She may be serious, but she is underestimating the power of reverse psychology.
Reverse psychology is a persuasion technique involving the false advocacy of a belief or behavior contrary to the belief or behavior which is actually being advocated. This technique relies on the psychological phenomenon of reactance, in which a person has a negative emotional response in reaction to being persuaded, and thus chooses the option which is being advocated against. It is often used on children due to their lack of psychological understanding and higher rate of reactance.
