Social Psychology

Chapter 7

Persuasion
1. PERSUASION

1. Definition and Nature

Definition
 Persuasion: The process by which a message induces change in
beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors.
Nature (good, bad or neutral)
 Persuasion is neutral in itself
 Its effects can be beneficial or harmful, depending on purpose and
content.
o Good persuasion: (Often called education) – fact-based,
informative, less coercive.
o Bad persuasion: (Often called propaganda) – manipulative,
biased, coercive.
o Note: Whether we call it education or propaganda often depends
on whether we agree with the message.

2. WHAT PATHS LEAD TO PERSUASION

2.1 THE CENTRAL ROUTE

 Occurs when: People are motivated and able to think carefully

about a message.
 Focus: On the strength and quality of arguments.
 Effect:
o Strong, compelling arguments → persuasion likely.
o Weak arguments → counterarguing, rejecting the message.
 Outcome:
o Persuasion is reinforced by people’s own thoughts, making it
persistent/enduring, resistant to counter-persuasion, and
behavior-influencing.
 Example: Political campaigns using arguments aligned with audience
moral beliefs are most effective.

2.2 THE PERIPHERAL ROUTE

 Occurs when: People are distracted, uninvolved, or unable to

think carefully.
 Focus: On superficial, incidental cues rather than message
content, e.g.,:
o Speaker’s attractiveness or likability
o Familiarity or simplicity of the message

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 o Emotional associations
 Effect: Cues trigger automatic acceptance without deep thinking,
often automatic and implicit.
 Outcome:
o Builds attitudes slowly through repeated associations between
message and emotion.
o Less enduring (more temporary) and more vulnerable to
counter-persuasion than central route.
 Examples:
o Media: Billboards and TV ads use visual/emotional cues rather
than arguments.
 Heuristics: Simple mental shortcuts help people decide quickly,
e.g.:
o “Trust experts”
o “Lengthy messages are credible”
o “People I like support this → I should too”

2.3 DIFFERENT PATHS FOR DIFFERENT PURPOSES

Comparison of Routes
Feature Central Route Peripheral Route
Motivation &
High Low
Ability
Focus Message arguments Incidental cues
Thinking Thoughtful, reflective Automatic, emotional
Persuasion Deep, enduring, behavior-
Shallow, slow, easily changed
Effect influencing
Education, moral/political Consumer choices, spontaneous
Best Use
beliefs decisions

3. WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS OF PERSUASION?

3.1 WHO SAYS? THE COMMUNICATOR

3.2 WHAT IS SAID? THE MESSAGE CONTENT
3.3 HOW IS IT SAID? THE CHANNEL OF COMMUNICATION
3.4 TO WHOM IS IT SAID? THE AUDIENCE

3.1 WHO SAYS? THE COMMUNICATOR

Overview
 Persuasion depends on who delivers the message.

1. Influence of Group/Political Alignment

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  People tend to agree with communicators from their own party
or social group.
 Examples:
o Democrats/Republicans in the U.S. supported policies endorsed
by their own party, even if the policy is typically associated
with the other party.
 Key insight: Message content matters less than who says it.

2. Credibility
 Credible person’s message is more persuasive.
 Definition:
o Perceived expertise and trustworthiness.
 Sleeper effect (delayed persuasion):
o Persuasive impact of a non-credible person can increase
over time if the message is remembered better than the
reason for discounting it (non-credible source).

2.1. Perceived Expertise

 Expert’s message is more persuasive.
 Definition:
o Message from authoritative sources (e.g., doctors, scientists) is
more convincing than from laypersons.
o Celebrities are effective if perceived as expert users; ineffective
otherwise.
 Simulated expertise:
o Agreement with audience can signal competence.
 Example: Hand-sanitizing signs featuring the hospital’s
medical director increased compliance.
o Speaking style.
 Fluent, confident, energetic speech increases
persuasiveness
 Hesitant or disfluent speech → perceived as less competent
→ message less persuasive.
o Listening.
 Speaking fluently and listening (balance) matters
especially in one-on-one contexts.

