Persuasive Communication - 3rd Edition

Visit the link below to download the full version of this book:

https://medipdf.com/product/persuasive-communication-3rd-edition/

Click Download Now

Persuasive C ommunic ation
Persuasive
Communication
Third Edition

James B. Stiff
Paul A. Mongeau

THE GUILFORD PRESS

New York London
Copyright © 2016 The Guilford Press
A Division of Guilford Publications, Inc.
370 Seventh Avenue, Suite 1200, New York, NY 10001
www.guilford.com

All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval

system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise, without written
permission from the publisher.

Printed in the United States of America

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Last digit is print number: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available

from the publisher.

ISBN 978-1-4625-2684-0
To Gerald R. Miller (1931–1993),
a good friend and mentor
 Preface

This represents the second edition of Persuasive Communication that we

have coauthored since Jim wrote the first edition. Those of you who know
us understand our long friendship and similar academic pedigrees. We
were colleagues in the graduate programs at Arizona State University and
Michigan State University, and we have coauthored several publications
and convention papers. Consequently, we came to this project with similar
perspectives and agreement about changes that were necessary to improve
upon for the second edition of the book.
After nearly 40 years, we both remain intrigued by the study of persua-
sion. While Paul remains steadfast in his commitment to teaching, schol-
arly research, and service, Jim left academia more than two decades ago
for a career in applied persuasion as a jury consultant. The combination of
our academic and applied backgrounds provides a unique perspective and
a solid foundation for addressing both the history and the current state of
affairs of the study of persuasive communication.
The third edition of Persuasive Communication carries forward sev-
eral important traditions established in the book’s earlier editions. Most
important, while our view of persuasion is broad, we consciously apply
several filters that narrow the scope of the theory and research we review.
First, we are social scientists and therefore adopt a social science approach
to the study of persuasion. For example, we devote the first two chapters
of this book to defining the concepts and describing the methods used to
study persuasion empirically. A key assumption stemming from our scien-
tific training emphasizes the importance of research as a cumulative pro-
cess in which each set of studies builds upon the preceding ones. Particular
hypotheses and theories are frequently tested, retested, and revised as our
understanding of a particular area increases. Consequently, most of our

vii
viii Preface

reviews are historical in nature. We believe that understanding early foun-

dational work in an area is essential to our critically examining the modern
state of theory and research. For example, our Chapter 8 examination of
the persuasive effects of fear appeals includes a historical review that begins
with Janis and Feshbach (1953). In much the same way, our review of the
relationships between attitudes and behaviors (in Chapters 3 and 4) focuses
much attention on the evolution of knowledge that began during the Great
Depression of the 1930s (LaPiere, 1934). This historical understanding not
only informs the current literature, but also highlights the important self-­
correcting function of social science research. For example, we review the
literature on gender effects in persuasion in Chapter 9. Although we have
known for decades that women are no more easily persuaded than men,
reviewing this literature proves informative because it illustrates how Alice
Eagly and her colleagues (Eagly & Carli, 1981; Eagly, Wood, & Chaiken,
1978) used social science research methods to correct an incorrect belief
that was based on common sense but methodologically flawed research.
Second, early studies of persuasion typically focused on the effects
of one or two independent variables on a particular outcome, while more
recent studies have become quite complex. Thus, current research is replete
with multiple moderator variables and intervening variables requiring
sophisticated statistical analyses like structural equation modeling and
meta-­analysis (see Chapter 1). A review of decades-­old studies often pro-
vides a more straightforward explanation of effects and a simpler pattern
of findings that can be useful in describing the current state of knowledge
in the field. Thus, our historical reviews of literature typically focus on
conceptual rather than methodological advances. We focus on new meth-
odologies and analyses only to the extent that they help inform our exami-
nation of theoretical relationships. The misattribution paradigm described
in Chapter 4 is an excellent example of a methodological advancement that
informs our understanding of theoretical processes.
Third, we focus this book on theory and research rather than on the
practical application of theory in persuasive contexts. We designed this
book to provide a fundamental understanding of the theory and research in
persuasion. In doing so, we expect students who understand this material
will be better prepared to both critically analyze messages and design and
execute effective persuasive messages and campaigns themselves. Although
we introduce a number of applications of theory and research (what we
call boxes) to illustrate various concepts, we do not attempt to translate the
theory into a series of “how-to” recommendations for designing persuasive
appeals. That is left to readers’ imagination and creativity.
Finally, we believe that a well-­rounded approach to the study of per-
suasive communication requires looking across disciplines (primarily com-
munication and social psychology, but also marketing, public health, and
 Preface ix

political science). A complete understanding of the persuasion process, for

example, involves knowledge of both attitudes and psychological processes
as well as communication and message production processes. We continue
to be dismayed by many scholars’ isolationist perspective in communica-
tion and social psychology. Some communication scholars have become
myopic in their focus on message design and production. On the other
hand, some social psychologists have correspondingly limited their inquiry
to cognitive and affective processes. This book continues to reflect the view
we adopted nearly four decades ago that the study of persuasion requires
understanding the mutual influence of cognitive and affective processes, on
the one hand, and the production and processing of messages, on the other.
This book continues to be organized into three major sections, the first
of which focuses on the fundamental issues in persuasion research. This
section includes chapters on concepts, definitions, and basic distinctions
(Chapter 1); methods of investigating persuasive communication (Chapter
2); the attitude–­behavior relationship (Chapter 3); the effects of behavior
on attitudes (Chapter 4); and cognitive response models (Chapter 5). Given
the influential role of cognitive response models in the modern study of
persuasion, Chapter 5 was moved forward from Chapter 10 in the second
edition.
The second major section of the book, on components of persuasive
transactions, breaks persuasion down into its component parts. Specifi-
cally, this section includes a discussion of source characteristics in persua-
sive communication (Chapter 6); message appeals (both rational appeals in
Chapter 7, and emotional appeals, in Chapter 8); receiver characteristics
(Chapter 9); and the characteristics of persuasive settings (Chapter 10).
The final section of the book focuses on persuasion models. Specifi-
cally, we examine models of interpersonal compliance (Chapter 11); pro-
ducing and resisting influence messages (Chapter 12); and persuasive com-
munication campaigns (Chapter 13).

New to This Edition

Each chapter reflects a current review of the research and theoretical per-
spectives while maintaining the same theoretical perspective as the first
two editions. We have created boxes in each chapter and added discus-
sions designed to illustrate the practical application of key concepts. In
Chapter 1, we describe the rapid change in attitudes regarding same-sex
marriage and have added coverage of Schwarz’s Construal Model (2007)
as we discuss conceptualizations of the attitude construct. In Chapter 2,
we describe an example from a patent infringement lawsuit to illustrate
the limits of conventional wisdom and underscore the importance of social
x Preface

science research. In Chapter 3, we have added a discussion of the Integra-

tive Model of Behavioral Prediction (Yzer, 2012) and a figure to differenti-
ate the model from similar frameworks. We also discuss how mispercep-
tions of social norms contribute to dangerous levels of drinking on college
campuses.
In Chapter 4, we extend our review of counterattitudinal advocacy
research and have added a series of figures to illustrate the evolution of
Cognitive Dissonance Theory (Festinger, 1957) and Self-­Perception Theory
(Bem, 1967). Chapter 6 now includes a discussion of the timing of source
credibility information and the use of surrogates to bolster the credibility
of message sources. Chapter 7 expands the discussion of affective processes
and their effect on behavioral intentions as well as the use of statistical and
narrative evidence in political settings. Chapter 8 includes a more detailed
discussion of guilt appeals and the emotions they can generate in persuasive
targets.
Additions to Chapter 10 examine the special challenges with online
persuasion and the use of social media by ISIS and revolutionaries dur-
ing the Arab Spring. In Chapter 12, we extend the discussion of message
planning and use courtroom testimony to illustrate the effects of plan com-
plexity on witness credibility. In Chapter 13, we describe the power that
computer technology affords political candidates, who are now capable of
tailoring their messages to the specific attitudes and experiences of indi-
vidual voters.
We hope you enjoy reading the book as much as we did preparing
it, and find that our review of persuasion research is relevant, clear, and
thorough.
 Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the good folks at The Guilford Press, especially
C. Deborah Laughton, for their exceptional patience. Our lives’ complica-
tions interfered with this project and delayed its completion on a number
of occasions, and we are grateful that we were afforded the opportunity
to complete our work. We would also like to thank Carolyn Webster (a
colleague of Jim’s at The Focal Point), who prepared the graphics for this
edition, and Anna Brackett, our editorial project manager at Guilford, for
her outstanding work.

xi
 Contents

Part I. Fundamental Issues in Persuasion Research 1

Chapter 1. Concepts, Definitions, and Basic Distinctions 3

Defining Persuasive Communication 4
BOX 1.1. The Rise and Fall of Herman Cain 6
Considering the Attitude Construct 12
BOX 1.2. How Are Attitudes Measured? 15
The Role of Attitude in Persuasion Research 23
Summary 30
Notes 30

