I couldn’t find much. Because women have been labelled ‘prone to gossip,’ and could also be excessively attuned to others’ approval — gender-based research on social proof can be controversial, an advisor told me.
In building her digital financial service, gender practitioner Chaitra Chidanand found social proof to play a significant role for women: “Women’s path to “yes” is different. They wanted to be given space and time. To first learn about the app, see it being used by or talked about by others and then be allowed to try it out without being asked an arm and a leg to sign up.”
Other gender practitioners have also seen women’s sociability and peer-based learning as a positive and use it to boost women’s experiences. For example, Callisto was “founded on the premise that those who experience unwanted sexual contact may be more willing to report it if they know that others have spoken up as well.”
But there’s negative stories as well. Sexual predator Harvey Weinstein turned silence in a code for many years, giving examples of women he had assaulted who were pressed by him under NDAs. Social proof is commonly used in marketing, but often specifically targets women, another Google keyword search showed.
As any behaviour change tenet, social proof too, is a multi-edged sword. But oh, to imagine the world if we used it positively to women’s advantage. Have you seen examples where social proof is being used positively to design for women?
This post is an excerpt from Unconforming: a newsletter about Design for Women. Unconforming goes out every two weeks and also shares learnings from experts, job and other opportunities, examples and articles — all to make an impact in the women’s space. Sign up here to get it in your inbox!