2.2. Perceived Trustworthiness

 Trusted person’s message is more persuasive.
 Key observations:
o Trusted friends are believed more than established news
sources.
o People who argue against their own self-interest are more
credible.
o People perceived as informing rather than persuading are
more credible.

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 o Negative reviews are often trusted more than positive ones.
 Strategies to overcome distrust:
o Humor can reduce resistance.

3. Attractiveness and Liking

 Physical attractiveness and similarity increase persuasiveness,
especially for:
o Products or messages judged superficially (peripheral route).
o Emotional arguments.
 Mechanisms:
o Celebrities enhance desirability and sophistication of products.
o Mimicking audience behavior subtly increases influence.
o Consumer-generated content is persuasive when creators are
similar to the audience.

4. Persuasion Principles (Cialdini)

Principle Core Idea Practical Application
People defer to credible Establish expertise; highlight experience
Authority
experts & accomplishments
People respond to those Build rapport; highlight similarity; praise
Liking
they like freely
Social People follow others’ Use peers or respected figures as
Proof behavior examples
Reciprocit People feel obliged to
Be generous with time/resources
y return favors
Consisten People honor Frame requests to encourage public
cy commitments commitment
People value what’s Emphasize exclusivity or limited
Scarcity
rare opportunities
People say yes to those Highlight shared identity, roots, or group
Unity
like them membership

3.2 WHAT IS SAID? THE MESSAGE CONTENT

Persuasion: What is Said? (Message Content)

Overview
 Persuasion depends not only on who delivers the message, but also on
what is said.

1. Reason vs. Emotion

 Depends on audience:
o Analytical/well-educated audiences: Prefer reasoned,
logical arguments (central route).
o Uninterested or distracted audiences: Prefer emotional
appeals (peripheral route).

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  Initial attitude matters:
o Attitudes formed through information → more persuaded by
logical arguments.
o Attitudes formed through emotions → more persuaded by
emotional appeals.
 Example:
o Vaccine-hesitant parents were not persuaded by facts alone;
emotional stories about sick children were effective.

1.1. Effect of Good Feelings and Positive Association

 Messages are more persuasive when linked to pleasant
experiences:
 Mechanism:
o Enhances positive thinking.
o Creates associative link between message and good feelings.
 Mood effects:
o Happy audiences: More impulsive, rely on peripheral cues =
easier to persuade with weak arguments.
o Unhappy audiences: More reflective = less influenced by weak
arguments.
 Humor: Increases liking and persuasion for products, politics, health
behaviors.

1.2. Effect of Arousing Fear

 Fear appeals: Effective for promoting health, safety, and risk-
reduction behaviors.
 Examples:
o Fear-based mammogram messages = more women got
screened.
o Sun-damage images = increased sunscreen use.
 Key factors for effectiveness:
1. Evoke fear → make the risk salient.
2. Offer a solution → show protective action.
3. Increase self-efficacy → people feel capable of taking
action.
 Gain vs. loss framing:
o Gain-framed messages (highlight benefits) are often more
persuasive than loss-framed (highlight disadvantages)
messages.
o Example: “Wear sunscreen = attractive skin” more effective than
“Don’t wear sunscreen → unattractive skin.”

2. Message Context
a. Fear-Then-Relief
 Definition: Persuasion is boosted when a temporary negative emotion
(fear) is relieved before a request.

