1. PERSUASION SOCIAL INFLUENCE & COMPLIANCE GAINING
Robert H. Gass & John S. Seiter

2. Chapter 5
Communicator Characteristics

3. Demographic Variables
Age
Education
Gender
Socio-economic status
Political party affiliation
Race/ethnicity
Religion
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4. Demographic Variables
Age: Some age groups are more susceptible to influence than others
Children
Aren’t as cognitively developed
Less adept at resisting advertising
More easily swayed by lures

5. DEMOGRAPHICS--continued
Elderly
Some seniors experience cognitive decline
Some scammers target elderly
Loneliness; eager for human interaction
Savings: nest-egg is a tempting target
Fixed incomes; looking for extra money
children
adults
elderly
gullibility
life-stages hypothesis: curvilinear relationship between age and gullibility

6. GENDER Gender stereotypes
Males are perceived as being more persuasive than females
Double-bind for females
Women who are direct, assertive, forceful may be perceived negatively
Reinforcement expectancy theory
Male MDs can use more negative strategies than female MDs
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7. GENDER
Cross-Sex Effect People are more easily persuaded by the opposite sex
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8. Culture & ETHNICITY Individualistic cultures Collectivistic cultures
“I” perspective
independence
individual autonomy
direct strategies
Collectivistic cultures
“We” perspective
interdependence
group harmony
getting along, fitting in
indirect strategies

9. INTELLIGENCE
In general, unintelligent people are more easily persuaded than intelligent people.
Caveats and cautions
unintelligent people may not comprehend the message
unintelligent people may rely more on peripheral cues

10. SELF ESTEEM High esteem persons may be more receptive
Low esteem person may be more likely to yield
Person with moderate esteem are more likely to receive, and yield to, a message
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11. ANXIETY LEVEL
Low anxiety individuals may be less vulnerable to anxiety arousing messages
Highly anxious persons may be more vulnerable, but less receptive
Anxiety increases a person’s motivation to be accurate or correct in processing a message
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12. Preference for consistency
High PFCs strive to be consistent in their attitudes and behaviors Low PFCs can tolerate contradictory attitudes and behaviors Inducing hypocrisy can cause cognitive dissonance Dissonance can change behavior

13. SELF MONITORING High self monitors are more responsive to social cues
more likely to adjust appearances and behavior
more likely to conform to social norms
Low self monitors are more likely to “do their own thing”
less sensitive to social cues
can come across as clueless or insensitive
HSMs are more responsive to acceptance, social rewards
HSMs are more responsive to image-based advertising
LSMs are more attentive to message content
LSMs rely more on their own judgment

14. EGO-INVOLVEMENT People tend to avoid or ignore messages in their LOR
High ego involvement and extreme attitudes go together
Individual’s with high ego involvement have small LOAs and Large LORs
Individuals with low ego involvement have large LOAs and small LORs
People tend to avoid or ignore messages in their LOR
High credibility can stretch one’s LOA

15. Social Judgment Theory
large latitude of acceptance
small latitude of rejection
small latitude of acceptance
large latitude of rejection
Larry is mildly ego-involved on the issue of abortion
Loretta is highly ego- involved on the issue of abortion

16. EGO-INVOLVEMENT assimilation/contrast phenomenon
assimilation: incorporating a position
contrast: polarization of a position

17. DOGMATISM & AUTHORITARIANISM
Authoritarians tend to
be conservative in their thinking
exhibit closed- mindedness
remain rigid in their beliefs
see things as black or white, right or wrong
be easily influenced by authority figures
Dogmatics (high dogs)
similar to authoritarians, but may be liberal or conservative
Social vigilantes
try to force their views onto others

18. NARCISSISM & COGNITIVE COMPLEXITY
Narcissists are self- centered, self- absorbed
Susceptible to messages that reinforce their ego
Cognitive complexity refers to
nuanced thinking
need for cognition
High NFCs rely more on central processing
Low NFCs rely more on peripheral cues

19. Argumentativeness & verbal aggressiveness
Argumentativeness refers to
a constructive trait
a form of assertiveness
a willingness to disagree
a focus on the issue(s), not personalities
Verbal aggressiveness refers to
a destructive trait
a form of hostility
an emphasis on insults, put downs
the use of threats, ultimatums

20. AUDIENCE ADAPTATION
Adapt your persuasive message to your listeners’ frame of reference
tailor the message to the listeners’ attitudes and beliefs
adjust your message based on age, culture, and gender
consider personalities and other traits when designing the message
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