The Power of Persuasion Flashcards
automatic vs controlled thinking
automatic = fast controlled = slow
what are persuasive messages
persuasion - attempts to influence others attitudes or behaviours
the elaboration model (ELM)
- Petty and Cacioppo
- routes to persuasion:
- central route: attending to and evaluating a given message (information based)
- peripheral route: attending to external cues, like the attractiveness of a speaker (aesthetics)
central processing
- creates opinions that are resistant to change
- people rely on the message and their own reflections
- more cognitive effort makes more entrenched positions
- controlled (slow) processing
- requires: motivation and ability
peripheral route processing
- creates opinions based on superficial factors
- relies on automatic (fast) processing
- involves a lack of ability or motivation to attend to the message
what influences which route we take
- organizing and understanding the processes underlying the effectiveness of persuasive communication
- ELM attempts to explain which processing route we are likely to take by considering interrelated 3 factors:
1. source
2, message
3. audience
the source
the person or organization who delivers a persuasive message
attractiveness
credibility
- expertise
- trustworthiness
- similarity between the source and the audience:
- background
- values
- association
- appearance
- The Sleeper Effect: wont be persuades if we don’t think they’re credible, but overtime our association weakens and our opinion can change
the message
content: tactics used to communicate a concept
valence of a message
- the attraction or aversion a person feels toward an object, event or idea - can be positive or negative valence
fear based appeals
some public service announcements use fear based appeals
- negative valence elicited by a message designed to prevent an action
- works best when message evokes moderate strong fear and provides low cost ways to reduce threat
message construction
presenting both sides of an argument - 2 sided refutational approach (making the other side known) comparative messages - present one sides virtues vis a vis a different side length of message - adopted for medium: - long message for informercial - medium message for commercial - short message for billboard humor - comedy helps attract peoples attention
audience
the intended recipient of an attempt to persuade
demographic features play a role in persuasion
- age: younger = peripheral route
- gender
- education
- personal relevance/importance;
- investment in an issue affects persuasion
- issues we care deeply about are resistant to persuasion
outcome relevant involvement
- the degree to which social or economic outcome is important to the receiver
proximity is also important - how near something is to us in time and space
- greater proximity increases central route processing (face to face most effective)
audience: personality factors
need for cognition
- an individuals tendency to engage in an enjoy effortful cognitive activity
- those high in this need prefer deliberate analysis and will use central route processing
- they will also ness more information and ask more questions
audience: self monitoring
- focusing on situational cues when deciding how to present ones self
- high self monitors are more vulnerable to attitude shifts
- eg. a women who is a high self monitor might buy an expensive purse if in a crowd that values popular accessories
audience: ability to focus
- distracted or highly distractible individuals are more likely to use peripheral route processing
- this will lead them to be more open to persuasion
- might also be taken advantage of by the source:
- eg ads located in busy areas that emphasize peripheral elements
mood of the audience
good moods - both physically and psychological - can enhance openness to persuasion
- want to maintain good mood
- rely on peripheral cues
- eg. Walmart uses greeters to improve the mood of customers as they walk in the door
cultural differences in persuasion
- persuasive messages differ across cultures
- people from collectivist cultures are more likely to go along with the group (this is not an absolute though)
- people from individualistic cultures actually value straying from the group
- uniqueness has different meaning and value across cultures
Cladini’s 6 weapons of influence
1. reciprocation 2, commitment and consistency 3. social proof 4. liking/ingratiation 5. authority 6. scarcity
reciprocation
- repaying an act in order to avoid feeling indebted
- door in the face technique (I did somethin for you, you do something for me)
- advertisements use this by offering you discounts or extras to make it seem like they are doing you a favour
- ex. free samples
commitment/consistency
- procuring a commitment creates obligation
- a person will then act in way that is consistent with that commitment
- foot in the door technique
- lowball technique
- rewards cards and RSVP are ways of using commitment as a persuasive technique
social proof
- following others actions as an indication of what is true or right
- bandwagon effect
liking/ingratiation
- we generally say yes to people we like and no to people we don’t like
authority
- credibility = source
- we tend to do what people in authority positions want, even if it is only perceived authority
scarcity
- people want what they cant have
- “limited time offer”
- “buy now before its too late”
- “hurry, this offer wont last”
ex. can I get a lift
reciprocation: here is food, can you drive me
commitment/consistency: I’ll give you gas money
social proof: everyone else’s friends would do it
liking: praise them
authority: if you’re they’re boss it will work
scarcity: we don’t get to see each other very much, this will give us a chance to catch up
what does research tell us about resisting persuasion tactics
forewarning:
- being informed ahead of time that an attempt to persuade is coming
- allow us to steal our defenses
- ex reviews
reactance:
- people do not like to feel “forced” into an action or a way of thinking
- basic idea behind reverse psychology
- ex getting told to do the dishes - no longer want to do the dishes even though you were going to
attitude inoculation:
- the process of building up resistance to unwanted persuasion
- present small does of arguments against persons own position - establishes threat and initiates defences
- process of refutation prepares for future stronger messages
- allows creation of arguments in favour of pre existing thoughts
- ex. argument changes to garbage collection are good - leaf and yard waste placed in paper bags
- might have becomes inoculated to changing mind to accept change by first thinking about things like privacy and then later refuting claim about environmental factors