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  Example:
o Passersby at a train station feared losing their wallets → felt relief
→ 40% bought charity cards (vs. 10% without relief).
 Mechanism: Relief increases receptiveness to requests by
shifting emotional state.
b. Foot-in-the-Door (Small-to-Large Requests)
 Definition: People who agree to a small request are more likely
to comply with a subsequent larger request.
 Example:
o Small sign in yard → later agree to a large, ugly sign (17% →
76%).
o Works with small voluntary acts: lapel pins, petitions, even robot
requests.
 Psychological principle: Initial commitment increases self-
perception of consistency.
c. Lowball Technique
 Definition: After agreeing to an initial favorable request, the
requester increases cost/effort.
 Effectiveness: People often stick with the larger request due to
initial verbal commitment.
 Examples:
o Car purchase with added options.
o Airlines/hotels upgrading to higher-priced options.
 Mechanism: Verbal/written commitment strengthens compliance,
even if profit motive is known.
d. Door-in-the-Face (Large-to-Small Requests)
 Definition: Start with a large request (likely refused), then
counteroffer a smaller, reasonable request.
 Effectiveness: Increases compliance with the smaller request.
 Example:
o Students refuse 2-year volunteer commitment → more agree to a
single zoo trip (32% → 56%).
o Restaurant: refusing dessert → higher chance of accepting
coffee/tea.

3. One-Sided vs. Two-Sided Appeals

 One-sided: Presents only supporting arguments.
 Two-sided: Acknowledges and refutes opposition.
 Effectiveness:
o Two-sided appeals can increase credibility, fairness, and
trustworthiness.
o Mentioning minor negatives can boost trust in sales context.

6. Primacy vs. Recency Effects (Order of Presentation)

 Primacy effect: Information presented first usually has the
greatest influence.

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 o Examples:
 First impressions of traits → shape perception.
 Reading positive reviews first → higher overall liking.
 Candidates listed first on ballots → more votes.
 Recency effect: Information presented last can dominate if there’s
a time gap or immediate decision after second message (forgot the
first message).
 Guideline: Avoid middle positioning; go first or last for maximal
impact.

3.3. HOW IS IT SAID? THE CHANNEL OF COMMUNICATION

Overview
 Persuasion depends not only on who delivers the message and what is
said, but also how it is delivered and how actively the audience
engages with it.

1. Channel of Communication
 Definition: The way a message is delivered (face-to-face, in writing,
on film, etc.).
 Examples:
 Insight: Common belief favors written or spoken words, but delivery
method alone does not guarantee persuasion.

2. Active Experience vs. Passive Reception

a. Active Engagement
 Definition: Attitudes formed through active experience (doing,
interacting) are stronger and more enduring than passively
received ones.
 Mechanism:
o Active engagement → greater confidence, stability, and
resistance to attack.
o Responsibility for actions amplifies attitude.
 Examples in marketing:
o Interactive ads, viral videos, social media campaigns →
stronger consumer identification and memory.
o Interactive websites (e.g., comment-enabled) → higher credibility
and engagement than static messages.
b. Passive Reception
Passive Reception
 Passive exposure: Seeing/hearing messages without engagement.
o Written and visual appeals often have low direct effect.

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  Mere exposure effect: Repetition breeds familiarity →
familiarity breeds liking and believability.
o Example: Repeated political ads make unfamiliar candidates
seem trustworthy.
 Fluency effect: Easy-to-process statements (rhyming,
repetition) → more credible.
o Example: “Haste makes waste” seems truer than “Rushing
causes mistakes.”
Influence of Familiarity and Bias
 People are harder to persuade on familiar and important issues;
minor issues are more malleable.
o Example: Brand preferences vs. controversial political issues.
 Partisan bias: People accept evidence that confirms views; reject
contradictory evidence.
o Retractions rarely work; original misinformation is remembered
more strongly.
o Effective counter-strategy: Provide simple, repeatable
alternative narratives.
c. Practical Insights
1. Passive messages can work for minor issues through repetition,
fluency, and familiarity.
2. Active experience strengthens attitudes and long-term influence.
3. Interactivity (consumer participation, sharing, commenting) amplifies
engagement, credibility, and memorability.

3. Personal vs. Media Influence

a. Personal Influence
 Major influence: Direct contact with people is more persuasive than
media alone.
 Mechanisms:
o Word-of-mouth / Viral marketing: People spread information
naturally (e.g., Harry Potter success via kids talking to kids).
o Election campaigns: Personal contact increases voter turnout
(door-knocking, calls).
o Public health campaigns: Personal teaching and goal-setting
improve health behaviors more than media alone (e.g., California
heart disease study).
 Insight: Personal, interactive engagement enhances persuasion and
long-term behavior change.
b. Media Influence
 Indirect effect through opinion leaders:
o Two-step flow of communication: Media → Opinion Leaders →
General Public.
o Opinion leaders absorb information (media, research) and
influence their networks.

