Word for being influenced by others

We often meet or know folks who are “easily influenced” by others. This can be in terms of how they act, how they treat others, and more. However, we may not know what else we can refer to this person as. Therefore, this article will highlight acceptable terms.

What Do You Call Someone Who Is Easily Influenced?

The phrase “easily influenced” is very commonly used. If we would like to find an applicable synonym to calling someone “easily influenced”, we can try using some of the following terms:

  • Impressionable
  • Susceptible
  • Gullible
  • Follower
  • Persuadable
  • Exploitable
  • Naive
  • Credulous
  • Suggestible
  • Trusting

Words For Someone Who Is Easily Influenced

The preferred version is “impressionable”. This is because it is a strong alternative to merely saying someone is “easily influenced”. When someone is “impressionable”, they are very open to believing the views, opinions and statements of others – often without any questioning.

Impressionable

Cambridge Dictionary defines “impressionable” as being easily influenced by other people, especially because you are young. We can certainly use this term in regards to children and teenagers, as they are very believing, especially with information supplied by the adults in their lives.

At the same time, we can also use the term “impressionable”, in terms of folks who are “easily influenced” because of a lack of credibility. This means that this person is not very believable themselves, therefore, they are easily persuaded to believing other’s opinions.

Here are a few ways we can use this term appropriately:

  • Children are very impressionable in terms of advertising. This is why many countries have laws on what can be used in advertisements directed towards children aged 18 and under.
  • She’s at a very impressionable age, where she is easily manipulated into doing anything her friends would like.
  • He doesn’t have a good general understanding of history, making him impressionable and trusting of anything he is told.

Susceptible

Cambridge Dictionary defines “susceptible” as being easily influenced or harmed by something. When we say that someone is “susceptible” we are saying that they are likely to submit to the influence of someone or something else. This is often because of a lack of firsthand experience of knowledge.

We can also use the term “susceptible” to describe someone who is easily affected emotionally. This means that they may be sensitive by nature or feelings, making them unchallenging targets for those wishing to persuade them.

Some examples of how we can use this particular term are:

  • She was susceptible to having her feelings hurt by the words of others.
  • He didn’t have a good understanding of intimate relationships, making him susceptible to her opinion and experience.
  • While she is a beautiful woman, she isn’t very susceptible to flattery.

Gullible

Cambridge Dictionary defines “gullible” as being easily deceived or tricked, and too willing to believe everything that other people say. Therefore, when we say someone is too “gullible”, we are meaning to express that they are too easily believing of others.

Essentially, we can view gullibility as somewhat of a failure in our social intelligence. Someone who is “gullible” has become far too easy to be tricked or conned into often ill-advised courses of action or beliefs.

To help showcase how we can use this term, here are a few examples:

  • She was far too gullible, to the point where she fell in love with men who fed her falsehoods.
  • Corporations attempt to persuade the gullible public into spending their money irrationally.
  • Even I’m not gullible enough to believe something that ludicrous!

Follower

Cambridge Dictionary defines a “follower” as someone who supports, admires, or believes in a particular person, group or idea. However, this can often be entirely to a person’s detriment, as they often overlook the negative aspects of blindly following others.

Often, a “follower” can be considered someone who is an adherent or a devotee to a particular person, cause or activity. This is also generally someone who may not have the greatest background knowledge, morals, etc.

Being a “follower” is usually considered to be quite a dangerous thing, as we often lose ourselves in the process.

Here are a few ways we can use this term, if deemed appropriate:

  • Once we got to high school, she became a follower of the mean girl clique. She no longer had time for her old friends.
  • He is a follower to the Maverick organization – a hardcore rightwing group. It’s not a good group of people to associate with, so I worry for him.
  • She is a devote follower of Christianity and has been for as long as I’ve known her.

Persuadable

When we say that someone is “persuadable”, we’re meaning to say that they’re extremely easy to persuade. Cambridge Dictionary defines “persuade” as making someone so or believe something by giving them a good reason to do it or by talking to that person and making them believe it.

When someone is persuadable, it is very easy to manipulate them into changing their own beliefs or values. This is considered to be a very negative attribute, as our values and beliefs are something that should never change for anyone but ourselves.

We’ll now go over a few examples using this term:

  • He was easily persuadable, which meant he was convinced to pay the entire groups tab without issue.
  • Children are very persuadable by nature and adults should never attempt to take advantage of this.
  • The candidate decided to attempt to appeal to the most persuadable population of voters.

Exploitable

Cambridge Dictionary defines “exploitable” as someone who is able to be used unfairly or for someone’s own advantage. Essentially, when we say someone is “exploitable”, we mean that they are capable of or suitable for being used for a particular purpose or reason.

