Communicator characteristics & PErsuadability Chapter 5 Communicator characteristics & PErsuadability Prepared by Robert Gass & John Seiter Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Demographic variables Knowing the right buttons to push Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved age Children are easy marks “young children — younger than 8 years — are cognitively and psychologically defenseless against advertising” (American Academy of Pediatrics, cited by Strasberger, 2006) Young children cannot distinguish between advertising and programming content. By 3 months, 40% of children are watching TV or videos (Lindstrom, 2011) The average child sees 40,000 commercials per year Strasburger, V.C. (2006). Children, adolescents, and advertising. Pediatrics, 118 , 2562-2569. Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Advertisers target children Advertisers take advantage of children’s naivety junk food ads alcohol and tobacco ads sexualization of girls Media messages sexualize girls and younger and younger ages (APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls, 2010) Abercrombie and Fitch’s risqué wear for kids Bratz dolls (mini-skirts, fishnet stockings Tesco’s “Peekaboo Pole Dancing Kit” American Psychological Association (2010). Report of the APA task force on the sexualization of girls. Retrieved on May 17, 2012 from http://wwwapaorg/pi/women/programs/girls/report.aspx Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved elderly Life stages hypothesis: there is a curvilinear relationship between age a persuadability. children are more vulnerable Middle-aged persons are less vulnerable elderly are more vulnerable Age alone does not make people more gullible, however; Politeness reduces some seniors’ willingness to hang up on telemarketers Cognitive impairments (dementia, Alzheimer's) make some seniors more vulnerable Loneliness, isolation make some seniors more vulnerable Common scams target the elderly Telemarketing scams Lottery and sweepstakes scams Bank examiner cons Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved Gender and persuasion Gender stereotypes affect persuasion more than actual gender differences Reinforcement Expectancy Theory Female MDs are expected to be more communal, nurturing Male MDs are expected to be more assertive, leader-like Male MDs can employ more negative strategies than female MDs Individual differences matter more than gender differences Women are as different from one another as from men Cross-Sex Effect Women are more easily persuaded by males, and vice versa Goals, plans, and resources affect persuasion more than gender Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Gender All these females would be more assertive Gender differences in persuasion tend to be overlapping, rather than “either-or” than all these males females males For any given communication trait, such as assertiveness, the curves for females and males tend to be normal and overlapping Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved Culture and Ethnicity Individualistic cultures value personal autonomy Direct, assertive persuasion strategies Ads that emphasize individual benefits, personal success Rational strategies Collectivistic cultures emphasize fitting in Indirect, cooperative persuasion strategies Ads that appeal to group benefits, harmony Coalitions and gift-giving Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Influence Strategies may be culture specific U.S.A. Direct request, assertiveness People’s Republic of China Anshi: hinting, indirect, implicit Yo she zuo ze: setting a personal example Tou qi suo: feeding people what they relish Columbia Confiaza: trust or closeness Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved intelligence Albert Einstein Vs. Forrest Gump In general, less intelligent people are easier to persuade (Rhode & Woods, 1992) But… Less intelligent people may have more difficulty comprehending the message simple versus complex messages Intelligence is not synonymous with knowledge or education on a topic Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Self-Esteem The Trade-off between low and high esteem Low esteem: more likely to yield, but less likely to follow through High esteem: less likely to yield, but more likely to follow through Therefore, people with moderate esteem may be the most persuadable Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Anxiety Anxiety disorders affect approximately 40 million Americans (ADAA, 2010) Persuasion requires attention, comprehension, and yielding to a message Anxious people may have more trouble attending to a message Anxiety may be distracting Anxiety may trigger panic Anxious people may be more likely to yield to a message Focus on reducing anxiety and fear so listeners will pay attention Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Preference for consistency High FPC’s value consistency, predictability. Are more susceptible to cognitive dissonance Low FPC’s value spontaneity, unpredictability Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Self-Monitoring High self-monitors are: More adaptable, sensitive to social cues More responsive to image-oriented ads Low Self-Monitors are: More independent, less conforming More responsive to product features and functions Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Ego Involvement Ego involved people tend to have: Smaller latitudes of acceptance Wider latitudes of rejection Ego involved people tend to have narrower views Assimilation/Contrast Phenomenon Messages are distorted based on their perceived compatibility with existing beliefs and attitudes Assimilation: a message is perceived as being closer to one’s own position than it really is Contrast: a message is perceived as being farther from one’s own position than it really is Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Social judgment theory Naomi is mildly ego- involved on the issue of abortion Loretta is highly ego- involved on the issue of abortion large latitude of acceptance small latitude of rejection small latitude of acceptance large latitude of rejection Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Issue Involvement According to the ELM, a person with high issue involvement: tend to rely on central processing tend to be more responsive to good arguments and evidence A person with low issue involvement: tend to favor peripheral processing tend to look for mental shortcuts, heuristic cues tend to respond better to testimonials Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Authoritarian personalities are close-minded and conservative Dogmatism is a broader construct Dogmatic people may be conservative or liberal Dogmatic people engage in rigid, doctrinaire thinking Dogmatic people are more persuadable by authority figures “Dogmatism—not religious fundamentalism, terrorism, or fanaticism in general—is the greatest threat to social, political, and scientific progress” (Johnson, 2009) Social vigilantism Social vigilantes believe their beliefs are superior to others’ They actively try to persuade others of their rightness Johnson, J. (2009). What’s so wrong about being right? The dangerous nature of dogmatic belief. Amherst, New York: Prometheus Books. Page 26. Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits High “dogs” Prefer clear-cut rules and order Like status hierarchies Respect authority figures View the world in black or white “Low” dogs: Prefer fewer rules, more flexibility Place less emphasis on status and hierarchy Are less obedient to authority View the world in shades of gray Johnson, J. (2009). What’s so wrong about being right? The dangerous nature of dogmatic belief. Amherst, New York: Prometheus Books. Page 26. Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Cognitive Complexity and need for Cognition Need for cognition involves a desire to think about, reflect on things Cognitive complexity involves the number of constructs people use when thinking Cognitively complex (as opposed to cognitively simple) people: are better at perspective taking are more likely to use central processing can tolerate more inconsistency Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Cognitive complexity People who rely on many constructs are cognitive complex Their thinking is more nuanced They are better at seeing things from another’s perspective They are better at adapting messages to listeners People who rely on few constructs are cognitively simple They tend to think of things in black and white , either/or They tend to have less tolerance for inconsistency, since they don’t see things in degrees Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Need for Cognition People who are high in the need for cognition (NFCs) like to think about things They enjoying solving problems They enjoy discussions They are more likely to engage in central processing People who are low in their need for cognition (LNCs) Don’t like effortful thinking They are more likely to resort to peripheral processing, e.g., heuristic cues Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved

Psychological states and traits Verbal aggressiveness Is a destructive trait Relies on name-calling, insults, put-downs The goal is to damage another’s self concept Argumentativeness Is a constructive trait Involves a willingness to argue by focusing issues, not personalities

Analyzing and adapting to audiences Know your audience Adapt your message to your audience point of view Tailor the message to the listener’s frame of reference Explain how the message is consistent with the other person’s beliefs, attitudes, and values Pay attention to situational cues The context or setting matters Tale cultural values into account Consider Maslow’s hierarchy of needs Consider states and traits Consider audience demographics Copyright © 2014 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved