3 Tips to Persuade Someone to Reciprocate and Share With You

"Reciprocity (give-and-take exchange) is essential for successful human interactions. Feeling motivated to return a favor (and feeling owed for a favor) drives social behavior, personal interaction, and interpersonal attraction too. In fact, as I discuss in Attraction Psychology (Nicholson, 2022), reciprocal social exchange is the heart of dating and romantic relationships. Beyond that, it is a motivational force in professional interactions as well."

"Nevertheless, even though reciprocity is an important motivator, the give-and-take exchange can still get "stuck" at times. For example, even if you do a favor for someone, they may not feel grateful (or obligated) enough to reciprocate. At that point, the exchange can stop, and the professional or personal relationship ceases to develop as well. Now, that doesn't mean we need to hold ourselves back all the time-waiting for someone else to always make the first overture."

"An article by Molm, Schaefer, and Collett (2007) explored when, how, and why reciprocity is valuable for our social exchanges and relationships. Initially, the team surveyed existing research and summarized that reciprocity is valuable for two main reasons. On one hand, it has Instrumental Value, which is the actual utility and concrete benefits received from the exchange. On the other hand, reciprocity also has Symbolic Value, which is the information and emotions expressed"

Reciprocity is essential for successful interactions and relationships across personal, romantic, and professional contexts. Feeling motivated to return a favor and feeling owed for a favor drive social behavior, interpersonal attraction, and relationship development. Exchanges can become stalled when recipients do not feel sufficiently grateful or obligated to reciprocate, halting relational growth. People value reciprocity for instrumental value—concrete utility and benefits—and for symbolic value—information and emotions conveyed. Motivating reciprocation requires combining immediate, tangible rewards with long-term trust-building and clear signals that the exchange carries both practical benefits and meaningful social significance.

Read at Psychology Today