We can also use the term “exploitable” when we wish to speak about something or someone that can be used to create an abundance of profit or good.

Some examples of the term being appropriately used are:

  • I know what you wanted and that was for me to make some sort of exploitable mistake, which you would then have used to your advantage.
  • His software business involves capturing marketing data in the exploitable and effective way.
  • She was incredibly exploitable, making it easy for the owners to manipulate her into working overtime with adequate pay or benefits.

Naive

Cambridge Dictionary defines “naive” as too willing to believe that someone is telling the truth, that people’s intentions in general are good, or that life is simple and fair. People are often naive because of their youth or lack of life experience.

We often say that folks who are naive lack a general wisdom or judgement. At the same time, we can say lack the ability to see through the falsehoods portrayed by others.

To showcase how we would use this term, here’s an example:

  • He was naive enough to believe that she had intensions to spend the night with him.
  • It was naive of you to think that the teacher would listen to your opinion.
  • It’s naive to believe that all countries in the world are able to agree on effective solutions to the ongoing climate crisis.

Credulous

Cambridge Dictionary defines “credulous” as too willing to believe what you are told and so easily deceived. We often describe a “credulous” person as someone who generally trusts to readily or is easily convinced, often without adequately presented information, facts or evidence.

We commonly associate the term “credulous” to depict someone who we believe is far too eager to agree with someone else’s beliefs or opinions, without thinking it through.

Here are some examples highlighting this term:

  • Credulous seniors can often be perceived easy targets for phone scams.
  • He was credulous and because of this, he easily believed the opinions of his unsupportive classmates.
  • Because my sister is a credulous consumer, she is a salesperson’s dream clientele.

Suggestible

Cambridge Dictionary defines “suggestible” as a person who is easily influenced by other people’s opinions. We often will say that a “suggestible person” is very open to suggestion, easily swayed or easily manipulated. This if often someone who has a malleable personality.

When we say that someone is “suggestible”, we are meaning to express that they are often very inclined to accept and act on the mere suggestions of others – with any prior thought process.

To follow up, here are a few examples showcasing this term:

  • A suggestible client will comply to your requests, without thinking twice.
  • She was highly suggestible, making it simple for the schoolyard bullies to take advantage of her.
  • He is suggestible and incredibly willing to believe even the most ridiculous of opinions.

Trusting

The last alternative we will look at is “trusting”. Cambridge Dictionary defines “trusting” as always believing that other people are good or honest and will not harm or deceive you. While we often associate being “trusting” as a positive aspect, this is not always the case.

Those who are the most “trusting” are often easily manipulated or taken advantage of. They tend to be overly optimistic in terms of people always being good-natured in their intentions. They want to believe that everyone is sincere and because of this, can often get hurt.

Finally, here are our last few examples:

  • She was far too trusting and as a result, had many people in her life who took advantage of her.
  • The owners were far too trusting in their morning manager, who had been stealing from the company for months.
  • We are often too trusting in our places of employment, not realizing that we may be getting taken advantage of.

What Does It Mean To Be Easily Influenced?

Someone who is “easily influenced” is often someone who cannot or chooses not to think independently. This is someone who is considered to easily agree with or submit to the beliefs or opinions of others – without careful consideration or prior thought.

This can be a very negative attribute, as someone who is “easily influenced” is often not someone respected for their opinion. At the same time, this is also someone who is thought to be easy to take advantage of.

You may also like:

10 Words For Someone Who Is Easily Impressed

10 Words That Describe Hearing What You Want To Hear

“Manipulable” vs. “Manipulatable” – Difference Explained

martin lassen dam grammarhow

Martin holds a Master’s degree in Finance and International Business. He has six years of experience in professional communication with clients, executives, and colleagues. Furthermore, he has teaching experience from Aarhus University. Martin has been featured as an expert in communication and teaching on Forbes and Shopify. Read more about Martin here.


Asked by: Daren Nikolaus

Score: 4.8/5
(40 votes)

As a verb, influence typically means «to affect or change someone or something in an indirect but usually important way.» Something or someone that influences a person or thing, then, has an influence on that person or thing.

What is another word for influenced by?

1 effect, sway. 2 pressure, guidance. 7 impress, move, bias, direct, control. 8 incite, rouse, arouse, instigate, induce, persuade.

What is it called when you influence someone?

Noun. ▲ A person remunerated to lobby politicians and encourage them vote a certain way or otherwise use their office to affect a desired result. lobbyist. influencer.

What is it called when two things influence each other?

What does interrelated mean? Interrelated is used to describe two or more things that are closely connected to each other and may affect each other. Interrelated is used in situations in which two or more elements strongly influence each other or are closely linked to each other.

What are examples of influence?

My parents considered my friend to be a bad influence on me. Influence is defined as to affect a person or thing. An example of influence is for a high school student to complete all of his assignments on time, thereby making his little brother want to do the same. To have an influence on (something); change.

34 related questions found

What influences a person?

At a glance

Behaviour is affected by factors relating to the person, including: physical factors — age, health, illness, pain, influence of a substance or medication. personal and emotional factors — personality, beliefs, expectations, emotions, mental health. life experiences — family, culture, friends, life events.

How do you demonstrate influence?

To demonstrate influencing and persuasion skills is to show someone that you can get someone else to do something. For example, one salesperson might show their ability to influence a customer by closing a deal. Or a project manager might show their ability to influence by persuading the stakeholders to invest more.

What is a synonym for interrelated?

List of paraphrases for «interrelated»: interlinked, interdependent, inter-related, interconnected, inter-linked, cross-cutting, interwoven, inter-dependent, related, inter-connected, intertwined, indivisible, inseparable, interlinkages, indissociable, interlocking.

What is a word for something that affects something else?

impact. verb. to have an effect or influence on someone or something.

What is an interrelated person?

: having a mutual or reciprocal relation. Other Words from interrelated Example Sentences Learn More About interrelated.

What is the synonym for influence?

Some common synonyms of influence are authority, credit, prestige, and weight. While all these words mean «power exerted over the minds or behavior of others,» influence may apply to a force exercised and received consciously or unconsciously.

What is the synonym of impressionable?

In this page you can discover 42 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for impressionable, like: penetrable, persuasible, susceptible, impressible, receptive, easily affected, responsive, persuadable, gullible, vulnerable and suggestible.

What is influence in leadership?

The ability to influence is an essential leadership skill. To influence is to have an impact on the behaviors, attitudes, opinions and choices of others. Influence is not to be confused with power or control. … Let’s take a look at how leaders effectively build trust and increase their influence with others.

What is the best synonyms for influence?

influence

  • prerogative.
  • prominence.
  • pull.
  • ropes.
  • rule.
  • spell.
  • supremacy.
  • sway.

How do you influence others?

The ultimate guide to becoming more influential at work (or anywhere else)

  1. Listen without interruption. …
  2. Act with integrity. …
  3. Do what you say you’re going to do. …
  4. Give others a voice. …
  5. Take care of yourself. …
  6. Be relevant with your skills. …
  7. Stay focused on what matters. …
  8. Engage with others.

Does something effect or affect you?

Affect is a verb – “to affect” – meaning to influence or have an impact on something. Effect is the noun – “an effect (a positive or a negative effect) is the result of being affected by something. There is also a verb “to effect”, which means to bring something about – “to effect a change”.

Is impact a synonym for effect?

The synonyms shock and impact are sometimes interchangeable, but shock often denotes the effect produced by a collision and carries the suggestion of something that strikes or hits with force.

What is another word for ripple effect?

synonyms for ripple effect

  • causal sequence.
  • contagion effect.
  • dispersion.
  • dissemination.
  • domino effect.
  • knock-on effect.
  • overspreading.
  • slippery slope.

Has been linked synonym?

In this page you can discover 43 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for linked, like: connected, associated, joined, bonded, coalesced, tied, united, yoked, related, wedded and unified.

What is the synonym of designed?

Frequently Asked Questions About design

Some common synonyms of design are plan, plot, project, and scheme. While all these words mean «a method devised for making or doing something or achieving an end,» design often suggests a particular pattern and some degree of achieved order or harmony.

What is the description of intrapersonal?

: occurring within the individual mind or self intrapersonal concerns of the aged.

How do leaders influence others?

But effective leaders don’t just command; they inspire, persuade, and encourage. Leaders tap the knowledge and skills of a group, point individuals toward a common goal and consensus, and draw out a commitment to achieve results.

How can I be influential?

9 Habits That’ll Make You the Most Influential Person in the Room

  1. They Think for Themselves. …
  2. They Are Graciously Disruptive. …
  3. They Inspire Conversation. …
  4. They Leverage Their Networks. …
  5. They Focus Only on What Really Matters. …
  6. They Welcome Disagreement. …
  7. They Are Proactive. …
  8. They Respond Rather Than React.

What are influential skills?

Influencing skills are the ability to bring people round to your way of thinking about a certain topic, without force or coercion whilst acknowledging their opinions.

What is the word that describes the process of influencing people without their knowledge?

For example, «Social Media content is drastically influencing people’s opinions without their knowledge».

