CHAPTER 1 WHY STUDY PERSUASION? COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 1 PERSUASION, SOCIAL INFLUENCE, & COMPLIANCE GAINING, 5 TH ed. Prepared by Robert Gass & John Seiter

AIMS AND GOALS Understanding how persuasion function by  learning about the how’s and why’s of persuasion  learning about current theories and research on persuasion  examining “real-life” illustrations of persuasion Understanding that persuasion is both an art and science  People can be stubborn, unpredictable  Even the most well-funded, well-designed persuasive campaigns may fail Learning to become a more effective practitioner of persuasion COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2

PERSUASION IS NOT A DIRTY WORD Persuasion has gotten a bad rap  Hucksters, charlatans, unethical advertisers, and unscrupulous politicians have misused persuasion  Persuasion is sometimes associated with manipulation, brainwashing, deceit  Non-obvious or accidental influence: social modeling of risk behaviors in movies Persuasion is an “art” and a science.  People can be stubborn, unpredictable  Even the most well-funded, well-designed persuasive campaigns may fail COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 3

PERSUASION IS OUR FRIEND Persuasion is a positive social force  persuasion helps open closed societies and make government more transparent  persuasion is essential for charities and relief efforts  persuasive campaigns are used to promote public health and safety  Parents employ persuasion to urge their children to stay safe, avoid danger  Intimates use persuasion to negotiate relational rules  coaches use persuasion to motivate underdog teams COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 4 “Always wear your helmet.”

PERVASIVENESS OF PERSUASION Persuasion is omnipresent  The average person sees hundreds of ads per day Obvious and not so obvious forms of persuasion  buzz marketing generates free advertising  word of mouth (WOM) appears more genuine and authentic  social media enables the use of web- tracking and sentiment tracking COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 5 Image courtesy of

TIPPING POINTS Like a virus, word about a product or service spreads from one consumer to another Tipping point:  the threshold or critical point at which an idea, product, or message takes off Viral theory of marketing:  ideas and messages can be contagious, just like diseases The law of the few  Large numbers of people are not required to generate a trend  A select few enjoy a disproportionate amount of influence over others COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 6

Mavens possess information, expertise, and seek to share it  “Mavens are data banks. They provide the message.” (Gladwell)  Mavens want to educate more than persuade or sell Connectors know everybody, are networkers, have many contacts  “Connectors are social glue: they spread it.” (Gladwell)  They have large social circles  They are social gadflies; they blog, chat, text, twitter COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 7 TIPPING POINTS: KEY INFLUENCERS Salespeople are active advocates  They are charismatic  They are good at building rapport.  They often rely on “soft” influence (not the hard sell). Note: All three types of connectors are needed for a phenomenon to take-off

Power of context  The idea, message, or product must happen at the right time and place The stickiness factor  The idea, message, or product has to be “sticky” or inherently attractive Scalability  A message must be able to go from very small to very large without “gearing up.” Effortless transfer  the message must be easy to disseminate  “word of mouse”  leveraging free media COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 8 TIPPING POINTS: ADDITIONAL FACTORS

Momentum may not reach the tipping point  No guarantee the initial “buzz” will become contagious  Difficult to orchestrate word of mouth  Good ideas don’t always gain traction  Trends come and go quickly  Like a contagion, a trend can die out quickly or be replaced by a new one COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 9 TIPPING POINTS--CAUTIONS AND CAVEATS

GAMIFICATION People naturally enjoy playing games  Games are fun, challenging, rewarding  The element of competition increases motivation Gamification applies principles of game design to engage users  Games capture and hold users’ attention  Points, leaderboards, and badges can increase engagement Persuaders use games to encourage consumer participation  For example, Nike+ encourages runners to share and compare their workouts Drawbacks to gamification  Overuse may lead to boredom, fatigue  Some maintain the practice is exploitative COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 10

Persuasion in the Sciences  Scientists are actively involved in persuasion  Over theories and paradigms  Over methodologies and research findings  Over grants and funding Persuasion in the Arts  Artists seek to shape public opinion in and through their work  Picasso’s Guernica (1937) offers a moral indictment of war  Movies can change attitudes, alter beliefs, increase awareness COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 11 PERVASIVENESS OF PERSUASION

Non-obvious Contexts for Persuasion  Bumper stickers  12 step programs  Intercessory prayer (3 rd party)  Plays and musicals  Panhandling COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 12 PERVASIVENESS OF PERSUASION This homeless person is using humor/satire as a panhandling strategy (photo by John Seiter)

Weird Persuasion  A town changed its name to Dish, Texas as a buzz marketing ploy  William Shatner’s kidney stone was auctioned off on eBay  Acne lights were installed to discourage teen loitering COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 13 PERVASIVENESS OF PERSUASION

Persuasion in interpersonal contexts  Most influence attempts occur in the interpersonal arena  90% of word-of-mouth (WOM) occurs in offline settings  Persuasion is most effective in face-to-face contexts  Less obvious or overt  Harder to say “No” in person  Easier to analyze, adapt to one’s audience COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 14

INSTRUMENTAL FUNCTION OF PERSUASION Improving one’s own persuasive abilities Persuasion skill is a form of communication competence  Communication competence requires effectiveness and appropriateness  Like any skill-set, persuasive skills can be improved through training and practice COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 15

KNOWLEDGE AND AWARENESS FUNCTION Gaining a better understanding of how persuasion works Overcoming habitual persuasion:  Individuals are often unaware of their own habitual, reflexive patterns of persuasion COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 16

DEFENSIVE FUNCTION  Becoming a more savvy, discerning consumer of persuasive messages  Third person effect; people underestimate the effects of advertising on themselves  They overestimate the effects of advertising on others  Being less likely to succumb to high pressure sales tactics  Exposing unethical strategies and tactics COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 17

DEBUNKING FUNCTION Dispelling folk-wisdom, false stereotypes, and “common-sense” misconceptions about persuasion  gaze avoidance is not a reliable sign of deception  Subliminal influence is ineffective Learning about non-obvious, counter-intuitive research findings  The “logic” versus “emotion” distinction represents a false dichotomy COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 18

TWO CRITICISMS OF PERSUASION 1. Is teaching/learning about persuasion manipulative?  The study of persuasion is fraught with ethical concerns  Little of the good in the world could be accomplished without persuasion  Not studying persuasion, won’t make persuasion go away  People who claim that persuasion is manipulative are themselves taking a persuasive stance COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 19

TWO CRITICISMS OF PERSUASION 2. Are persuasion findings inconsistent or confusing?  Persuasion deserves study because it is complicated  A number of reliable generalizations have been uncovered COPYRIGHT © 2011 PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 20