There once was a man from Nantucket…
Oh, hi there folks. Is it that time again already? Well, I’ve got an interesting cognitive bias for you today: the Rhyme-As-Reason Effect. You can use it in a box, you can use it with a fox!
The Rhyme-As-Reason Effect is also known as the Eaton-Rosen phenomenon, and, to put it simply, this bias leads us to believe that phrases and aphorisms that rhyme are more likely to be accurate.
The marketing and advertising world is absolutely replete with examples. Think of all the rhyming slogans and jingles you can think of, and how many of them either outright rhyme or at least have a meter to them.
It takes a licking, and keeps on ticking!
Plop, plop, fizz, fizz, oh, what a relief it is!
The Quicker Picker Upper.
Or some common aphorisms:
A stitch in time saves nine.
An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
Red sky in the morning, sailors take warning.
And of course who can forget Johnnie L. Cochrane’s use of rhyme in the O.J. Simpson Trial in 1995: “If the glove doesn’t fit, you must acquit!”
To be effective, the phrasing doesn’t have to be an exact rhyme: use of metering or alliteration can be used as well, or statements that have an A-B-B-A construction (“All for one, and one for all!,” or “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”)
And now that I’ve mentioned A-B-B-A construction, I’ve got Mamma Mia and Waterloo running through my head. Dammit.
So, why does this work?
It could be due to something called the Keats Heuristic, named from the John Keats quote, “beauty is truth, truth beauty.” In effect, because the aesthetics of the phrase is pleasing, we are mentally more accepting of a statement as true.
It could also be due to the fluency heuristic, which in short is that the more easily processed a statement is by our brains, the more easily it is remembered. In turn, the more “easy on the brain” a statement is, it seems the more believable it is to us.
And it could be due to the availability heuristic, where we tend to use the information that is most quickly remembered and available to us. A phrase or aphorism that is rhymed or metered is easier to remember, and more quickly recalled. So, the availability heuristic is related to the aforementioned fluency heuristic (this one, by the way, might be the subject of a future Cognitive Bias diary).
So, let’s wrap this up. A couple of takeaways from this.
For one, as always, be aware of your own biases and try to recognize them. Advertisers and marketers use this bias to get you to remember and trust their brands. Recognize that just because a phrase might be punchy and pleasing, that doesn’t make it true.
For another, you can use this yourself. Crafting a rhyming, memorable slogan can be part of successfully influencing people. Something to consider if you’re working on a political issue or campaign, or even just trying to get people to donate to the school after-prom party.
I’d finish with a suitable rhyme, but poetry has never been my strong suit.
Hmm… what rhymes with “effect?” Defect? Insect? Dissect?
Nah. Not gonna subject you to my Vogon poetry. I’m not that cruel.
Have a great one, folks!
Friends, the Bootcamp series (Cognitive Bias Bootcamp and Logical Fallacies Bootcamp) are companion series intended to explain common biases and errors in our thinking and how to spot them and avoid them. Links to the complete series to date are below, so if you’ve missed any past installments, browse away!
Logical Fallacies Bootcamp:
The Strawman
The Slippery Slope
Begging the Question
Poisoning the Well
No True Scotsman!
Ad Hominem
False Dilemma
Non Sequitur
Red Herring
Gamblers Fallacy
Bandwagon Fallacy
Appeal to Fear
The Fallacy Fallacy
Appeal to Personal Incredulity
Appeal to Authority
Special Pleading
Texas Sharpshooter
Post Hoc
Appeal to Nature
Furtive Fallacy
Cognitive Bias Bootcamp:
Bystander Effect
Curse of Knowledge
Barnum Effect
Declinism
In-Group Bias
Hindsight Bias
Survivor Bias