98. Writing By Hand Can Increase Commitment

When people write something down, it increases their commitment to action.

Deutsch and Gerard (1955) looked at the effect that others might have on decision-making. They asked people to estimate the length of some lines, and they had other people who were part of the experiment estimate the length of the line incorrectly. Would the subjects go along with the incorrect estimates they were hearing from others, or would they stick (commit) to the answer they felt was correct? If you read #93, about social validation, you won’t be surprised to discover that estimates were influenced by the lengths people heard from others.

But Deutsch and Gerard also looked at whether there were situations in which commitment to a decision would be stronger.

• Before hearing what others had to say on the length of the line, Group 1 wrote their estimates on paper. They were told not to sign the paper and that they would not be turning in the sheets of paper.

• Group 2 wrote their estimates on a “magic pad”; they then lifted a sheet and the estimate was erased without anyone seeing it.

• Group 3 was told to write their estimates on paper and to sign their papers, and they were told that their papers would be collected at the end of the experiment.

Would the groups vary in terms of how strongly they stuck to their commitment of the length of the line?

Group 2 was most likely to change their decisions and to give incorrect estimates. Groups 1 and 3 reacted the same way. They were five times less likely to change their answers. They were more committed to their original estimates, regardless of what they heard others say.

Signing their names or being told they were going to hand in their estimates did not seem to make a difference. Just the act of writing it on something relatively permanent was enough to make them commit.

Writing Changes Brain Processing

Research by Shadmehr and Holcomb (1997) looked at brain activity when people wrote something down longhand (for example, with a pen or pencil) instead of typing on a keyboard. Writing involves different muscles than typing, and Shadmehr and Holcomb found that there was more memory consolidation when people were writing in longhand.