Research on cognitive dissonance teaches a broad and important lesson about how to influence someone else's attitudes. specifically, if you want people to the broader value or message behind what you got them to do, then you should use the amount of incentive or coercion necessary to induce compliance.

Specifically, if you want people to INTERNALIZE the broader value or message behind what you got them to do, then you should use the SMALLEST amount of incentive or coercion necessary to induce compliance. This means that in order to get people to understand the purpose of doing something, it is best to not use a rather large incentive ($500) because then that is all the subject will be focusing on.