THE PERSUASIVE SPEECH
Outline - Learning Outcomes - Chapter Summary - Key Terms - Learn by Doing
Persuasion is "the process by means of which one party purposefully secures a change of behavior, mental and/or physical, on the part of another party by employing appeals to both feelings and intellect."1 It is an important process. Through persuasion, we affect others and they affect us.
In a speech of conviction, the speaker is attempting to convenience the listener to believe as the speaker does.
A speech of actuation should move the members of the audience to take the desired action that the speaker has proposed: buy the product, sign the petition, go on strike, or adopt the plan presented.
Coercion is influence that leaves the listener no desirable alternative but to adopt the change of mental or physical behavior the speaker proposes.
13.1 INFLUENCING THROUGH PERSUASION
13.2 THE PROCESS OF PERSUASION
The theory of field-related standards suggests that not all people reach conclusions in the same way and thus may react differently to the same evidence or appeals.
Identifying group standards, the habits of thinking or the norms of a particular group, also may help you develop your arguments.
Try to determine the individual standards held by certain people within the group who have influence over other members.
In applying critical reasoning, you establish criteria and then match the solutions with the criteria.
In applying comparative advantage reasoning, you begin by stating the possible solutions, including the status quo (the present mode of operation).
13.3 COMPONENTS OF THE PERSUASIVE MESSAGE
Examine these speeches by 107th New York City Major Rudolph Giuliani. What examples of ethos, logos, and pathos can you find?
http://www.ci.nyc.ny.us/nyclink/html/om/html/mmedia.html
Speaker Credibility
Consider, for example, how you might evaluate sources taken from the World Wide Web.
Link Evaluating Sources on the Web
http://www.science.widener.edu/~withers/webeval.htm
Factors of Credibility
Several factors contribute to a speaker's credibility: occupation, education, clothes, personal looks, personality, respect for others, sensitivity to trends, knowledge of the problem being discussed, ability to verbalize, vitality, trustworthiness, and general expertise.
The Kennedy-Nixon television debate during the 1960 presidential campaign illustrated how extensively such physical factors can influence speaker credibility.
Establishing Credibility
Trustworthiness
Competence
Dynamism, the projection of a vigorous, concerned, powerful image.
Logical Arguments
Patterns of Logical Argument
An inductive argument is based on probability--what conclusion is most likely to be expected or believed from the available evidence.
In the generalization conclusion, the speaker examines a number of specific instances and attempts to predict some future occurrence or explain a whole category of instances.
In the hypothesis conclusion, the speaker uses a hypothesis to explain all the available evidence.
The deductive argument is based on logical necessity. In other words, if one accepts the premise of the deductive argument--the proposition that is the basis of the argument--then one must also accept its conclusion.
Categorical syllogism, an argument that contains two premises and a conclusion.
Public speakers typically use a special form of deductive syllogism, the enthymeme, in which one premise is not directly stated because the speaker and listener both accept the premise.
The disjunctive argument is an either/or argument in which true alternatives must be established.
The conditional argument sets up an if/then proposition.
Persuasive Evidence
Reasoning Fallacies
1. Hasty generalization.
2. Faulty analogical reasoning.
3. Faulty causal reasoning.
4. Ignoring the issue.
5. Developing Persuasive Arguments: inoculation strategy, cognitive dissonance.
Structuring the Body of a Persuasive Speech
Psychological Appeals
Maslow's Hierarchy of Individual Needs:physiological needs, safety needs, acceptance needs, esteem needs, self-actualization needs.
