Abandoned Forum

[hamster]

There were news reports recently about some group that presented an STD-prevention program in Maryland schools. Their big idea was to have an entire class take turns sharing the same piece of gum. I'm not sure what STD-related point that made.

At any rate, some parents protested and the group is no longer welcome.

But their research presents an interesting glimpse into human nature. Once a few people had agreed to share the gum, everyone else followed suit.

How disgusting would some activity have to be before an average person could be expected to resist the herd impulse? Suppose five people were secretly paid $10,000 each to eat [fill in horribly disgusting item that no sane person on Earth would ever eat without compulsion]. Would the twenty other unpaid people in the room likely follow suit?

[nil]

I think the gum-sharing experiment is pretty innovative. It likely will enlighten people on the danger of STD, but at the same time endanger them in some kind of Saliva-Transmitted-Disease (but the risk is probably minimum, considering the test is in US where most people have good health.)

As to your question, people have conduct some similar experiments.
And they obtain the following formula:
PP = N*(GLP)
which means the Amount of Peer Pressure (PP) is directly proportional to the Number of people in the group (N) times the Good Lookingness of the People in the group (GLP)

Applying the equation to your question: People are more likely to follow suit if the five leaders are better than average looking... (and if they are more than five, the chance of follow suit increase exponentially.)

[Pimienta]

I personally would not do it
even if I was one of those being paid
does anyone have any idea just how unsanitary that is

[hamster]

Well for $10,000 I could put up with the risk of a cold or even maybe mono. Meningitis, however, is pretty scary. Price goes up there, if I face the risk of death.

However, when I was just a hormone-addled teen, you wouldn't have had to pay me one cent to join that experiment -- provided only girls in the class had had it before me!

[Insanity test]

How true. Practically, it's not that different to getting off with several pple in a club. And how many pple do that each night?

[Bomadeno]

Absolutely not... not even paid, also. And I think its very similar to that club comparison - I don't understand people who do that, either. We should all learn from their monogamous lifestyles.

[lifeis42]

However, when I was just a hormone-addled teen, you wouldn't have had to pay me one cent to join that experiment -- provided only girls in the class had had it before me!

I am still a teen but i have grown up a bit and dont think i would do it for any less than 10000$ GOLD