Flirting with social enterprise
On my writing agenda today is a bit about social enterprise as a mimetic phenomenon--less a self-conscious movement than adaptive imitation. By a nifty coincidence, my breaktime reading brought this pertinent article in the New York Times on flirting.
Flirting? How in the world is that relevant?
Here are a few key paragraphs that reflect that scholarship I've been reading--
Most people are also strongly sensitive to rapport, to charm, to the social music in the person making the pitch. In recent years, researchers have begun to decode the unspoken, subtle elements that come into play when people click.
They have found that immediate social bonding between strangers is highly dependent on mimicry, a synchronized and usually unconscious give and take of words and gestures that creates a current of good will between two people.
By understanding exactly how this process works, researchers say, people can better catch themselves when falling for an artful pitch, and even sharpen their own social skills in ways they may not have tried before.
“Really good salespeople, and for that matter good con artists, have known about these skills and used them forever,†Jeremy Bailenson, a psychologist at Stanford, said. “All we’re doing now is measuring and describing more precisely what it is they’re doing, whether consciously or not.â€
And while we're at it, let's throw in a bit of this . . .
One reason subtle mimicry is so instantly beguiling may be that it draws on and, perhaps, activates brain circuits involved in feelings of empathy.
In several studies, Jean Decety, a neuroscientist at the University of Chicago, has shown that some of the same brain regions that are active when a person feels pain also flare up when that person imagines someone else like a loved one feeling the same sting or ache.
A similar process almost certainly occurs when a person takes pleasure in the good fortune of a friend or the apparent enjoyment of a conversation partner, Dr. Decety said.
“When you’re being mimicked in a good way, it communicates a kind of pleasure, a social high you’re getting from the other person, and I suspect it activates the areas of the brain involved in sensing reward,†he said.
And I think you see the connection. The nonprofit world--and the do-gooder world generally--curries favor by taking on the characteristics of its potential supporters.
Step outside the moment and look at our past few decades of history-- not like you're part of a social revolution but a collector wandering through a flea market (a major preoccupation of my childhood, actually. Pretty soon the patterns will emerge. Welfare state and market failure in the 1970s; democracy and free markets with the collapse the Soviet Union; venture philanthropy in the dot-com boom. Each new identity proclaimed itself the millennial summum bonum, and each one gave way to a newer identity in keeping with the latest trends.
Does this mean that social enterprise is just an echo chamber? No, not completely. But it does give us reason to pause. If the concept is going to have a sustained measurable impact (!), it has to go beyond parroting the latest lingo about capital markets and ROI.
0 TrackBacks
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: Flirting with social enterprise.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://uncivilsociety.org/mt/mt-tb.cgi/490


Top China Wholesaler-Buy Wholesale Promotional Gifts Promotional Products from China.
China Wholesale Bottle Opener Wholesale Frisbee Wholesale Carabiner Wholesale Keychain Wholesale Mug Wholesale USB Flash Drive Wholesale Cup Wholesale Cap Wholesale Towel Christmas Gifts Wholesale Gift Bags Wholesale Umbrella Wholesale Vuvuzela Wholesale Socks Wholesale USB Products Wholesale First Aid Kit Wholesale Pom Poms Wholesale Clap Hands Water Bottle Wholesale Halloween Gift Wholesale Waterproof Case Wholesale Calculator Wholesale Bag Wholesale Golf Products Wholesale Stress Ball Wholesale Knife Wholesale Wallet Wholesale Lanyard Wholesale Pen Wholesale Flashlight Wholesale Watch Wholesale Candle Wholesale Apron Wholesale Fan Wholesale Lighter Wholesale AshtrayOur main products are consumer electronics, gifts and souvenirs, health care products, beauty products, automobile parts, household items, plastic products, metal products, kitchen supplies, stationery, sports goods, toys, watches, leather products, etc.
China Wholesale Town - China's most viable wholesale supplier of promotional gifts, you can customize your own logo, no matter anywhere in the world!
Wholesale T-Shirts Wholesale Clocks Wholesale Glasses Wholesale Clothes Rack Wholesale Kitchenware Wholesale Vase Poncho Raincoat Wholesale Shoe Wholesale Furniture Wholesale Camera Wholesale Jewelry Wholesale Toys Wholesale Keyboard Wholesale Mouse Wholesale Mat Wholesale Scarf Wholesale Speakers Eye Mask Wholesale Earphone Wholesale Mp3 Recorder Pen Wholesale Tie Wholesale Clothing Wholesale Scissors Wholesale Bookmark Wholesale Mobile Phone Solar Products Lighting Products Wholesale Glass Computer Accessories Wine Set Safety Suppliers Wholesale Tableware Silicone Products Home Appliances Electrical Gifts Automotive Products Audio Video Equipment Consumer Electronics Digital Photo Frame Electroluminescent Wholesale iPod iPhone Wholesale Memory Card Wholesale Radio Wholesale Scale Wholesale TelePhone Voice Recorder Advertising Material Arts Crafts Wholesale Badge Wholesale Pin Wholesale Banner Wholesale Flag Business Gift Coca Cola Gifts Crystal Gifts Flash Gift Gift Box Giveaway Material Inflatable Products Muslim Products Valentine Gifts Vocal Concert Products Wedding Favors Beauty Equipment Wholesale Bracelet Wholesale Bangle Hair Products Health Care Products Heating Products Wholesale Helmet Lady Beauty Care Manicure Set Wholesale Massager Medicine Instrument Men Beauty Care Wholesale Mirror Patient Care Products Wholesale Pedometer Personal Safety Products Safety Products Wholesale Thermometer Cleaner Products Wholesale Coaster