Robert Cialdini

Psychology Professor, Author

Robert Cialdini is an American psychologist and Regents' Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Marketing at Arizona State University. He is best known for his seminal book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, which identified six universal principles of ethical persuasion and has sold millions of copies worldwide. His later work Pre-Suasion explored how to prime audiences for receptivity before delivering a message.

2
Books Written: 8
Books Recommended

Books by Robert Cialdini

Influence

by Robert Cialdini

star4.7

Cialdini identifies six universal principles of persuasion: reciprocity, commitment, social proof, authority, liking, and scarcity. Understanding these triggers explains why we say yes, and how others get us to comply.

psychologybusiness

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Pre-Suasion

by Robert Cialdini

star4

Cialdini reveals that persuasion starts before the message, by strategically directing attention beforehand, communicators make audiences receptive before they even hear the actual pitch.

psychologybusiness

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Most Recommended by Robert

The books Robert Cialdini references, cites, and recommends most frequently.

Thinking, Fast and Slow

by Daniel Kahneman

star4.2

Kahneman reveals that our minds run on two systems: fast intuition and slow deliberation. Most errors in judgement come from trusting System 1 when the situation demands System 2's careful analysis.

psychology

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Stumbling on Happiness

by Daniel Gilbert

star3.9

Gilbert reveals that humans are remarkably poor at predicting what will make them happy. Our psychological immune system distorts future expectations in systematic, measurable ways.

psychology

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Give and Take

by Adam Grant

star4.1

Grant shows givers often end up at both the bottom and top of success metrics. The difference is strategic generosity: helping freely but with boundaries that prevent burnout.

businesspsychology

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Moral Tribes

by Joshua Greene

star4.1

Greene proposes our moral brains run on two systems: automatic tribal instincts and manual utilitarian reasoning. Cross-group conflict requires shifting from fast feelings to slow thinking.

philosophypsychology

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How to Win Friends and Influence People

by Dale Carnegie

star4.2

Carnegie's core insight is that influence comes from genuine interest in others, not self-promotion. Listen deeply, make people feel important, and never criticize - connection is the foundation of persuasion.

self-helpbusiness

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The Social Animal

by David Brooks

star3.9

Brooks argues that character is built not through rational planning but through deep emotional and social bonds. The unconscious mind drives our most important decisions and relationships.

psychology

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The Lucifer Effect

by Philip Zimbardo

star4.1

Zimbardo uses his Stanford prison experiment to argue that good people turn evil through situational forces, not character flaws. Systems and authority corrupt more reliably than personality.

psychology

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Mistakes Were Made (but Not by Me)

by Carol Tavris

star4.2

Tavris and Aronson explore how cognitive dissonance drives people to justify mistakes rather than learn from them. Self-justification is an unconscious engine that distorts memory, fuels feuds, and corrupts institutions.

psychology

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Influence Map

Who Robert draws from, and who draws from Robert — aggregated across every book in this collection. Counts show the number of citation links, not the depth of each one.

Robert cites most often

1Daniel Kahneman
2 links
2Daniel Gilbert
1 link
3Adam Grant
1 link
4Joshua Greene
1 link
5Dale Carnegie
1 link
6David Brooks
1 link
7Philip Zimbardo
1 link
8Carol Tavris
1 link

Authors who cite Robert most often

1Jonah Berger
4 links
2Adam Grant
3 links
3Chip Heath
2 links
4David McRaney
2 links
5Neil Postman
2 links
6James Clear
1 link
7Yuval Noah Harari
1 link
8Charlie Munger
1 link