It's a quirky story, but I wonder if there are any human-life examples. Like getting invited to a special meeting where everyone gets donuts and coffee, then gets laid off?
They likely don’t grasp the causality but I guess after 4-5 trips like this they know it’s not going to be an afternoon stroll for anyone other than themselves.
Makes me think of someone who actually benefits from a MLM scheme and gets to interact with others who don’t. In a way also an influencer, but of a different kind than the social media one.
Humans also have vestiges of herd behaviour. For example, if one person decides to cross the intersection on a red light (especially pedestrian) then more people are likely to follow even if they would wait for green light otherwise.
Going along with the crowd is foundational to being human - individuality doesn't come naturally.
Spys?
That is, the Nazis gave a Judas some food and other favors if they could find and report jews in hiding.