Lecture 5 - Persuasion

Question 1

Persuasion

Answer 1

Change in an attitude or belief as a result of receiving a message
- A form of social influence that involves changing others’ thoughts, attitudes or behaviors by applying rational and emotional arguments to convince them to adopt your position

Question 2

Two Approaches to Attitude Change

Answer 2

1. The Message Learning Approach

2. Cognitive-Response Approach

Question 3

The Message Learning Approach

Answer 3

1950s

• (aka: Yale Communication Model)
• Focus on the role of the communicator, the nature of the message, the audience, and the channel of communication

Question 4

Cognitive-Response Approach

Answer 4

• Focus on how people cognitively process persuasive message

- Focus more on the recipient of the message

Question 5

The Message Learning Approach

Answer 5

Three factors manipulated via experiment:

(1) Attention
(2) Comprehension
(3) Acceptance
- Most research focused on the acceptance mediator

Question 6

Credibility

Answer 6

Sources effects –> Expertise and trustworthiness

• Less likely to focus on the content of the message if coming from a trustworthy source
• More likely to focus on the content of the message if coming from an untrustworthy source
• We will rely more on a trustworthy source if arguments are weak to begin with

Question 7

Sleeper effect

Answer 7

Credibility doesn’t matter so much over time; A persuasive message that has more effect on attitude change after a delay
- Supports the Spinoza Model

Question 8

Factors necessary for a sleeper effect

Answer 8

• A strong persuasive message
• Time passes so that the message becomes disassociated from the discounting cue
• Likely to occur if receive discounting cue after you hear the message rather than before

Question 9

Gender domain effect

Answer 9

• male may be more persuasive for male oriented issues

- female more for female issues

Question 10

Primacy effect

Answer 10

First persuasive argument more effective than subsequent arguments

• NO DELAY BETWEEN MSGS
• but DELAY FOR EVALUATION
• Both messages must be equally strong
• People must be motivated to attend to the messages

Question 11

Recency effect

Answer 11

Second message has greater impact

• DELAY B/W MSGS
• but NO DELAY B/W EVALUATION
• Both arguments must be equally strong
• People must be motivated to attend to the messages

Question 12

Content Effects:

Answer 12

• the power of fear
• one sided versus two sided msgs
• mood

Question 13

The power of fear

Answer 13

• Moderate = most effective
• High levels of fear seem to be effective
• Low = least effective
• Some sort of solution must be provided within the context of the fear message
• Emotional vs. Rational Appeals
• Protection-Motivation Hypothesis

Question 14

Protection-Motivation Hypothesis

Answer 14

We seek ways to protect ourselves

Question 15

One-Sided messages

Answer 15

• works best with less educated, less formal audiences, audience already agrees

Question 16

Two-Sided Messages

Answer 16

works best with educated, formal audiences, if audience is against your position initially

Question 17

Inoculation Theory

Answer 17

• Expose audience to weakened version of opposing argument, audience will devise counterarguments to that weakened version and avoid persuasion to stronger arguments later
• Motivates people to generate their own counterarguments and therefore, more likely to believe persuader’s message

Question 18

Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)

Answer 18

Cognitive-Response Approach

• Focus on the target’s attention, self-esteem, intelligence, etc
• 2 routes of attitude persuasion - each differing in the amount of cognitive effort required

Question 19

2 routes of attitude persuasion

Answer 19

1. Central Route

2. Peripheral route

Question 20

Central route

Answer 20

• People think carefully about the message
• Typically occurs when the message is personally relevant or when individuals have preexisting beliefs about the message
• • Key: Strength of the arguments (i.e., the content of the message)
• Less amenable to change – more stable/long-lasting

Question 21

Peripheral route

Answer 21

• People do not think about the message
• Rely on something other than the message to be persuaded (e.g., the appearance, emotional cues, etc)
• • Key: Cues irrelevant to content or quality of the message
• E.g., Attractiveness, number of arguments presented, your own mood while receiving the message, humor, etc

Question 22

Central route attitude change

Answer 22

o Attitudes tend to be strong
o Attitudes are resistant to change
o Attitudes are predictive of behavior

Question 23

Peripheral route attitude change

Answer 23

o Attitudes tend to be weak
o Attitudes are susceptible to change
o Attitudes are less predictive of behavior

Question 24

Need for cognition

Answer 24

An individual difference in the degrees to which people prefer effortful processing of information

Question 25

High need for cognition

Answer 25

Central route

- prefer to think carefully

Question 26

Low need for cognition

Answer 26

Peripheral route

- Prefer not to process carefully

Question 27

ELM vs. Heuristic Model of Persuasion

Answer 27

Heuristic and Systematic Model of Persuasion (HSM)

• Systematic Route = Central Route
• Heuristic Route = Peripheral Route
• • Key Difference:
• HSM: People prefer to use heuristic route
• ELM: Makes no assumption about preference

Question 28

Cognitive consistency

Answer 28

The tendency to seek consistency in one’s cognitions (one of the principle motivations for attitude change)

Question 29

Cognitive dissonance

Answer 29

Inconsistency in cognitions and/or behavior leads to aversive arousal that people are motivated to reduce

Question 30

Ways to reduce dissonance

Answer 30

1. Change behavior
2. Change attitude
3. Increase consonant cognitions
   eg The behavior was not that inconsistent

Question 31

Post-decision dissonance

Answer 31

Once you choose between two equally attractive alternatives, you experience dissonance
- In order to justify your behavior, you can decide that the two alternatives were not equally attractive

Question 32

Self-Affirmation Theory

Answer 32

People may reduce dissonance, by affirming their self-worth in a domain unrelated to the discrepancy, but important to one’s self-worth
- By boosting self-worth, we somehow reduce dissonance

Question 33

Propaganda

Answer 33

A deliberate attempt to persuade people, by an available media, to think in a manner desired by the source

Question 34

Techniques of propaganda

Answer 34

o	Use of stereotypes
o	Substitution of names
o	Unbalanced view
o	Repetition
o	Lying
o	Assertion
o	Pinpointing enemy
o	Appeals to authority