Ch 5

Question 1

persuasion

Answer 1

a communication from one person that changes the opinions, attitudes, or behavior of another person

Question 2

opinion

Answer 2

that which a person believes to be factually true

Question 3

attitude

Answer 3

a special type of belief that includes emotional and evaluative components — in a sense, a stored good or bad evaluation of an object

Question 4

emotional contagion

Answer 4

the rapid transmission of emotions or behaviors through a crowd

Question 5

central route to persuasion

Answer 5

the route that involves weighing arguments and considering relevant facts and figures, thinking about issues in a systematic fashion, and coming to a decision

Question 6

peripheral route to persuasion

Answer 6

the route in which a person responds to simple, often irrelevant cues that suggest the rightness or wrongness of an argument without giving it much thought

Question 7

reactance

Answer 7

when our sense of freedom is threatened and we attempt to restore it

Question 8

inoculation effect

Answer 8

the process of making people immune to attempts to change their attitudes, by initially exposing them to small doses of the arguments against their position

Question 9

Persuasion: The Central Route

Answer 9

▪ Relies on logic facts, figures, or
arguments
▪ Carefully think about and
process content

Question 10

Persuasion: The Peripheral Route

Answer 10

▪ Uses irrelevant cues (surface
characteristics) to stimulate
acceptance of a message without
deep consideration of the issues

Question 11

Foot-in-the-Door Technique

Answer 11

Starting with a small request before making a bigger request
▪ Feel a need to justify
initial commitment

Question 12

Door-in-the-Face Technique

Answer 12

Starting with a large request before asking for a small
request
▪Initial large request
induces guilt in
recipients

Question 13

Low-Ball Technique

Answer 13

▪ Make the request easy, quick, or cheap
▪ Get a commitment
▪ Change the agreement to what you really want

Question 14

Attractive and Likable Communicators

Answer 14

▪ Increases persuasive appeal…but only for trivial issues

Question 15

Communicators that are Seemingly Similar to Us

Answer 15

▪ Students thought more positively of Rasputin when they believed they shared the same birth date

Question 16

Fear-Arousing Messages:

Answer 16

▪ Low-fear: behavioral suggestions
▪ Moderate-fear: film with lung cancer x-rays
▪ High-fear: film + viewing gory operation
The most frightened were most eager to stop smoking
and get x-rayed

Fear-arousing messages containing specific instructions are much more effective

Question 17

Vivid personal examples can be more persuasive than statistical evidence

Answer 17

1,000 Volvo owner ratings vs. 1 vivid, negative anecdote

Question 18

Primacy Effect

Answer 18

▪ First argument remembered better

▪ Learn material more thoroughly; longer to rehearse

Question 19

Recency Effect

Answer 19

▪ Second argument remembered better

▪ Material is still in short-term memory

Question 20

Self-Esteem

Answer 20

Those with low self-esteem are more easily influenced by persuasive communication
▪ Less confidence in convictions
▪ More willing to give them up

Question 21

Political Orientation

Answer 21

Conservatives
▪ Respond to fear-inducing arguments
▪ Cast issues in black-andwhite terms

Liberals
▪ Respond to fact-based, reasoned, and nuanced arguments

Question 22

Audience Frame of Mind

Answer 22

Eating desirable food enhances persuadibility

Inducing a positive mood makes us more vulnerable to persuasion

Esteemaffirming feedback makes us more receptive to persuasive arguments

Question 23

What are the 6 universal shortcuts to persuading others? How do they work?

Answer 23

1. reciprocity
   obligation to give when you receive
.
2. scarcity
    people want more of what they can have less of.

3. authority
   people will follow the lead of credible experts
4. consistency
   looking for and asking for small commitments that can
   be made which lead to larger commitments
5. liking
   people prefer to say yes to people they like
6. consensus
   people will look to the actions and behaviors of others
   to determine their own.

Question 24

The Effects of TV Watching

Answer 24

Correlates of heavy TV viewing:
▪ Racially prejudiced attitudes
▪ Sexist beliefs about women’s abilities and interests
▪ Less happiness; “the world is a sinister place”