What the Benjamin Franklin Effect is

A psychological phenomenon that causes people to like someone more after they do them a favor, especially if they dislike the helped person. 

You can use it to benefit and protect yourself when interacting with others.

• Remember that the favor matters more than its scope. In most cases, the increase in rapport comes from the fact that the other person does you a favor.
• Use reciprocity, by performing a small favor shortly before asking for one.
• After asking for a favor, perfo...

The Benjamin Franklin effect has generally been explained using the cognitive dissonance theory.

Essentially, this means that when someone does you a favor, they need to be able to justify it to themself, in order to avoid the cognitive dissonance that might occur from doi...