Or should I leave the sentence as is?

aparente001's user avatar

aparente001

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asked Apr 4, 2018 at 17:18

Snufkin's user avatar

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The term I would use is subliminally, the adverbial form of subliminal

(of a stimulus or mental process) below the threshold of sensation or
consciousness; perceived by or affecting someone’s mind without their
being aware of it.

The classic form of this is subliminal advertisingonce thought to be widespread in movies. In this use, a single frame showing popcorn, inserted at intervals into the movie, was thought to induce a desire for popcorn without the viewer realizing that anything had happened. Other, more sinister,uses have been claimed, up to and including political campaigns.

So, your sentence might become, «Social Media content is drastically and subliminally influencing peoples opinions.»

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 22:57

WhatRoughBeast's user avatar

2

Surreptitiously (ODO)

  • Obtained by ‘surreption’, suppression of the truth, or fraudulent misrepresentation;

  • Taken, obtained, used, done, etc. by stealth, secretly, or ‘on the sly’; secret and unauthorized; clandestine

So,

«Social Media content is drastically and surreptitiously influencing peoples opinions (without their knowledge)«.

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 19:30

Dan's user avatar

DanDan

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«The word gaslighting is used to describe an attempt to destroy another’s perception of reality.»

And in the play which originated the expression, Gas Light, the gaslighter was a bigamist and jewel thief who manipulated his wife into not obstructing his attempts to recover a score.

It’s typically used to describe abusive intentions, but (in my experience) has unfortunately loosened to include other attempts to shift the perceptions of others until they match what the manipulator wants them to believe. Either way, I am completely convinced that the social-media activity which you’re asking about is indeed deliberately abusive and I find that «gaslighting» to be a very apropos description of what the perpetrators are doing.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaslighting

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 20:08

Beanluc's user avatar

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You can alternatively use the term brainwashing.

Collins defines brainwash as:

verb, transitive, US;

[T]o indoctrinate so intensively and thoroughly as to effect a radical transformation of beliefs and mental attitudes

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answered Apr 4, 2018 at 21:42

Bensstats's user avatar

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I would use the word indoctrination or indoctrinate.

From Wikipedia:

Process of forcibly inculcating ideas, attitudes, cognitive strategies or a professional methodology by coercion.

The word applies to systemic manipulation, so wouldn’t be appropriate if you’re just describing particulars on social media. However, given the way social media algorithms specifically curate content that reinforces the viewer’s particular worldview (and even biases it according to some), it’s entirely appropriate if you’re criticizing social media generally.


Social Media content is indoctrinating people without their knowledge».

answered Apr 5, 2018 at 2:18

Wes Sayeed's user avatar

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I would suggest hoodwink:

Deceive or trick. ‘staff were hoodwinked into thinking the cucumber
was a sawn-off shotgun

Oxford

answered Apr 5, 2018 at 2:23

Hot Licks's user avatar

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The word «Warp» could be used, as in weather warping, or allowing to twist out of square, lumber that is left outside in wet weather.

«The lack of context, critical thinking or historical background in Social Media’s presentation of issues is warping the peoples opinion’s».

I believe exploitation of this condition is done subsequently but does not describe this activity.

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 17:58

Elliot's user avatar

4

I want to suggest sway:

Control or influence (a person or course of action)

Here are three examples from Oxford living dictionaries:

  • ‘This story absolutely outraged me and it is stories such as these that sway people over to thinking that capital punishment should be used on some criminals.’

  • ‘Did he influence Clara, or did she sway him in their initial decision to keep the concerto hidden?’

  • ‘How is it that you could easily sway Father when me and Brian have to literally beg for what we want?’

And there are more example on the internet

Community's user avatar

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 19:15

haha's user avatar

hahahaha

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«Social Media content is drastically influencing peoples opinions without their knowledge».

I would use: «Social Media content is drastically influencing people’s opinions unbeknownst to them«.

Robert Goodin observes that manipulation carries “especially strong
connotations of something sneaky” and that manipulation
characteristically happens unbeknownst to its victim.

There are tons of references out there that collocate with manipulation. I have only given two.

The term specifically means without the knowledge of the person specified.

Merriam Webster — unbeknownst, aka, unbeknown

unbeknownst

unbeknownst

answered Apr 5, 2018 at 15:50

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Machiavellian overlaps with both ‘underhanded / deceitful / devious’ and ‘manipulative’, as attested at this entry at Thesaurus.com. ‘Perfidious’ and ‘treacherous’ also spell out the deceit involved. These are of course adjectives rather than verbs.

CollinsCoBuild gives:

If you describe someone as Machiavellian, you are critical of them
because they often make clever and secret plans to achieve their aims
and are not honest with people.

And HarleyTherapy:

Machiavellianism in psychology refers to a personality trait which sees a person so focused on their own interests they will manipulate,
deceive, and exploit others to achieve their goals.

