The video titled The Life You Can Save in 3 Minutes does a great job of overcoming the absence of an identifiable victim effect without providing an identifiable victim and without explicitly mentioning the identifiable victim effect at all. The first 1:15 minutes make a case for the viewer donating money to save lives in the developing world.
It asks: “What if it was my daughter?” Then I would spend to save her.
...but it is not my daughter—and that would make an enormous difference to most humans who are in reasonable working order. Is anybody really taken in by the counter-factual “What if it was my daughter” line? It seems like a straightforward case of attempted manipulation to me.
It is in a charity’s interests to fool people to thinking prospective aid recipients are akin to family members. So, they are inclined to encourage the association—thus attempting to manipulate viewers. However, it is basically a simple psychological trick—intended to part the individual from their money.
I see a lot of this sort of thing. Charities—with the best of aims—are using much the same box of tricks that con-artists do.
I have some trouble guessing why*, but while watching the video, I felt a visceral negative reaction to the idea of giving aid first when I realized they weren’t going to give me the ‘very long story’ (what a cop-out, I thought, because I do have concerns) and then in a very dramatic way when they had the line, “What if it was your daughter?”—That was a strong click-the-video-closed moment.
I know that I am sensitive to emotional manipulation, and react to such manipulation by bristling defensively. (For example, I cannot watch the news or listen to country music.) So that could explain it, or it just might not be very effective. Perhaps it goes too far, and the message only works if it is more subtle?
Could other people comment on their emotional reaction to that part of the video?
I thought the video picked up from there. I liked the idea of a ‘wave’ and that idea was strong enough (in theory) to induce me to give aid. What was missing at the end, I think, was some evidence of the wave. For example, how many people on Facebook gave aid on this wave or what fraction of my friends?
* My first guess was that the idea of my daughter needing aid actually stimulated a hoarding response, because I need to prepare for eventualities. My second guess was that it stimulated the indignant republican in me (‘I take care of my own daughter—why don’t they?’), which is obviously uncharitable but possibly an initial emotional reaction. My third guess was the one about just resenting being manipulated.
I thought the video picked up from there. I liked the idea of a ‘wave’ and that idea was strong enough (in theory) to induce me to give aid. What was missing at the end, I think, was some evidence of the wave. For example, how many people on Facebook gave aid on this wave or what fraction of my friends?
So, I think that the situation is that at present there are very few people who are giving money to effective charities which improve health in the developing world but that with the internet and resources like GiveWell there are prospects for this changing significantly. For some indication of where the “wave” is now, see:
The Facebook group for “Giving What We Can.”
The information under the “who pledges” links on the website for The Life You Can Save.
I felt a visceral negative reaction to the idea of giving aid first when I realized they weren’t going to give me the ‘very long story’ (what a cop-out, I thought, because I do have concerns)
Sure, so I think that the situation is that most people are too impatient to listen to the ‘very long story’ so that it’s useful to condense the basic points into a few minute narrative. But since you’re the sort of person who’s receptive to very long stories there are superior options for you. The three links below provide a good starting point for the ‘very long story.’
Also, in fairness to the video I think it’s important to note that they link to the website for The Life You Can Save which has a link to GiveWell and which also begins to provide an indication of where the “wave” is at the moment.
I know that I am sensitive to emotional manipulation, and react to such manipulation by bristling defensively. (For example, I cannot watch the news or listen to country music.) So that could explain it, or it just might not be very effective. Perhaps it goes too far, and the message only works if it is more subtle?
Thank you for sharing your reaction, which I find illuminating. It did not occur to me that some people might react in this way because I do not and do not know anybody in person who has professed to having this reaction, but there’s the usual Generalizing From One Example issue and the selection effect that comes from the people who I spend time with.
In any case, your reaction definitely helps me better understand where timtyler and cousin it might be coming from.
Anyway, I would say that the “What if it was your daughter” line in the linked video helps some people overcome bias for the reason that I gave in my responses to cousin it, but that it appears to be ineffective or worse for other people. It would be very good to know about the relative frequencies of these populations among people who are potentially interested in developing world aid.
I thought the video picked up from there. I liked the idea of a ‘wave’ and that idea was strong enough (in theory) to induce me to give aid. What was missing at the end, I think, was some evidence of the wave. For example, how many people on Facebook gave aid on this wave or what fraction of my friends?
So, I think that the situation is that at present there are very few people who are giving money to effective charities which improve health in the developing world but that with the internet and resources like GiveWell there are prospects for this changing significantly. For some indication of where the “wave” is now, see:
The Facebook group for “Giving What We Can.”
The information under the “who pledges” links on the website for The Life You Can Save.
The point of the What if your daughter was the “drop in the bucket”? line in the linked video is not to convince you that saving some stranger’s daughter is equivalent to saving your own daughter.
The point of the What if your daughter was the “drop in the bucket”? line is to highlight the fact that that if it was your daughter, it would mean a lot to you if somebody helped her out and that it’s the same for people in the developing world. That there are real individuals involved who have something in common with you—not just some amorphous blob of “poor people in the developing world.”
The effect seems to be to create a sympathetic helpful mood in the watcher—by getting them to imagine the problem affecting their own daughter—and then switching the context to: helping a stranger in Africa. This sort of technique is often known as framing.
Of course, whether being manipulated into giving away your cash is a good thing or not seems to depend rather on your perspective.
I agree that the video engages in framing. The point is that framing is always present. The “(cue the skepticism)” segment of the video and people who say similar such things are also engaging in framing.
It asks: “What if it was my daughter?” Then I would spend to save her.
...but it is not my daughter—and that would make an enormous difference to most humans who are in reasonable working order. Is anybody really taken in by the counter-factual “What if it was my daughter” line? It seems like a straightforward case of attempted manipulation to me.
It is in a charity’s interests to fool people to thinking prospective aid recipients are akin to family members. So, they are inclined to encourage the association—thus attempting to manipulate viewers. However, it is basically a simple psychological trick—intended to part the individual from their money.
I see a lot of this sort of thing. Charities—with the best of aims—are using much the same box of tricks that con-artists do.
I have some trouble guessing why*, but while watching the video, I felt a visceral negative reaction to the idea of giving aid first when I realized they weren’t going to give me the ‘very long story’ (what a cop-out, I thought, because I do have concerns) and then in a very dramatic way when they had the line, “What if it was your daughter?”—That was a strong click-the-video-closed moment.
I know that I am sensitive to emotional manipulation, and react to such manipulation by bristling defensively. (For example, I cannot watch the news or listen to country music.) So that could explain it, or it just might not be very effective. Perhaps it goes too far, and the message only works if it is more subtle?
Could other people comment on their emotional reaction to that part of the video?
I thought the video picked up from there. I liked the idea of a ‘wave’ and that idea was strong enough (in theory) to induce me to give aid. What was missing at the end, I think, was some evidence of the wave. For example, how many people on Facebook gave aid on this wave or what fraction of my friends?
* My first guess was that the idea of my daughter needing aid actually stimulated a hoarding response, because I need to prepare for eventualities. My second guess was that it stimulated the indignant republican in me (‘I take care of my own daughter—why don’t they?’), which is obviously uncharitable but possibly an initial emotional reaction. My third guess was the one about just resenting being manipulated.
So, I think that the situation is that at present there are very few people who are giving money to effective charities which improve health in the developing world but that with the internet and resources like GiveWell there are prospects for this changing significantly. For some indication of where the “wave” is now, see:
The Facebook group for “Giving What We Can.”
The information under the “who pledges” links on the website for The Life You Can Save.
The information under “about us” at the website for Giving What We Can.
Sure, so I think that the situation is that most people are too impatient to listen to the ‘very long story’ so that it’s useful to condense the basic points into a few minute narrative. But since you’re the sort of person who’s receptive to very long stories there are superior options for you. The three links below provide a good starting point for the ‘very long story.’
GiveWell’s International Charities Page
GiveWell’s page on standard of living in the developing world
Holden’s comments on Population and Health
Also, in fairness to the video I think it’s important to note that they link to the website for The Life You Can Save which has a link to GiveWell and which also begins to provide an indication of where the “wave” is at the moment.
Thank you for sharing your reaction, which I find illuminating. It did not occur to me that some people might react in this way because I do not and do not know anybody in person who has professed to having this reaction, but there’s the usual Generalizing From One Example issue and the selection effect that comes from the people who I spend time with.
In any case, your reaction definitely helps me better understand where timtyler and cousin it might be coming from.
Anyway, I would say that the “What if it was your daughter” line in the linked video helps some people overcome bias for the reason that I gave in my responses to cousin it, but that it appears to be ineffective or worse for other people. It would be very good to know about the relative frequencies of these populations among people who are potentially interested in developing world aid.
So, I think that the situation is that at present there are very few people who are giving money to effective charities which improve health in the developing world but that with the internet and resources like GiveWell there are prospects for this changing significantly. For some indication of where the “wave” is now, see:
The Facebook group for “Giving What We Can.”
The information under the “who pledges” links on the website for The Life You Can Save.
The information under “about us” at the website for Giving What We Can.
The point of the What if your daughter was the “drop in the bucket”? line in the linked video is not to convince you that saving some stranger’s daughter is equivalent to saving your own daughter.
The point of the What if your daughter was the “drop in the bucket”? line is to highlight the fact that that if it was your daughter, it would mean a lot to you if somebody helped her out and that it’s the same for people in the developing world. That there are real individuals involved who have something in common with you—not just some amorphous blob of “poor people in the developing world.”
The effect seems to be to create a sympathetic helpful mood in the watcher—by getting them to imagine the problem affecting their own daughter—and then switching the context to: helping a stranger in Africa. This sort of technique is often known as framing.
Of course, whether being manipulated into giving away your cash is a good thing or not seems to depend rather on your perspective.
I agree that the video engages in framing. The point is that framing is always present. The “(cue the skepticism)” segment of the video and people who say similar such things are also engaging in framing.