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 o Example: Doctors follow specialists’ advice, who are influenced
by studies and experts.
 Cultural penetration: Even children who avoid media are influenced
via peers who consume media.
 Insight: Media often works indirectly, shaping beliefs through
influential individuals rather than directly.
c. Comparing Media Channels
 Persuasiveness by medium:
o Live (face-to-face) > Video > Audio > Written.
o Reason: Lifelike mediums humanize the communicator,
enhancing influence.
 Comprehension vs. persuasiveness:
o Difficult messages: More persuasive when written (audience can
process at their own pace).
o Easy messages: More persuasive when videoed (engaging and
attention-grabbing).
 Peripheral cues: TV can distract from message content, causing
focus on communicator traits (e.g., attractiveness).
 Practical tip: For difficult ideas, provide written messages; for easy or
familiar ideas, use video or live interaction.
d. Influence of Adults on Children
 Observation: Children are not always persuaded by health messages
alone.
 Experiment: Children ate most crackers when no message was
added; less when described as “yummy,” least when described as
“healthy.”
 Lesson: When persuading children, demonstrate behavior rather
than only explaining benefits.
o If explaining, focus on enjoyment rather than health.

3.4 TO WHOM IS IT SAID? THE AUDIENCE

1. Age and Persuasion

 Correlation: Social and political attitudes often differ by age.
 Explanations for age differences:
1. Life cycle: Attitudes change as people age (less supported).
2. Generational: Attitudes formed in youth persist into adulthood
(stronger evidence).
 Key insight: Teens and early twenties are formative years; attitudes
then are long-lasting.
o Example: Political attitudes at age 18 tend to persist.
o Young adults are also more susceptible to joining cults or
extremist groups.
 Flexibility: Older adults can change attitudes over time (e.g.,
acceptance of modern cultural norms).

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2. Thoughtfulness and Central vs. Peripheral Processing
 Central route persuasion: Persuasion depends on audience
thoughts.
o Favorable thoughts → persuaded.
o Counterarguments → not persuaded.
 Forewarning breeds counterargument:
o Knowing a persuasive attempt is coming allows mental
preparation (e.g., family discussions, courtrooms).
o Example: “Stealing thunder” neutralizes impact of evidence.
 Distraction reduces counterarguing:
o Multitasking or engaging visuals keep people from thinking
critically.
o Effective for simple messages; too much distraction can reduce
comprehension (e.g., violent TV programs).

3. Involvement and Peripheral Cues

 Need for cognition: Motivation to think carefully.
o High need → central route (analyzes arguments).
o Low need → peripheral route (relies on cues like attractiveness,
pleasantness).
 Example:
o Students interested in a travel destination focused on
information (central).
o Less interested students focused on website design (peripheral).
 Stimulating central thinking strengthens persuasion:
o Techniques:
 Rhetorical questions
 Multiple speakers
 Responsibility for evaluating the message
 Repetition of message
 Undistracted attention
o Strong messages → more persuasive; weak messages → less
persuasive.

4. Practical Implications
 Tailor message to audience: Consider their likely reactions,
interests, and values.
 Example:
o Liberals respond better to future-oriented framing.
o Conservatives respond better to nostalgia framing.
 Teaching application: Active engagement (questions, examples,
challenges) fosters central route processing and deeper learning.