In broadened usage, ‘Machiavellian’ relates to the behaviour as well as the character trait; thus there are examples of «Machiavellian attempt» and «Machiavellian methods» on the internet.

This broadened usage is licensed by M-W:

Machiavellian: suggesting the principles of conduct laid down by
Machiavelli; specifically: marked by cunning, duplicity, or bad faith

He relied on Machiavellian tactics to get elected.

ODO also has relevant examples:

… while fending off the Machiavellian manoeuvres of others

… repressive conventions of the times and the Machiavellian politics of those around her

… a Machiavellian game of political ping-pong.

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 17:53

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«Social Media content is drastically influencing peoples opinions
inconspicuously«.

ODO:

inconspicuously

ADVERB

See inconspicuous

‘He’s less keen on persuading you with his big ideas than simply
putting them out there — and having done that he seems to slip out the
door quite inconspicuously.’

inconspicuous
ADJECTIVE
Not clearly visible or attracting attention.

answered Apr 5, 2018 at 16:04

alwayslearning's user avatar

alwayslearningalwayslearning

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Subversion.

On a basic level, the subliminal process you’re describing can be characterized as the Machiavellian SUBVERSION of traditional Western, Judeo-Christian values and free market society to indoctrinate, bias, sway, or otherwise brainwash people through mesmerizing media propaganda, historical gaslighting, and surreptitious social engineering to inconspicuously warp public opinion, exploit and hoodwink the masses, & further instill the consolidation of power and control into the hands of a small, elite ruling class. Other explanations are one or more of the following: unbeknownst ignorance, ego/bias, noise narratives, convenient dismissals of truth, or lesser derivatives of the aforementioned framework. This has been the revolutionary goal of the Fabian Society, for example, since its inception in the 1880s.

Now that we are aware of the ailment, how do we treat and destroy the disease?

answered Oct 12, 2020 at 14:06

user401418's user avatar

Question: What is the word that describes the process of influencing people without their knowledge?

From Oxford Dictionary:

Propaganda
NOUN
1. mass noun : Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote a political cause or point of view.

Origin
Italian, from modern Latin congregatio de propaganda fide ‘congregation for propagation of the faith’ (see propaganda (sense 2)).

propaganda (sense 1 [cited above]) dates from the early 20th century.

From Wikipedia:

Propaganda is information that is not objective and is used primarily to influence an audience and further an agenda, often by presenting facts selectively to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded language to produce an emotional rather than a rational response to the information that is presented.1 Propaganda is often associated with material prepared by governments, but activist groups, companies and the media can also produce propaganda.

In the twentieth century, the term propaganda has been associated with a manipulative approach…

Noam Chomsky: Propaganda and Control Of The Public Mind (full lecture on Youtube).

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 21:20

Bread's user avatar

BreadBread

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Maybe not the perfect fit, but the verb to exploit seems like a word that’s very close to the one you’re looking for:

make use of (a situation) in a way considered unfair or underhand.

Your example:

Social Media content is exploiting people’s opinions.

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 17:39

Michael Rybkin's user avatar

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To instill, according to Cambridge Dictionary:

to put a feeling, idea, or principle gradually into someone’s mind, so that it has a strong influence on the way that person thinks or behaves

Attribution:»Instil Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary.» Cambridge Dictionary. Accessed April 05, 2018. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/instil.

answered Apr 5, 2018 at 0:32

JJJ's user avatar

JJJJJJ

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Mesmerising is the word I would use.

«Social Media content is mesmerising people without their knowledge».

Franz Mesmer (1734-1815)… who theorised that there was a natural energetic transference that occurred between all animated and inanimate objects that he called animal magnetism, sometimes later referred to as mesmerism.

Wikipedia

The Internet Is Mesmerised By This Video Of A Snake Sipping Water

NDTV

3. trans. To affect (a person) as if by hypnosis; to fascinate, hold spellbound.

1986 B. Fussell I hear Amer. Cooking ii. viii. 115 Froggers work in pairs, one to mesmerize the frogs..with a spotlight..the other to catch the frog by his legs.

1995 Independent 4 Mar. 25/2 There were his London superiors, mesmerised by the apparent profits he was making.

OED

answered Apr 4, 2018 at 19:31

Nigel J's user avatar

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A lot of good answers already, but I just wanted to add bias. As in:

Social media biases peoples opinions

Bias is more scientific and comes in many forms as this infographic shows.

answered Apr 5, 2018 at 16:54

Pam's user avatar

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Depends ‘what’ the writer is wanting to convey. Consider the ‘effect’ on people is of greater import than Social Media. Perhaps re-arranging the sentence to emphasize this import would provide clarity.

