Persuasive Speaking

Persuasion-

Persuasion- Process of changing or reinforcing attitudes, beliefs, values or behaviors

Understanding audience psychology is important to have effective message

Why?

So you have APPEAL!

Goal is to Change Audiences’-

Attitude- learned predisposition to respond favorable or unfavorably towards something. Like broccoli, dogs, cats, baseball

Beliefs- what you understand to be true or false Ex- Believe in God

Value- enduring concept of right or wrong (good vs. bad) In US we value hard-work,

sportsmanship

Persuading-

Why know which one?

Value is hardest to change-

Audience won’t listen

Belief can change w/ evidence

Attitude is easiest to change.

Ex- you value Democracy, believe the military is essential, attitude-the president is ok b/c his took care for troops.

Visual Representation of Levels

Think castle w/ walls.

VALUES

BELIEFS

ATTITUDES

This guy fails

Goal of Persuasion-

Reinforce or change a person’s behavior

Ex. Exercise more.

Methods of Persuasion-

Classical Method of Persuasion-Speaker centered-

Developed by the Greek philosopher Aristotle on 4th Century BC

Logos- Logic in speech

Ethos- Credibility of speaker

Pathos- Emotion

Ways of motivating listener to think or behave in a certain way.

Motivation- underlying internal force that drives people to achieve goals.

Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) of

Persuasion

Theory based on how audience interprets the message. Either direct or peripheral

Direct uses overwhelming evidence and logic

Ex- you get unlimited Data b/c you like to DL

Peripheral- persuaded by indirect means like music, or how you say it.

This surgery has a 1 in 4 success rate.

How to MOTIVATE Listeners

Cognitive Dissonance- sense of mental discomfort that prompts a person to change when new information conflicts w/ previously organized thought patterns

Ex- teens are not mature enough to drive.

Audience seeks a way to bring harmony

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Hierarchy of needs that motivates behavior

Lower needs to be fulfilled before moving on.

School based on this.

Self-Actualization Needs

Need to achieve one’s highest potential

Army’s “Be all you can be.”

Positive Motivation-

Audience feels they have done something positive or can make a positive change

Ex- Use reusable water bottles saves the environment!

Impress Me.

Negative Motivation-

Uses Fear Appeal- change behavior by a threat.

Uses if/then

Ex. Fines

Extrinsic Motivation

refers to our tendency to perform activities for known external rewards, whether they be tangible (e.g., money) or psychological (e.g., praise) in nature."

Intrinsic Motivation

occurs when we act without any obvious external rewards. We simply enjoy an activity or see it as an opportunity to explore, learn, and actualize our potentials."

Persuasive Speaking demands you to

effectively-

Induce your audience to believe as you do

Influence your audience in order to cause some sort of directed action to take place

Audience Analysis:

Evaluating accurately and perceptively (what is their impression) of how your audience feels about you and your speech

“I don't know the rules of grammar.

If you're trying to persuade people to

do something, or buy something, it

seems to me you should use their

language.”- David Ogilvy 1911-,

American Businessman,

Advertising Expert

Supportive Audience:

Audience agrees with you and what you have to say Therefore, you don’t have to persuade- They

agree with you!

Friendly Example: Football team giving a talk to the

student body during a pep rally.

Republicans listening to a fellow Republican give a speech on a topic they agree with

A pro-gun speech at a NRA meeting.

You discussing the latest gossip with your close friends

Uncommitted

It’s Neutral

No hard set opinions or beliefs

Audience nearly needs information to make up their mind.

Easiest group to persuade

Ex. Convincing the a person to buy FFA fruit.

People with little knowledge on a subject like wind energy, ethanol, what sport is the best, Democrat or Republican, who to vote for, and others.

Indifferent

Audience is apathetic (uninterested) towards the speaker.

Harder to persuade

Audience is captive

Appears openly bored

Ex. A high school lyceum on a topic you heard ten times before

Mandatory meetings

Class

Parental lectures

Opposed Audience

Audience members are hostile to you

Hostile to what you are promoting

Feel no warmth for you and is not no way sympathetic to your feelings or your cause.

Ex. A pro-gun speaker at an anti-gun gun demonstration.

Sit-ins, demonstrations, Kennedy’s Address to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association

Terms to Know

Captive Audience: an audience that has been forced to be in attendance

Unbiased: Objective

Ex. You giving your speech and me grading them

A job interview

Speaker Success

Is the result of his/her logical appeal, his/her emotional appeal, and his/her personal appeal.

Persuasive Speaking

Step 1: Attention

Effective introduction

Connect with the audience

Step 2: Problem

What is the issue?

Stats & analysis of why is this a problem.

Significance- why do I care?

Examples to highlight

Step 3: Cause

What is the source of the problem?

Need evidence to support your claims.

Ex.

Why are kids not going outside?

Parent fears of abduction

Digital games

School focuses on learning not recess

Step 4: Solutions CALL TO

ACTION

What can I do?

When giving a persuasive speech you MUST provide an action the audience can do.

Explain how your solutions will work- do you have an expert backing your opinion?

Personal

Local

National

Assignment-

You will create and present a Persuasive Speech that is 4-5 minutes long w/ 4 sources.