1. Attitudes and Persuasion
Chapter 7

2. Persuasion and Attitude Change
1. A Two-Process Approach to Persuasion
Elaboration-Likelihood Model
Heuristic-Systematic Model
Heuristic/Peripheral - the person primarily attends to superficial aspects of the message
Systematic/Central - the person thinks carefully and deliberately about the content of the message

3. Elaboration-Likelihood Model
Nonverbal
cues
important
Message
unimportant,
uninteresting
Heuristic
processing
Argument
strength
unimportant
Peripheral Route
Nonverbal
cues
unimportant
Message
important,
interesting
Systematic
processing
Argument
strength
important
Central Route

5. Petty, Cacioppo & Goldman, 1981

6. Factors Influencing Information Processing
We tend to use systematic processing when:
we are strongly motivated
accuracy motivation
impression motivation
defensive motivation
we have a high ability to do so
We tend to use heuristic processing when:
we are unmotivated
we lack the ability to systematically process info

7. Persuasion and Attitude Change
2. The Who, What, and Whom of Persuasion
a. source characteristics
sleeper effect - occurs when messages from unreliable sources initially exert little influence but later cause individuals’ attitudes to shift
b. message characteristics
c. receiver characteristics

8. Source and Message Characteristics
Important Nonverbal Cues
Attractiveness
Credibility
expertise
trustworthiness
Speaking style
Important Message Characteristics
High quality message
Vivid information
Identifiable victim effect
if audience is skeptical- use two-sided message

9. Receiver Characteristics
Need for Cognition
Mood
Age

10. Is Resistance Futile? Audience Effects
reactance- adopting opposite attitudes
forewarning- prior knowledge of persuasion
increase arguments for and counterarguments against
selective avoidance- avoid contradictory info.
channel surf, tune out certain info.
biased assimilation- perceive information that disconfirms our views as unreliable
attitude polarization- interpret mixed evidence in ways that strengthen existing views

11. Summary: ELM Central Route Persuasive Response Appeal Peripheral Route
Audience
Processing
Persuasion
Analytical
&
Motivated
High effort
Elaborate
Agree
Counter-
argue
Strong
arguments
cause
enduring
agreement
Central
Route
Persuasive
Appeal
Response
Not
analytical or
involved
Low effort:
Use
peripheral
cues,
heuristics
Cues
trigger
liking
&
acceptance
Peripheral
Route

12. Behavioral Approach to Attitude Change
1. Cognitive Dissonance Theory (Festinger, 1957)
states that inconsistencies between a person’s thoughts, sentiments, and actions create an aversive emotional state (dissonance) that leads to efforts to restore consistency
Dissonance can occur in a number of ways
Selecting between two reasonably attractive alternatives
Justifying effort
Engaging in counterattitudinal behavior
2. Experiencing and Reducing Dissonance
a. Decisions and Dissonance 4 8 8

14. Brehm’s Consumer Products Study
Asked participants to rate a bunch of consumer products.
Offered participants a choice between two items
Experimental group – offered the two items participants had rated closest in attractiveness (High Dissonance).
Control group – offered two items not close in attractiveness (Low Dissonance).
After 20 minutes, asked participants to rate products again.
Predictions?

15. Aronson and Mills (1959)
Recruited women to participate in discussion about sex (remember it is the ’50s.
3 conditions: mild initiation, severe initiation, control.
In initiation conditions, participants told they had to pass a test to be in discussion group.
Mild initiation – read a list of mild words and romantic passage from novel to experimenter.
Severe initiation – read a list of explicit words and pornographic passage to experimenter.
All people were told they passed but the discussion had already started. They were allowed to listen in on headphones to VERY boring conversation.
Who do you think liked the discussion more? Why?
Several alternate explanations for these results
Severe initiation was not bad thing. Participants had fun saying dirty words.
Participants were in a good mood after having passed this test.
Contrast effects. The neutral discussion looked better because of the negative experience of the intiation.

16. Predicting Attitudes From Behavior
b. Effort Justification - tendency to reduce dissonance by finding reasons for why you have devoted time, effort, or money for something that turned out to be disappointing
Aronson and Mills (1959) ‘initiation experiment’
Cooper (1980) study on effort justification in psychotherapy

17. Gerard and Mathewson (Replication)
Told participants they were signing up for a group that would discuss morals on campus.
Initiation participants told they would have to pass some tests to see how inhibited they were. Tests included receiving mild or severe electric shocks (3X).
Noninitiation participants went through same tests but didn’t believe they were joining group.
Participants were told they had either passed the test or had to wait a few days for the results.
Everyone then listened to the VERY boring conversation
Here is what happened…
This replication ruled out these potential explanations
Having fun during initiation
Groups that received severe shocks liked the conversation more than groups that received mild shocks (electric shock not fun).
Feeling good about passing test
Groups that did not know their results liked the conversation more than people who knew they had passed.
Contrast effects
Noninitiation participants did not like the group more after receiving severe electric shocks.
Results must have occurred because of cognitive dissonance

18. Cooper (1980)
Hypothesized that the “suffering” involved in psychotherapy is what makes people believe in its effectiveness.
Recruited women who felt they had assertiveness problems. Told they would receive $2 for participating.
Upon arrival, receptionist either:
Reminded them their participation was completely voluntary, or
Did not remind them of their free choice.
One group experienced behavioral therapy (identified problem situations and practiced being assertive).
Other group exercised on treadmill (told exercise helped assertiveness).
When they were finished, receptionist only paid them a dollar.
Who do you think was more assertive in asking for other dollar?
Participants in high choice condition were more assertive regardless of the type of therapy.
Did some cognitive work to make themselves believe therapy was useful since they volunteered for it.
Because they thought is was useful, they exhibited more assertiveness

19. Predicting Attitudes From Behavior
c. Induced Compliance and Attitude Change
induced (forced) compliance - subtly compelling individuals to behave in a manner that is inconsistent with their beliefs, attitudes, or values, which typically leads to dissonance and often to a change in their original attitudes or values in order to reduce their dissonance
Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) experiment on forced compliance

20. Induced Compliance Study
$20
Told next person
tasks were fun
and interesting
Asked how
much they
enjoyed experiment
Boring
Tasks
Told next person
tasks were fun
and interesting $1

21. Fig. 8.5

22. Predicting Attitudes From Behavior
3. When Does Inconsistency Produce Dissonance?
a. free choice
b. insufficient justification
c. negative consequences
d. foreseeable consequences

23. Linder, Cooper, and Jones
Had participants write counterattitudinal essays.
2X2 Design
Condition 1 high vs. low choice
Condition 2 high vs. low monetary incentive
Experiment 1 essay topic – allowing communists on campus
Experiment 2 essay topic – curfews on campus

24. Cooper and Worchel Used Festinger and Carlsmith procedure.
In response to lie about how fun the experiment was, person being lied to said either:
This experiment will probably be boring like all the others. Or
I’m glad this one will be fun. I’m looking forward to it.
Which participants will show most attitude change?

25. Reducing Cognitive Dissonance
Ways to reduce dissonance
Direct methods
change attitude to be consistent with behavior
“diets don’t really work anyway”
acquire supporting information
“many overweight people live long healthy lives”
trivialize the behaviors in question
“looking thin is not all that important”
Indirect methods
restore positive self-evaluations
“I like the way I look, regardless of my weight”
distractions

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