Chapter 2. Methods of Investigating Persuasive Communication 31

Commonsense versus Social Science Theories 32
BOX 2.1. Conventional Wisdom on Trial 35
Scientific Methods of Persuasive
Communication Inquiry 36
BOX 2.2. Evaluating Experimental Treatments 42
Cumulating the Findings of Individual Investigations 51
Summary 54
Notes 54

Chapter 3. Examining the Attitude–Behavior Relationship 56

The LaPiere Study 57
Characteristics of Attitudes and Behaviors 59
Ajzen and Fishbein’s Reasoned Action Theories 61
BOX 3.1. Behavioral Norms and College Drinking Behavior 70
Factors Moderating the Attitude–Behavior Relationship 71
BOX 3.2. Vested Interest Motivates Behavior 75
Summary 79
Notes 80

xiii
xiv Contents

Chapter 4. The Effects of Behavior on Attitudes 82

The CAA Research Paradigm 83
A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance 84
BOX 4.1. Psychological Commitment in Relation
to the Low-Ball Technique 92
BOX 4.2. Self-­Perception and Fish Camp 95
Self‑Perception Theory 95
Arousal, CAA, and Attitude Change 97
Integrating Cognitive Dissonance
and Self‑Perception Theories 102
Applications of Cognitive Dissonance Theory 105
Summary 107
Note 108

Chapter 5. Cognitive Response Models of Persuasion 109

The Persuasive Effects of “Mere Thought” 111
BOX 5.1. Mere Thought and Performance Evaluations 113
The ELM 115
BOX 5.2. Johnnie Cochran and the Peripheral Route
to Persuasion 115
The HSM 127
BOX 5.3. Assessing the Credibility of Witness Testimony 129
The Unimodel 131
Summary 132
Notes 133

Part II. Components of Persuasive Transactions 135

Chapter 6. Source Characteristics in Persuasive Communication 137

Source Credibility 138
BOX 6.1. Credibility (Like Stock Market Investments)
Can Be Here Today and Gone Tomorrow 143
Source Credibility and Attitude Change 144
Attributions about Message Sources 147
BOX 6.2. Expectancy Confirmation and Familiar Speakers 149
Persistence of Credibility Effects 152
Related Source Characteristics 155
BOX 6.3. Guilt by Association 157
Summary 162
Notes 163

Chapter 7. Persuasive Message Characteristics: Rational Appeals 164

A Note about Rational and Emotional Appeals 165
Rational Persuasive Appeals 165
Persuasive Effects of Evidence 166
 Contents xv

BOX 7.1. Politicians’ Use of Statistical and Narrative Evidence 169

BOX 7.2. “Birthers” Need No Evidence 172
Modeling the Effects of Rational Appeals 173
One‑ and Two‑Sided Rational Appeals 178
BOX 7.3. Contrast Advertisements in Political Campaigns 179
Filling in the Blanks 181
Summary 182
Notes 183

Chapter 8. Persuasive Message Characteristics: Emotional Appeals 184

Fear Appeals 186
BOX 8.1. Fear Appeals in Driver Training Classes 187
BOX 8.2. Response Efficacy, Self-­Efficacy, and Lung Cancer 195
Guilt and Persuasion 198
BOX 8.3. Has Cognitive Dissonance Morphed
into Reactive Guilt? 201
The Choice between Rational and Emotional Appeals 204
Summary 205
Notes 205

Chapter 9. Receiver Characteristics 207

Sex/Gender Differences in Persuadability 208
BOX 9.1. Knowledge and Persuadability in Juries 210
Message Discrepancy and Persuasion 212
BOX 9.2. Source Derogation and Message Discrepancy 217
Receiver Involvement and Persuasion 223
Function Matching 227
Summary 228
Notes 228

Chapter 10. Characteristics of Persuasive Settings 230

Traditional Modality Research 231
Online Persuasion 234
BOX 10.1. Social Media and the Arab Spring 235
Persuasive Effects of Distracting Stimuli 237
Persuasive Influences of Collectives 243
Polarization in Group Decisions 247
BOX 10.2. Group Majorities in Jury Deliberations 254
Summary 254

Part III. Persuasion Models 257

Chapter 11. Models of Interpersonal Compliance 259

Compliance‑Gaining Message Selection 260
Sequential Request Strategies 262