I think a false compliment can work simply because adults get praised so infrequently.
There is nothing complicated about it.
I mean, do you think I am more compliant with people I like, and people that I think like me?
Or am I more accommodating to people who are rude and unagreeable?
A compliment often goes further than your assume it will.
Understand: Reciprocity is a Herculean force.
A false compliment can land if the recipient wishes it were true.
-Sarah Manguso, 300 Arguments (Amazon)