Exam III Flashcards
Is all persuasion deliberate?
Absolutely not.
What is persuasion?
Refers to all communication that either unintentionally or intentionally influences your choices.
Who is in charge of persuading you?
All persuasion is self-persuasion. You persuade yourself.
Attitude Change Theory
Existing attitudes and beliefs influence your behavior. So, you are persuaded to act only to the extent that communicators influence your underlying attitudes.
What are the 5 key components of the attitude change theory?
Necessitates 5 things; 1) getting your attention 2) ensuring your understanding of the message 3) convincing you to accept the message 4) ensuring that you remember the message 5) describing the action you should take as the result of the encounter
Consistency Theory
Change your beliefs so that they are compatible with other information - with your existing schema. Persuaders intentionally use cognitive dissonance to persuade you to change your mind about an existing belief.
Under what conditions do you experience inconsistency?
When you like the speaker but disagree with the speaker’s ideas.
When you dislike the speaker but agree with their ideas.
Under what conditions do you experience inconsistency?
When you like the speaker but disagree with the speaker’s ideas.
When you dislike the speaker but agree with their ideas.
Social judgement theories
The notion that you develop attitudes and learn how to behave as a result of your interactions with people.
How does one express social judgement?
Often through rewards and punishments.
Latitude of non-commitment
area where you are particularly vulnerable to persuasive efforts because you have no opinion on the topic.
Are we as open-minded as we think we are?
Absolutely not.
Are schemas always good?
NO. Sometimes they can prevent you from searching for more current or complete information.
What do effective listeners do well?
Recognize limitations of their own knowledge and listen to others with the understanding the they opinions may be altered as a result.
What are the principles of critical thinking?
1) There’s always more to know.
2) Me ready to modify your position
3) Consider differences as well as similarities
4) Recognize self-fulfilling prophecies
5) Use indexing tools to focus on individuals rather than categories
6) Date you information and constantly reassess the situation
7) There’s a lot of gray between black and white
Speaker credibility
Judge on character and competence. They are perceived as trustworthy, dynamic, and have expertise in their subject area.
SC: Trust
established with nonverbal communication, and appearance. This is where actions and words align to produce effective communication and partnership.
SC: Charisma
Individuals who have presence, an intangible manner about them that others find attractive, are more persuasive than their peers. This can be created through vocal variety, powerful range, facial cues, and strong eye contact.
SC: Expertise
Credibility is built using: An impactful message. An effective introduction Perceived similarity to the listener Females are less credible than males You can loose credibility over the speech
Initial credibility
refers to the way a speaker is perceived before the communication begins. If you have a lot of prior information about the speaker, that information can be a very powerful factor in shaping your perceptions.
Derived credibility
is determined by the degree of perceived trustworthiness and expertise the speaker generates during the communication event. The assistant teacher has no control over initial credibility, but can control how she presents herself in the immediate speech situation.
How does one derive credibility?
references to personal experiences
citing reliable sources
effective delivery (pitch, gestures, appearances, fluency)
Knowledge o the audience or listener.
Rational approach
Using evidence and reasoning to persuade someone.
Fact
can be verified; potentially, everyone can agree on a matter of fact. Facts do not take the place of true understanding, and it skilled communication to interpret them accurately and use them wisely.
Opinions
Are subject to continuing modification. Sound opinions are based on careful examination and evaluation of the facts at hand.
Inference
are not obtained by direct observation or description. n inference is a “good guess.” You can form an inference to complete a piece of lacking information. Facts aren’t always available, so inferences are sometimes required to get things done.
Inductive Reasoning
moves from specifics to a conclusion. By surveying a group and forming a statement based on result, you are using inductive reasoning. Going from specific answers to a broad conclusion.
Deductive Reasoning
process of applying a concluding or generalization to an individual case. Going from concussions to specifics.
Begging the question (fallacy)
when a question is begged, the speaker never really proves the point she is trying to make. The individual argues in a circle, using one unsupported proposition to “prove” another. No assertion is substantiated.
Hasty generalization (fallacy)
Occur when a communicator does not have enough support for the conclusion she draws. When someone goes to dinner at three different places, doesn’t like any of them, and says ever restaurant in the whole city sucks.
Either-or (fallacy)
At times a person feels so strongly about an issue that he begins to look at the situation as black and white. Either a particular proposal is adopted entirely, or it’s dropped.
Post hoc, ergo proper hoc (fallacy)
In this fallacy, the speaker reasons that because one event followed another, there must be a cause-effect relationship. Superstitions belong here. It is “false cause.” People often look for easy answers to explain unpleasant circumstances.
Name calling (propaganda)
In name-calling, the speaker gives a person or an idea a negative label without providing any evidence to prove the assertion. Make sure the speaker presents an argument after calling someone a “jerk.”
Card stacking (propaganda)
method in which the speaker, instead of presenting all of the important evidence, tells you only those facts that support the point she is trying to make.