1. Ch 6: Attitudes
Part 2: Oct. 6, 2010

2. Persuasion Attempt to change an attitude 2 routes:
Central route - Focus on argument.
How does it work?
Peripheral route - Focus on emotion or other cues besides argument
What determines which route we use?

3. 1) Source of the persuasion –
Importance of credibility: competent, trustworthy?
Exceptions based on self-interest?
Importance of likeability: similar (to you) & physical attractiveness
Effect of personal involvement –
What is the ‘sleeper effect’?

4. 2) The Message – Primary vs. recency effect – which has more evidence?
May depend on timing of decision
Fear-based messages – do they work?
Need to induce certain conditions –
Positive emotions – more likely to use peripheral
Why?

5. Do subliminal messages work?
Words/pictures not consciously perceived but supposedly influence attitudes or behaviors
Distinction between subliminal perception & subliminal persuasion
Examples?
Bush/Gore 2000 Campaigns
Subliminal audio self-help tapes to lose weight, etc.
Greenwald’s experiments –
Subjects listened to tapes with subliminal memory or self-esteem messages
Groups either told of actual message or told of opposite message (memory or self-esteem).
Results?

6. Contrast Greenwald’s experiment w/Murphy’s subliminal experiment using Chinese characters:
Murphy’s results:
Differences from Greenwald’s experiment: