Aspects of Persuasion

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Aspects of Persuasion

• Persuasion involves the strategic construction of
  symbols designed to influence others. This means
• 1. Persuasion is a communication process,
  persuaders are involved in an activity.
• 2. Persuasion involves symbolism.
• 3. Persuasion is deliberate.
• 4. Persuasion influences.

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The deliberate communicative process of
persuasive influence depends upon certain terms
such as

• Beliefs
• Values
• Attitudes
• Behaviors

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Beliefs

• Are cognitive constructs that we consider to be
  true or valid.
• Beliefs can be organized along a continuum from
  central to peripheral. (refer to ohp)

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Beliefs- cont

• 5 categories of beliefs
• 1. Primitive beliefs, 100 consensus
• 2. Primitive beliefs, zero consensus
• 3. Authority beliefs
• 4. Derived beliefs
• 5. Inconsequential beliefs

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Values

• The relative worth of an object , a quality that
• makes something desirable or undesirable, an
• ideal or custom about which we have emotional
• responses.
• Values are mode of conduct of a continuum of a
• relative importance.
• It is either instrumental or terminal values

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Values- cont

• Terminal values- ultimate goals like inner
  happiness, pleasure or comfortable life.
• Instrumental values - modes of conduct such as
  honesty, politeness or responsibility.
• Values are also linked to beliefs.

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Attitudes

• Definitions
• Attitudes are associations between attitude
• objects and evaluations of those objects.
• A learned predisposition to respond in a
• consistently favorable or unfavorable
• manner with respect to a given object.

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Attitudes

• Attitudes may influence behavior
• People will behave in ways consistent with their
  attitudes. But of course, our behaviors do not
  always conform to attitude.
• 2. Attitudes influence social cognition
• They can function as schemas for organizing and
  interpreting information about social entities.

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Attitude formation

• Social Learning
• - classical conditioning
• - instrumental conditioning
• - observational learning
• 2. Social Comparison
• 3. Genetic Factors

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Behavior

• Persuasion attempts to evoke a specific
• change in the attitude or behavior of an
• audience. Three (3) different forms of
• responses are

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1. Response Shaping

• A persuader may attempt to shape the
• responds of an audience by teaching it
• how to behavior and offer positive
• reinforcement for

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2. Response Reinforcing

• If the people in the audience have positive
• attitude towards a subject, the Persuader
• reminds them about the positive attitudes
• and stimulates them to feel even more
• strongly by demonstrating their attitude
• through specific forms of behavior.

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3. Response Changing

• Asking people to change from one attitude
• to another. Maybe from a neutral attitude to
• positive/negative attitude. People are
• reluctant to change, thus to convince them
• to do so, the persuader has to relate the
• change to something in which the
• persuadee already believes. This is called an
• anchor.

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Model of Persuasion
NOISE MESSAGES CHANNELS FEEDBACK
SOURCE(S) Beliefs Values Attitudes
RECEIVER(S) Beliefs Values Attitudes
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Tutorial 2

• There are various theories associated with the
• study of persuasion. Some of them are
• Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)
• Social Learning Theory
• Cognitive Dissonance Theory
• McGuires persuasion process.
• Find out how these theories can explain the
• basics of persuasion. Give appropriate
• examples.