CopyBlogger has an interesting write-up on social proof. A lengthy quote:
So, social proof gives us important cues about how to behave in ambiguous social situations. But what’s ambiguous about social media?
First of all, we’re not sure if we should pay attention. Given the vast amount of information we’re exposed to daily, we naturally look for quick cues about the quality of what we come across. And we’re wired to look to others for those indications of quality.
Secondly, we look for cues as to whether or not to accept the message itself. If you’re reading something in your area of expertise, you’re less likely to look for external indicators. But if the topic or position is new to you or novel in any way, you’ll likely be influenced by the raw popularity of the piece, plus the specific comments of others who’ve come before.
But there’s also a negative side to the effect. If no one really knows what’s going on, and everyone is basing thier judgements on everyone else, then bad things can happen. Here’s a quote from Erin Prophet, daughter of Elizabeth Claire Prophet from the Church Universal and Triumphant, on what happened in the early 90′s when a prophesied end of the world didn’t occur:
In the book’s preface, Prophet writes that one reason she penned the account is to expose the flawed thinking that led to her mother’s “apocalyptic prophecies” and the shelters built in their wake.
“Since then I have spent many sleepless nights asking myself why and how it happened and whether there was anything I could have done to change the outcome,” she writes. “It was a mistake, a Napoleon-invading-Russia sort of blunder, which arose from a collection of ideas that obscured and tarnished my mother’s life work.”
She sees CUT’s story “as a cautionary tale of what happens when such ideas are taken to an extreme.”
As powerful as social proof is, there is a potential downside. The potential this downside has on the social internet, I have no idea.
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