Why Speakers at School Assemblies Backfire

The officials in charge of the Petrified Forest National park had a problem on their hands.

People kept walking away with bits of petrified wood. The loss was alarming.

They conceived a sign that they hoped would put an end to visitor’s theft of petrified wood.

Their approach had two main points. One, show people how urgent and damaging the situation is. Two, let them know just how many people are stealing.

It backfired. And the reason it did sheds light on the reason why speakers at anti-drug school assemblies don’t work.

Why didn’t the sign work?

People who saw this sign took 5 times as much wood as those who saw a different sign.

Signs like the one above don’t work for the same reason that a compelling High School Assembly speaker fails to stop teens from using drugs.

Both send an inadvertent message that “everyone is doing it.”

Such messages actually INCREASE THE DESIRABILITY of the very behavior you are trying to stop.

Social scientists call this phenomenon “social proof.” And they share countless examples of how “everybody is doing it” messages can influence us to do something. Here are just a few examples:

• A 23-minute video showing shy preschool children breaking out of their shells and socializing, dramatically caused shy preschoolers to become more social. After viewing the videos, the preschoolers believed that breaking out of one’s shell is what “everybody is doing.”

• Products that proclaim, “more than a million sold,” or “best selling!” influence people to buy the products because such messages tap into the “everybody is doing it” phenomenon.

• People believe shows with “canned laughter” are funnier because the recorded laughter reinforces the idea that “everybody thinks this is funny.”

OK, But what does this have to do with speakers at high school assemblies?

In the case of the former addict brought in to speak at a high school assembly, the subtle message is “So many of you are using drugs that we have to bring in the big guns.” Or, “things are getting out of control. We have to have an assembly about this major problem!”

Such messages actually tell teens that “everybody is doing drugs.” Hence, we have to have an assembly!

But the former addict’s speech is likely to make matters worse in a very special way. When the former addict describes how he got hooked on drugs, he will no doubt tell a tale that emphasizes how he was “just like you,” before he got started.

You might think that an “I was just like you,” message would serve as an additional warning to stay away from drugs. After all, it’s not bums, weirdos, and street people who get suckered into addition—it’s normal people like you and me! So watch out!!!!

But messages that convey, “teens just like you do stuff like this,” are especially powerful messages. They telegraph to teens that experimenting with drugs is normal for teens like you.

Not good.

What’s a better way to prevent teen drug use? Here are few ideas that capitalize on the idea of social proof.

• Tell the facts: most teens don’t experiment with drugs.

• Show teens images and videos of their peers choosing en masse another activity over drug use.

• Bring in speakers who are hip, cool, and in their 20’s to share how they NEVER used drugs in high school and are really happy with their choice.

Beyond the suggestions above, there are a number of strategies that don’t involve assemblies. To learn more about creating drug-resistant environments for teens to grow up in, check out this FREE RESOURCE on building resilience in teens.

Also, you can learn the art of Motivational Interviewing in our course “Resilient Coaching.” Motivational Interviewing is a scientifically proven way to have a conversation that helps people make healthy choices. Sign up for an informational orientation here. https://restinjesus.org/christian-recovery-coach

CAVEAT: “But those assemblies worked for me!”

When I say that these assemblies backfire, I don’t mean that no one was convinced to stay away from drugs. I am sure some individuals were “scared straight.”

Most teens don’t experiment in any significant way with drugs and alcohol. So, it is quite possible the assembly didn’t “backfire” for them.

What I mean is that it will backfire for some and it will be MUCH LESS EFFECTIVE than other strategies.

So, if you need to decide where to invest limited resources, you would do well to listen to the science of persuasion when making a decision.

What were your experiences with school assemblies? Leave a comment below and let me know!