Marketing principles - The law of authority

Because of a human infant's unusually long period of total dependence upon parents and family for survival, humans are conditioned at a very deep level from the beginning to obey authority figures. In later life there may be an element of selection as to whom or what one accepts as an authority, but the psychological response of follow-the-leader is built in as part of our behavioral foundation.

An "appeal to authority" is a well recognized logical fallacy, where it is argued that a statement is correct merely because the statement is made by a person that is regarded as authoritative. It is such a well recognized logical fallacy because it is encountered so frequently, and it is encountered so frequently because it works so effectively to influence behavior. This form of false reasoning even works to influence the thinking of people who recognize it to be a logical fallacy. It is bred in the bone.

Being an authority figure is relative. For every authority figure there are always bigger authority figures around somewhere, and lesser authority figures below. To a sheep, a sheepdog is perceived as an authority figure.