4. HOW CAN PERSUASION BE RESISTED?

1. Natural Susceptibility

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  Humans naturally accept persuasive messages; doubting them
requires conscious effort.
 Understanding a claim often leads to temporary belief (e.g., “lead
pencils are hazardous”) until actively questioned.
 Resistance is possible through:
o Logic
o Seeking additional information
o Questioning authority or habitual responses

4.1 . ATTITUDE INOCULATION

1. Attitude Inoculation
 Concept: Expose people to a mild attack on their belief so they
can resist stronger attacks later.
 Analogy: Like a vaccine for a virus → builds mental defenses.
 Application: Protecting against fake news or misinformation online.
 Definition: Exposing people to weak attacks to prepare refutations for
stronger attacks. (must not be too strong to overwhelm)

2. Developing Counterarguments
 Mechanism: Lead people to think of reasons why a persuasive
message is wrong.
 Techniques:
1. Poison-parasite defense (Cialdini et al., 2003):
 Poison = strong counterarguments
 Parasite = resembles opponent’s ad
 Example: Anti-smoking ads that mimic “Marlboro Man”
imagery but show lung harm → less persuasive for
smoking.
2. Framing appeals as counter-cultural or rebellious:
 Example: Teens in Texas school were more likely to choose
healthy snacks when presented as rebellion against
manipulative junk food industry (Bryan et al., 2016).
3. Fake news inoculation:
 Warn readers that misinformation is politically motivated
→ helps develop counterarguments → reduces belief in
false claims.
 Writing fake news articles oneself → teaches techniques
used to mislead → increases resistance to misinformation
(Maertens et al., 2020).
 Meta-analysis insight: Learning detailed counterarguments is more
effective than simply hearing that information is false (Chan et al.,
2017).
 Practical tip: Don’t just tell someone a story is false; provide reliable
sources and counterarguments (van der Meer & Jin, 2020).

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3. Inoculating Against Peer Pressure to Smoke
 Method: Seventh-graders taught to counter peer pressure; practiced
role-plays (e.g., respond to “chicken” taunts with witty refusals).
 Effectiveness:
o Inoculated students were half as likely to start smoking
compared to uninoculated peers, despite identical parental
smoking rates (McAlister et al., 1980).
o Role-play plus antismoking films reduced teen smoking more
than films alone (19% vs. 31%) (Hirschman & Leventhal, 1989).
 Other strategies in teen programs:
o Use attractive peers to communicate.
o Trigger students’ cognitive processing (“think about it”).
o Encourage public commitment (announce and justify healthy
decisions).
 Results: Teen smoking in the U.S. declined from 38% (1976) to 6%
(2019).
 New challenge: E-cigarettes → need programs to counterargue
vaping ads (Hansen et al., 2020).

4. Inoculating Against Advertising

 Problem: Children under 8 struggle to distinguish ads from content,
trust ads indiscriminately, and nag parents for advertised products
(Adler et al., 1980; Feshbach, 1980).
 Online concern: YouTube and “advergames” increase choice of high-
sugar/fat foods (Vanwesenbeeck et al., 2020; Mallinckrodt & Mizerski,
2007).
 Global approaches: Some countries restrict advertising targeting
children (Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Sweden).
 U.S. context:
o Average child sees 10,000+ commercials per year (Levine,
2003).
o Federal Trade Commission evaluates constraints on unhealthy
food ads for children.
 Inoculation techniques:
o Children analyze commercials and discuss realistic outcomes
(Feshbach, 1980).
o Role-playing and critical thinking enhance media resistance
skills, leading to less peer pressure influence and lower teen
alcohol use (Epstein & Botvin, 2008).
 Advocacy: “Mothers’ Code for Advertisers” → no ads in schools, no
targeting under 8, no ads promoting selfishness/instant gratification
(Motherhood Project, 2001).

4.2 IMPLICATIONS OF ATTITUDE INOCULATION

3. Implications of Attitude Inoculation

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 Principle: Teach children how to counter persuasive appeals
rather than only indoctrinating them into current beliefs.
 Reasoning: Exposure to diverse views builds discernment → people
change views only in response to credible arguments (Levitan & Visser,
2008).
 Mechanism: Refuted challenges strengthen beliefs; practicing
counterarguments solidifies resistance.
 Example: Cults forewarn members of attacks from outsiders →
members develop counterarguments → resist persuasion (Visser &
Mirabile, 2004).

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