Examples:

  1. Peoples’ opinions are being unknowingly and drastically influenced by Social Media.
  2. People are unaware that their opinions are being drastically influenced by Social Media.

answered Apr 5, 2018 at 19:08

user291675's user avatar

Social engineering is a term for influencing or manipulating people without their knowledge. It can be used in a general sense, or in a context specific to information security. This question seems to be asking about general usage.

Social engineering is defined as:

efforts to influence particular attitudes and social behaviors on a
large scale, whether by governments, media or private groups in order
to produce desired characteristics in a target population.

Influence campaigns are a prominent application of social engineering. The objectives of such campaigns are not necessarily neutral or beneficial for all parties involved, although they can be. Examples include:

  • the coordinated use of social media to affect outcomes in electoral politics
  • improving health care outcomes or responsible savings for retirement by reinforcing recognition of long-term thinking over impulsiveness

The UK Behavioral Insights Team (under David Cameron) and US Social and Behavioral Sciences Team (under Barack Obama) were known as “nudge units”. They used behavioral science techniques for government policy. Via Nudges: Social Engineering or Sensible Policy? (Psychology Today), «The underlying philosophy behind nudges is libertarian paternalism: people should be free to make the decisions they want, but policymakers can present these choices in ways that lead to desired outcomes.»

Social engineering generally has a negative connotation, of propaganda and deception, regardless of the ultimate goal. In this article by public accounting firm Deloitte and Touche, regarding behavioral psychology, social engineering is likened to manipulation. It is not necessarily an unmitigated force for good:

Many object to the idea of using psychology to nudge people’s behavior on the grounds that it is manipulative or a form of social engineering. These concerns are crucial and not to be swept under the carpet. At the same time, it is possible to view both behavioral data and behavioral nudge science as tools that can be used in either socially useful or socially useless ways. Hopefully the examples discussed here illustrate the former sort of applications. There is no unique bright line separating the usefully personalized from the creepily personal.

answered Apr 6, 2018 at 12:22

Ellie Kesselman's user avatar

Ellie KesselmanEllie Kesselman

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Inception? Though I think it’s not really in the dictionary (do correct me if I’m wrong), encapsulates what you have described. I think a more apt word may be «charm» or «subtle insinuation».

answered Apr 6, 2018 at 7:15

Arkhaine's user avatar

4


На основании Вашего запроса эти примеры могут содержать грубую лексику.


На основании Вашего запроса эти примеры могут содержать разговорную лексику.


You very much want to be liked and because of your need for approval and acceptance, you are easily influenced by others’ opinions, especially when young.



Вы очень хотите, чтобы Вас любили, и за счет своей потребности в одобрении и признании, Вы легко подвержены влиянию чужого мнения, особенно в молодости.


You want to be liked, and because of your need for approval you could be easily influenced by others’ opinions-especially when you are young.



Вы очень хотите, чтобы Вас любили, и за счет своей потребности в одобрении и признании, Вы легко подвержены влиянию чужого мнения, особенно в молодости.


Although society tries to train people not to judge others based on their physical traits, as social perceivers, we cannot help but be influenced by others’ hair, skin color, height, weight, style of clothes, pitch in voice, etc.



Хотя общество учит нас не судить других по их физическим данным, мы не можем не составлять мнение о людях, исходя из цвета их волос и кожи, роста, веса, стиля одежды, тональности голоса и многого другого во время первой встречи.


Clark himself firmly believed that the way to understand — and collect — art was to look, look, look again, and not to be influenced by others’ likes or dislikes, or fashion.



Кларк был твердо убежден, что единственный способ понимать — и коллекционировать — искусство заключается в том, чтобы смотреть, смотреть и смотреть, не позволяя влиять на себя чужим предпочтениям или моде.

Другие результаты


Do not change your opinion influenced by other peoples comments or forecasts when your position is already open.



Не меняйте своего мнения под влиянием чужих высказываний и прогнозов, когда ваша позиция уже открыта.


Speculation of price movement in one direction or another influences your buying and selling, even when that price is more directly influenced by other investors behavior than by the underlying performance of the company.



Спекуляция ценовым движением в том или ином направлении влияет на ваши покупки и продажи, даже когда на эту цену более непосредственно влияет поведение других инвесторов, чем исходные показатели компании.


It was also influenced by other languages over many centuries.


It’s energy based and very often influenced by others.


It helps you be less influenced by others.


Early Polish Romantics were influenced by other European Romantics.


Macbeth was a man easily influenced by others.


The judiciary is impartial and cannot be influenced by other powers.



Судебная власть беспристрастна, и другие ветви власти не могут оказывать на нее давления.


