Summary
Summary The Dynamics of Persuasion, Communication and Attitudes in the 21st century
- Course
- Institution
- Book
Samenvatting The dynamics of persuasion, communication and attitudes in the 21st century
[Show more]
Connected book
Book Title:
Author(s):
- Edition:
- ISBN:
- Edition:
More summaries for
-
MPC Tentamen Perloff en alle artikelen
-
Samenvatting boek Perloff + Kardes CH 2,3,12 - Marketing en persuasieve communicatie (S_MPC)
-
Uitgebreide samenvatting van colleges, aantekeningen en oefenvragen / Extensive summary of lectures, notes and exam questions
6 reviews
By: mathijshengeveld • 5 year ago
By: amber_diana • 7 year ago
By: james12 • 7 year ago
By: irenekuipers98 • 7 year ago
By: philinevanhelbergen • 8 year ago
By: nonjavanzuilen • 8 year ago
Seller
FollowMarjolein1995
Reviews received
Content preview
The Dynamics of Persuasion, Communication and Attitudes in the 21stCentury
Richard M. Perlof
Chapter 1
Just about anything that involves molding or shaping attitudes involves
persuasion. Persuasion is the study of attitudes and how to change them.
Contemporary persuasion difers from the past in the following six ways.
● The sheer number of persuasive communications has grown exponentially;
● Persuasive messages travel faster than ever before;
● Persuasion has become institutionalized. Persuasion has become a critical
weapon in the arsenal of powerful companies.
● Persuasive communication has become more subtle and devious;
● Persuasive communication is more complex and meditated. The
intermingling of people from diferent cultural groups is a profoundly positive
phenomenon, but it makes for more dicey and difficult interpersonal
persuasion. Also, persuasive communication seems to bombard in multiple
directions, from a plethora of media.
● Persuasive communication has gone digital.
Persuasion involves the persuader’s awareness that he or she is trying to
influence someone else. It also requires that the persuade make a conscious or
unconscious decision to change his mind about something. Persuasion has moral
components: individuals choose to engage in morally beneficent or morally
reprehensible actions. Higher animals are capable of some social influence, but
do not possess a full-blown ability to change attitudes in a manner that could be
characterized as persuasion. Persuasion is defined as a symbolic process in
which communicators try to convince other people to change their own
attitudes or behaviours regarding an issue through the transmission of a
message in an atmosphere of free choice. Persuasion takes time, consists of a
number of steps, and actively involves the recipient of the message.
A symbol is a form of language in which one entity represents a concept or idea,
communicating rich psychological and cultural meaning. Persuasion involves a
deliberate attempt to influence another person. For this reason it does not make
sense to say that chimpanzees persuade each other. Persuasion represents a
conscious attempt to influence the other party. Social influence is the broad
process in which the behaviour of one person alters the thoughts or actions of
another.
People persuade themselves to change attitudes or behaviour. Communicators
provide the arguments. Persuasion also typically involves change, such as
shaping, molding or reinforcing attitudes. Persuasion is a communicative activity;
thus, there must be a message for persuasion, as opposed to other forms of
social influence, to occur. Recall that persuasion is defined as an attempt to
convince others to change their attitudes or behaviour. Art and news are best
viewed as borderline cases of persuasion. Their messages can powerfully
influence our worldviews, but because the intent of these communicators is
broader and more complex than attitude change, news and art are best viewed
as lying along the border of persuasion and the large domain of social influence.
Persuasion requires free choice. A person is free when he as the ability to act
otherwise or to reflect critically on his choices in a situation. We decide to change
our own minds about issues, people, and ideas.
, Coercion could be defined as a technique for forcing people to act as the coercer
wants them to act. It usually employs a threat of some dire consequence if the
actor does not do what the coercer demands. Persuasion and coercion are not
polar opposites but, rather, overlapping concepts. Coercion occurs when the
influence agent: (a) delivers a believable threat of significant physical or
emotional harm to those who refuse the directive, (b) deprives the individual of
some measure of freedom or autonomy, and (c) attempts to induce the individual
to act contrary to her preferences. Persuasion, by contrast, occurs in an
atmosphere of free choice: it assumes the individual is capable of resisting an
influence attempt or of willingly persuading him or herself to alter an attitude
about an issue.
Propaganda is defined as a form of communication in which the leaders of a
ruling group have near or total control over the transmission of information,
typically relying on mass media to reach target audience members. Propaganda
refers to instances in which a group has total control. Persuasion allows for a free
flow of information. Propaganda is typically invoked to describe mass influence
through mass media. Persuasion, by contrast, occurs in mediated settings, but
also in interpersonal and organizational settings. Third, propaganda is deceptive
and can be covert. Finally, propaganda has a negative connotation. Persuasion,
by contrast, is viewed as a more positive force, one that can produce beneficial
outcomes. We use the term propaganda to refer to a persuasive communication
with which one disagrees and to which the individual attributes hostile intent.
Manipulation is a persuasion technique that occurs when a communicator hides
his or her true persuasive goals, hoping to mislead the recipient by delivering an
overt message that disguises its true intent.
Miller (1980) proposed that communications exert three diferent persuasive
efects: shaping, reinforcing and changing. Important as these efects are, they
rarely occur overnight. Persuasion is a process.
Chapter 2
Rhetoric refers to the use of argumentation, language, and public address to
influence audiences. In ancient Greece, Sophists ofered courses in rhetoric. Plato
denounced their work in his dialogues. In his view, the Sophists sacrificed truth at
the altar of persuasion. The Sophists saw persuasion diferently. They believed
that they were rocking the foundations of the educational establishment by
giving people practical knowledge rather than highfalutin truth. This shows that
dual approaches on thinking about persuasion exist. Aristotle agreed with Plato
that the truth is important, but also agreed with the Sophists that persuasive
communication is a practical tool. Aristotle said the goal of rhetoric wasn’t so
much finding the truth of a matter as convincing an audience to make the best
decision about that matter. He proposed that persuasion had three main
ingredients: ethos (the nature of the communicator), pathos (emotional state of
the audience), and logos (message arguments). Aristotle coupled his persuasion
theorizing with a healthy respect for ethics. He emphasized that a broad
education and development of moral character were essential characteristics in
those who aspired to deliver compelling oratory. It was the Romans who elevated
oratory to a higher plane. Cicero and Quintilian extolled the virtues of persuasion,
emphasizing that the ideal citizen is the good man speaking well. The emphasis
on man was no accident. It would be centuries before women were brought into
the realm of persuasion and public address.
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller Marjolein1995. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $6.96. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
52510 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now