Social Influence Processes:

Persuasion
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What is Persuasion?

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Persuasion
• Persuasion is defined as the
act of trying to convince
someone of something, or
the means of convincing
someone to do something.

• The process by which a person's attitudes or behavior are,

without duress, influenced by communications from other
people.

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 • It’s natural to try to change people’s attitude.
Persuasion • Persuasion is typically based on interpersonal communication.

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Persuasion Elements
(The 3 W’s)

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 The Communicator
1. Who says
• The one who crafts or delivers the persuasive message.

5 types of Communicator
1. Knowledgeable Communicator
2. Confident Communicator
3. Trustworthy Communicator
4. Similar and Dissimilar Communicator
5. Physically Attractive Communicator

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 Factors
1. Who says Credibility Perceived trustworthiness
• Perceived expertise • Eye contact
• Knowledgeable • Arguing against own self-
• Speak confidently interest
• Speak quickly
Attractiveness and liking
• Physical attractiveness
Perceived Similarity
• In values, attitudes, group
identification
• Mimicry and attractiveness?

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Example Greta Thunberg

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2. says What The Message
• The message content itself that intrigues, informs,
convinces, or calls to action.
Example of issues:
• Global warning
• Weird beliefs
• Advertisement
• School Promotion
• Promoting healthier living
• Recruiting terrorists

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2. says What • Reason versus emotion (depends on the audience).
Reason works with more educated, analytical people

Every message has elements of:

• ethos, or credibility;
• pathos, or passion
• enthusiasm; and logos, or logic and reason.

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2. says What Eight Factors within a message
1. Reasoned opinions, facts & figures
2. Good mood effect
3. Repetition
4. Fear
5. One-sided vs. two sided appeal
6. Primacy effect
7. Recency effect
8. Subliminal priming

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 “
People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are
collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction, and all
you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic
growth. How dare you!
- Greta Thunberg

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 “
“I don’t want your hope, I want you to panic. I want you
to feel the fear I feel every day. And then I want you to
act. I want you to act as you would in a crisis. I want you
to act like your house is on fire”
- Greta Thunberg

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3. to Whom The Target audience
• The individual who receives the persuasive message.
• After the Channel of Communication – how the message
is being delivered (Face to face/sign/media ad)

Three factors:
• 1. Distraction
• 2. Lack of forewarning
• 3. Attitude Inoculation
The audience's knowledge on the topic also plays an important
role

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 Greta was talking to the world leaders at the U.N. Climate
3. to Whom Action Summit

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 3
Dual-process Model
by Petty and Cacioppo
(The Two Routes of Persuasion)

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Central Route to Persuasion Willing? Able?
• When people think critically about a persuasive communication.
• Persuaded by the strength of the message.

Peripheral Route to Persuasion

• When people do not think critically about a message but persuaded by
other, superficial cues.

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Before that…

Early Models of Persuasion were

normative while the dual-process
model is descriptive.
▹ Attention, comprehension,
learning, acceptance, retention
▸ They failed to account for
successful persuasive appeal in
which learning message is
unnecessary.

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Central Route to Persuasion

▹ Logic driven and uses data and facts to convince people of an

argument’s worthiness. People think carefully about the
process.
▹ An elaborative process.
▹ This is a direct route to persuasion that focuses on the quality
of the information.

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Central Route to Persuasion

▹ The central route to persuasion works best when the target of

persuasion, or the audience, is analytical and willing to engage in
processing of the information.
▹ The argument must be strong and, if successful, will result in
lasting attitude change.
Note: this route is rational but people will fall prey to biased thinking
patters, such as confirmation biases etc.

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Central Route to Persuasion
Example

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Peripheral Route to Persuasion

▹ People don’t always have the motivation or the ability to engage in

central route processing.
▹ On PRS, people do not carefully scrutinize the message.
▸ They are influenced by superficial cues.
◦ Speak fluently, attractive, good reputation
◦ Long list of arguments, statistics
◦ Celebrity endorsement, positive emotions, general support

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Peripheral Route to Persuasion
Example

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Peripheral Route to Persuasion
Example

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Peripheral Route to Persuasion

▹ This route to attitude change does not require much effort or

information processing. This method of persuasion may promote
positivity toward the message or product, but it typically results in less
permanent attitude or behavior change.

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As a recap

▹ Persuasion is the process by which a person's attitudes or behavior are,

without duress, influenced by communications from other people.
▹ Persuasion has three elements called the 3 W’s namely The communicator
(Who says), The Message (says What) and the Target Audience (to Whom).
▹ There are two routes of persuasion namely the Central route and the
Peripheral route to persuasion.

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 Thanks!

Any questions?

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