I got thinking about the Sorting Hat. We know that what House the student wants to be in influences the Sorting process. For example, it put Harry in Gryffindor instead of Slytherin because he was vehemently opposed to being in Slytherin, and it is implied (although I think it may not be said outright) that it put Hermione in Gryffindor instead of Ravenclaw because she wanted to be in Gryffindor.
The problem is that the students being sorted are only 11, and they might not have the insight to realize which house would really be best for them. For example, when taken alone I am a Ravenclaw, but I'd do better in a Hufflepuff environment. If the Sorting Hat suggested to my 11-year-old self that I might do well in Hufflepuff, I would mentally shout back "No, no! Not Hufflepuff! Ravenclaw!" My 11-year-old self would feel this way because she would probably have heard that Hufflepuffs are "duffers", and would know that she is the intellectual type. However, because Wizarding children are home-schooled, she would be completely unequipped to consider what type of social environment would be best for her in to live in over the next seven years. If the Hat made the decision between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff based on her insistence, she would have a miserable seven years in a competitive House like Ravenclaw. But my 11-year-old self was nowhere near developing the self-awareness needed to determine that she might do well in Hufflepuff. Would the Hat be able to dig this out of her mind anyway and put her in Hufflepuff despite her protestations? Or is the student's request the deal-maker?
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