PERSUASIVE SPEAKING CHAPTER 16

IMPORTANCE OF PERSUASION “The process of creating, reinforcing, or changing people’s beliefs or actions.” We are exposed to MANY messages Need skills of informative speaking + others

ETHICS & PERSUASION “Shading truth?” Trust & credibility More than just informing Neutrality?

CAPITAL PUNISHMENT

PSYCHOLOGY OF PERSUASION Two or more points of view exist – necessary for persuasion Likely touching on sensitive matters

CHALLENGE OF PERSUASIVE SPEAKING Resistance to controversial matters Be realistic in what you can accomplish Different audience types Measures of success?

HOW LISTENERS PROCESS PERSUASIVE MESSAGES Persuasion: with an audience, not to an audience Mental give-and-take Intense when audience members are invested

TARGET AUDIENCES Some hostile, some indifferent, some in favor… Tailor your messages to your target audience

ELABORATION LIKELIHOOD MODEL (ELM) How high or low levels of elaboration shape the persuasiveness of messages Central processing Peripheral processing

PERSUASION IN MEDIA

ADVICE Be realistic with what you can accomplish Assess audience – on the fence or completely against you? Think of persuasion as a “mental dialogue” Consider target audience

STATEMENTS OF FACT Questions that can be answered absolutely Nonpartisan vs. partisan

STATEMENTS OF VALUE Demand value judgments – judgments based on a person’s beliefs about what is right or wrong, good or bad, moral or immoral, proper or improper, fair or unfair Beware – “I enjoy bicycle riding”

QUESTIONS OF POLICY Inevitably include questions of fact Emphasis on action (“You should…”) Passive agreement vs. immediate action

EXAMPLE

DISCUSSION Did the speaker feature persuasive claims in the speech? Were they effective? Did the speaker support stated claims with proper evidence? Did the speaker present one or multiple “calls to action?” Was the speaker’s performance effective? Why or why not?