Celts were influenced by other peoples but influenced themselves the warfare of their enemies.


Often news for entertainment purposes too; provide information on exclusion from other places that can not be achieved or influenced by others.



Часто новости для развлекательных целей тоже; предоставлять информацию об исключении из других мест, которые не могут быть достигнуты или под влиянием других.


Many other oncological markers are influenced by other factors, for example, somatic diseases.


We influence others and are influenced by others daily.


In other words, an early predisposition to autism may be influenced by other factors along the way.


We are influenced by others, and we influence others.


If he is criticizing other people, then he must be influenced by other Zodiac.


Amethyst can help manifest your true self rather than be influenced by others to conform to other people’s expectations.



Аметист может помочь проявить ваше истинное я, а не быть под влиянием других, чтобы соответствовать ожиданиям других людей.

Ничего не найдено для этого значения.

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A word for someone who is influenced
October 14, 2010 7:44 AM   Subscribe

Word Choice Filter: Is there a word that describes someone who is influenced by an influencer?

I have a symmetric relationship that I’m trying to document. On the one side, there is an «influencer» who is influencing someone. On the other side, there is the person who is being influenced. Is there a word to describe that person, other than «the person influenced»?

posted by TheOtherSide to Writing & Language (29 answers total)

Believer. Responder. Agreer.
posted by SuperSquirrel at 8:07 AM on October 14, 2010

Apostle; Disciple; Listener.
posted by MuffinMan at 9:01 AM on October 14, 2010

«Myrmidon» is a terrific word, though it may imply a more complete degree of influence than you have in mind.
posted by foursentences at 9:01 AM on October 14, 2010

(and since you’re trying to discuss both sides of the relationship, «myrmidon» is an excellent complement to «svengali».) Two of my favorite words.
posted by foursentences at 9:03 AM on October 14, 2010

The only other word I can come up with is «adherent.» It’s more or less a more formal version of «follower», but loftier. Most commonly used «I am an adherent of…», and it avoids quite as much subordination because it implies the adherent supports the topic as well as following it. Also it’s implied that the adherent chose the particular discipline or what have you, which also invokes a position of power.
posted by Phyltre at 9:53 AM on October 14, 2010

recipient/receiver/acceptor (of influence). I suspect that it shouldn’t be too difficult to set up an initial usage that makes it clear you’re talking about a recipient (or receiver/acceptor) of influence specifically, and then use the term alone thereafter without ambiguity.
posted by drlith at 10:06 AM on October 14, 2010 [1 favorite]

Are you positive that «influencer» is precise enough for your purposes? If it is, «the influenced» makes sense and is clearest.
posted by vincele at 10:30 AM on October 14, 2010

A «mentee» is one who is mentored.
posted by Carol Anne at 10:40 AM on October 14, 2010

Response by poster: You all are awesome! Some of these are great — and, at least, give me some paths I hadn’t seen.
posted by TheOtherSide at 10:46 AM on October 14, 2010

Dupe.
Stooge.
Greenhorn.
Victim.
posted by TLCplz at 12:01 PM on October 14, 2010

I didn’t mean to imply that «follower» is too informal, just that «adherent» sounds more formal by comparison.
posted by Phyltre at 12:02 PM on October 14, 2010

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Recently, I was talking with a senior leader from a world-class global learning and development company. We were discussing his firm’s approach to teaching leadership. He was talking about how to help leaders influence others. I asked him, “Do you also teach leaders how to be influenced by others?” He thought for a moment and replied, “No, we really don’t.”

This is a fundamental gap in leadership approaches. Over the years, we’ve shifted from thinking of the leader as hero, to thinking of the leader as visionary, strategist, creator of culture, and team builder. Yet, as our images of leaders have shifted and evolved, we still seem frozen in the mindset of Dale Carnegie’s 1936 book How to Win Friends and Influence People. We still believe that the essence of leadership is about influencing others to do what we want them to do. We have a less admirable word for people who are influenced by others—followers.

The allure of influencing others and the aversion to being influenced by others shows up often in the leadership literature. My Google search of “how to influence others” yielded 288,000 results; my search of “how to be influenced by others” yielded a much smaller number. The same searches of the HBR.org website yielded 235 results, and 6 results, respectively.

Our leadership measures and language also illustrate this gap. We have many ways of assessing the extent to which leaders are successful at influencing others. For example, we assess whether leaders are able to generate compliance with or genuine commitment to their plans. We measure how quickly leaders can implement and overcome resistance to change. But my peer-review literature search revealed no similar ways to assess how willing leaders are to be influenced or how transparent they are about how they can best be influenced. And beyond the general term “open-minded,” we don’t have common words for talking about degrees to which we are open to being influenced.

