Which of the following best describes how a researcher would test the foot-in-the-door phenomenon by randomly assigning participants in a social psychology experiment?

• A. Observing participants' behavior in a group setting without making any requests
• B. Asking participants to first agree to a small request, then later asking them to comply with a larger related request
• C. Presenting participants with a large request first, and if they refuse, following up with a smaller request
• D. Assigning participants to receive no requests and measuring their attitudes toward compliance

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the foot-in-the-door phenomenon: it refers to the tendency for people who agree to a small initial request to be more likely to agree to a larger related request later.
2. Identify the key experimental manipulation: the researcher must first ask participants to comply with a small request, then later present a larger request to see if compliance increases.
3. Recognize the importance of random assignment: participants should be randomly assigned to conditions to control for other variables and ensure that differences in compliance are due to the manipulation.
4. Compare the options given: the correct method involves first asking for a small request, then a larger one, which aligns with the foot-in-the-door technique.
5. Exclude other options that do not involve sequential requests or do not test compliance behavior, such as merely observing behavior or reversing the order of requests.