Page 1
1.
The general goal of persuasive speeches is to advocate, or to ask others to accept your
views.
A)
True
B)
False
2.
Every persuasive speech seeks to influence listeners’ behavior.
A)
True
B)
False
3.
Success in persuasive speech requires attention to what motivates listeners.
A)
True
B)
False
4.
A successful persuasive speaker should aim for large-scale changes.
A)
True
B)
False
5.
The more strongly audience members feel about an issue, the more likely they are to
change their minds about it.
A)
True
B)
False
6.
The first kind of classical persuasive appeal is directed at the audience’s reasoning and
logic, or logos.
A)
True
B)
False
7.
Relying solely on naked emotion to persuade will fail most of the time; what actually
persuades is the interplay between emotion and logic.
A)
True
B)
False
8.
Appealing to the emotions of listeners is called ethos.
A)
True
B)
False
Page 2
9.
Goodwill is demonstrated by the speaker’s mastery of the subject matter.
A)
True
B)
False
10.
Audience members’ predispositions to act in certain ways are known as mental
processing.
A)
True
B)
False
11.
According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, all needs are equally important and must be
fulfilled simultaneously.
A)
True
B)
False
12.
The highest level in Maslow’s hierarchy is self-esteem needs.
A)
True
B)
False
13.
Appealing to a person’s social needs means fulfilling their need to find acceptance from
their peers.
A)
True
B)
False
14.
One effective way to persuade audience members is to point to some need they want
fulfilled and show them a way to fulfill it.
A)
True
B)
False
15.
When listeners engage in central processing, they pay little attention and regard the
message as irrelevant.
A)
True
B)
False
16.
Audience members who lack the motivation to listen to your argument only engage in
peripheral processing, which means they are unlikely to experience any meaningful
changes in attitude or behavior.
A)
True
B)
False
Page 3
17.
For topics that involve a lot of facts and analysis, speakers should emphasize their
commonality with listeners.
A)
True
B)
False
18.
For topics of a more personal nature, speakers should emphasize their expertise.
A)
True
B)
False
19.
Under which of the following conditions is being persuasive appropriate?
A)
when seeking to honor a person or an occasion
B)
when seeking to change an audience’s behavior
C)
when seeking to have an audience understand a concept or process
D)
when seeking to increase an audience’s knowledge about an event
20.
You can increase the odds of successfully influencing your audience if you
A)
set lofty goals and expect major changes.
B)
describe how your message affects you personally.
C)
establish credibility to encourage audience trust.
D)
rely only on appeals to emotions.
21.
The appeal to audience emotion is termed
A)
logos.
B)
ethos.
C)
pathos.
D)
credos.
22.
In his speech about why people should buy used rather than new cars, Carlos provided
the audience with information about his background as a used-car salesperson. Carlos
employed which type of appeal?
A)
logos
B)
ethos
C)
pathos
D)
credos
Page 4
23.
Zach gave a persuasive speech about why people should assist homeless people in his
city in order to prevent crime. According to Maslow, this speech appealed to which
basic need?
A)
physiological
B)
safety
C)
social
D)
self-esteem
24.
In her presentation, Sandra encouraged her colleagues to reach their highest potential
and take pride in their work. According to Maslow’s hierarchy, which need did Sandra
appeal to?
A)
physiological
B)
social
C)
safety
D)
self-actualization
25.
More long-lasting changes in audience perspectives occur if listeners process the speech
message
A)
centrally.
B)
peripherally.
C)
favorably.
D)
diffusively.
Page 5
Answer Key