Our unwillingness or inability to help others influence us prevents teams and organization from achieving better results. Over the years, we have turned our attention to different leadership practices that require us as leaders to be open to being influenced. In the 1960s and 1970s, we embraced participative leadership; in the 1990s, we were lured by the learning organization. More recently, we have focused on the value of Lean, Six Sigma, and diversity. Underlying all of these leadership and organizational practices is a powerful premise: we get much better results if we hear from and are influenced by those who are in different positions and have different perspectives, rather than relying only on the thoughts of those in power.

But this premise is not often openly addressed, let alone put into practice. Unless you are genuinely open to being influenced by others, any leadership approach you use that relies on your team’s collective knowledge is likely to fail.

If you believe that diversity of thought and mutual influence are essential to effective leadership and stronger team performance — that it leads to more creative problem-solving, higher-quality decision making, and greater innovation — then a key question to ask yourself is: “How can I develop and model openness to being influenced by others?” This openness is a function of two related factors: 1) the extent to which you are willing to be influenced; and 2) the degree to which you are transparent about how others can influence you.

The extent to which you’re willing to be influenced increases as you consider perspectives outside your own core set of beliefs. For example, you may be willing to entertain the idea that you are missing some relevant information about a situation or even that you have some of the facts wrong, but you may not be open to reconsidering whether your core assumptions about the situation are accurate. So, you’re willing to be influenced by others — but only to the extent that they don’t fundamentally change your initial beliefs about a situation.

But even if you are fully open to being influenced, you may not be transparent about how others can influence you. Here are four levels that show increasing transparency about how you can be influenced. Each level describes a strategy that many leaders use, and the thinking behind it:

  1. I will not tell you that I am open to being influenced. At this level, you provide no help to others. If they want to influence you, they will have to figure out that you’re open to being influenced. If they can’t do that, they don’t deserve to influence you.
  2. I will tell you that I am open to being influenced, but not what will influence me. At this level, you provide only minimal help. It’s up to others to figure out what will lead you to change your mind and what won’t. For example, you don’t tell people that your primary interest is reducing project implementation time and that the only ideas that will influence you are ones that achieve that goal.
  3. I will tell you what will influence me, but I will not help you make your case. Here, you tell others what kinds of information or reasoning will influence you, but you believe it’s entirely others’ responsibility to make their case. Whoever can debate better wins. I worked with a CEO who used this approach. He was willing to tell his executive team what it would take for him to change his mind, but his entire team recognized that he was so smart and could think so quickly that they rarely “won an argument” with him.
  4. I will tell you what will influence me and I will help you make your case. At this level, you are a full partner in helping others influence you. You tell others what kinds of information will lead you to change your mind. And if others don’t have the same rhetorical ability make their case as compellingly as you would, you don’t use your rhetorical skills to weaken their case—you use them to strengthen their case. For example, when your CFO tells you that you must reduce headcount immediately, but you disagree, you help her make her case by saying something like, “I was disagreeing with you because I thought you were saying we’re facing two quarters of lower earnings. If that’s the situation, I’m willing to deal with the Wall Street analysts. But if you’re saying we’re really looking at four quarters of lower than expected earnings, then I’m willing to make cuts now. Help me understand, is it two, four or some other number of quarters? And what’s your projected time for getting back to our current headcount?”

In case you’re wondering why you should bother helping others to persuade you to see something differently, you have arrived at the cause of the problem: your mindset. You may see different viewpoints as opportunities for winning an argument and being right, rather than as opportunities for learning. You may see being influenced as a weakness, rather than a strength.

If you’re genuinely open to being influenced, then you should logically make it as easy as possible for others to provide the kind of information that would best influence you. It’s simply more efficient. The more others know what will influence you and the more you help them articulate their case, the sooner you can decide whether that information and reasoning warrants changing your mind. Until your interest in being influenced by others is at least as great as your interest in influencing others, you’re missing half of what it means to be a leader. And those who report to you can feel its absence.

Just as you can be more transparent about how others can influence you, you can also learn whether others are open to being influenced by you. You might say something like, “Are you open to being influenced on this issue? I’m asking because I want to use your time and my time efficiently. If you’re not open to being influenced, just let me know and I’ll drop it. If you’re open to being influenced, then would you be willing to tell me what would lead you to consider changing your mind? That will help me quickly focus only on the factors you consider relevant. If I don’t have any information about those factors, I’ll let you know. How does that sound?”

For too long, many leaders have sought the benefits from approaches that require diversity of thought without having to change their own views. When these approaches fail, they wonder why. You can’t have it both ways. If you want others to be open to your influence, you need to be open to theirs.

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