Group Needs
Appeals to Motivate Listeners
1. Adventure.
2. Companionship.
3. Deference.
4. Fear.
5. Gender.
Sexual harassment training is an important skill for men and women.
http://www.de.psu.edu/harass/intro.htm
There are other issues of importance because of gender. In 1997, African-American women flocked Philadelphia by the hundreds of thousands to listen to impassioned calls to build political, economic and social unity within their communities. Why is this public speaking forum, particularly the speech of Winnie Mandela so powerful?
http://europe.cnn.com/US/9710/25/million.women.march.pm/
On the other hand, the speaker's promoting the 1996 Million Man March on Washington and 1997 The Promise Keepers Washington Rally, appealed to men specifically by talking about what males needed to do to be better people, and how attendance at these events would aid them to be better people. *** The Nation of Islam leader Minister Louis Farrakhan spoke for over two hours at the Million Man March.
http://www.cnn.com/US/9510/megamarch/10-16/update/index.html
http://www3.cnn.com/US/9510/megamarch/10-16/update/index.html
6. Guilt.
7. Humor.
8. Loyalty.
9. Power and authority.
10. Reverence of prominent figures.
11. Revulsion.
12. Worship.
13. Sympathy.
13.4 THE PERSUASIVE PROCESS IN ACTION
Find examples of the persuasive process in action.
Guide to live events and chat.
Netguide http://www.netguide.com
Search for texts and find some audio files in .wav format.
http://www.historyplace.com/index.html
13.5 LISTENING TO PERSUASIVE SPEECHES
LEARNING
OUTCOMES
After reading this chapter, you should be able to:
Explain how people are influenced by persuasive messages.
Explain how people are influenced by coercive messages.
Describe how speaker credibility, logical arguments, and psychological appeals can affect listeners.
Analyze a persuasive speech to ascertain its potential effectiveness based on logical arguments and psychological appeals.
Prepare a persuasive speech using credibility, logical arguments, and psychological appeals.
Be aware of the need to monitor the oral, physical, and verbal techniques in order to insure that as listener to a persuasive speech that they are making a wise decision in buying into the speaker's ideas.
Persuasion is "the process by means of which one party purposefully secures a voluntary change of behavior, mental and/or physical, on the part of another party by employing appeals to both feelings and intellect."
The basic process of persuasion requires that the speaker make a claim and back it up in such a way that listeners accept the claim.
Successful persuasive strategies center on the use of speaker credibility, logical arguments, and psychological appeals.
A speaker's credibility incorporates trustworthiness, competence, and dynamism.
Effective arguments can be structured inductively or deductively, depending on the listener's prior acceptance of the argument.
A speaker should avoid such reasoning fallacies as hasty generalization, faulty analogical reasoning, faulty causal reasoning, and ignoring the issue.
In arranging the issues in a persuasive speech, a speaker should take into account the positioning and development of arguments, inoculation strategy, and cognitive dissonance.
Effective use of psychological appeals requires careful analysis of listeners' needs.
Maslow's hierarchy of needs--physiological, safety, acceptance, esteem, and self-actualization--provides a framework for understanding listeners' needs.
The speaker has a wide variety of psychological appeals from which to choose.
The effective persuasive message combines ethos, logos, and pathos in an honest, straightforward presentation.
An aware listener will monitor the oral, physical, and verbal techniques used by a speaker in order to insure that the listener is making a wise decision in buying into the speaker's ideas.
speech of conviction
speech of actuation
coercion
theory of field-related standards
group standards
individual standards
critical reasoning
comparative advantage reasoning
ethos
logos
pathos
speaker credibility
trustworthiness
competence
dynamism
inductive argument
generalization conclusion
hypothesis conclusion
deductive argument
categorical syllogism
enthymeme
disjunctive argument
conditional argument
evidence
hasty generalization
faulty analogical reasoning
faulty causal reasoning
ignoring the issue
inoculation strategy
cognitive dissonance
psychological appeals
physiological needs
safety needs
acceptance needs
esteem needs
self-actualization needs
Presidential Papers at the Library of Congress
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/presprvw/23pres.html
Construct a persuasive message about some current issue or legislative concern. E-mail your message to the White House and send a copy of e-mail to your instructor.
The White House
http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/Welcome.html