Unlock document.
This document is partially blurred.
Unlock all pages and 1 million more documents.
Get Access
175
Chapter 15
Persuasive Speaking
CHAPTER OUTCOMES
• Define the goals of persuasive speaking
• Develop a persuasive topic and thesis
LECTURE NOTES
• The Goals of Persuasive Speaking
ƒ Persuasive speaking uses the process of persuasion to influence beliefs, attitudes, and
behaviors. It differs from coercion, which uses manipulation, threats, intimidation, or
• Developing a Persuasive Topic and Thesis examines three types of propositions, or thesis
statements that are often given about a viewpoint or position on an issue in a persuasive
speech.
ƒ Propositions of Fact make a claim of what is or what is not and commonly involve issues
that are open to some interpretation and on which there are conflicting evidence or
• Persuading Your Audience discusses the importance of understanding your listeners’
disposition and needs as well as what is most relevant to them in order to tailor your
organization, research, and supporting points.
ƒ Understanding Your Audience’s Disposition requires recognizing the type of audience
you will be facing.
ż Social judgment theory argues that persuasion depends on the audience’s current
ż A hostile audience is one that opposes your message or you personally and is the
hardest to persuade.
ż A neutral audience falls between a receptive audience and a hostile audience, with its
ƒ Understanding Your Audience’s Needs
ż Examine your audience through Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which argues that the
most basic needs must be met before an individual can become concerned with needs
farther up in the hierarchy.
ż These include the following needs:
Ɠ Physiological/survival
ƒ Understanding What Is Relevant to Your Audience
ż The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) is based on the belief that listeners
process persuasive messages by one of two routes, depending on how important or
relevant the message is to them.
Ɠ Central processing happens when people think critically about the speaker’s
message.
Ɠ Peripheral processing happens when motivation is lacking.
ż Using the ELM, it is important to:
Ɠ Make certain your message is relevant
• Strategies for Persuasive Speaking examines how you can create an effective speech by
incorporating a combination of forms of rhetorical proof: ethos, pathos, and logos.
ƒ Ethos
ƒ Logos
ż Logos refers to the persuasive appeals directed at the audience’s reasoning on a topic.
177
ƒ Pathos
ż Pathos involves appealing to the listener’s emotions.
ż Typically this is most effective when used with logos and ethos.
ƒ Logical Fallacies are invalid or deceptive forms of reasoning. Examples include the
following:
ż Bandwagon fallacy is accepting a statement as true because it is popular. It may
persuade passive audience members who assume that an argument must be correct if
ż Appeal to tradition uses tradition as proof in an argument.
ż Slippery slope fallacy asserts one event occurs as a result of another without proof.
• Organizing Patterns in Persuasive Speaking
ƒ Problem-Solution Pattern
ż The speaker establishes the existence of a problem and then presents a solution.
ż This type of format works well when you are presenting a proposition of policy.
ƒ Refutational Organizational Pattern
ƒ Comparative Advantage Pattern
ż This pattern shows that one viewpoint is superior to other viewpoints.
ż This pattern works well when listeners already agree there is a problem.
ƒ Monroe’s Motivated Sequence
178
CLASS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Provide some examples of logical fallacies that you’ve experienced when listening to a
speech or discussing a controversial topic with another person. Which type of fallacy does
this represent? Bandwagoning? Red herring? Personal attack?
• Help students to recognize times they have experienced the different kinds of logical
2. What are some examples of propositions of fact, value, and policy?
3. How is speaking to persuade similar to informative speaking? How is it different?
• Discuss with students that all speaking is inherently both informative and persuasive.
4. What is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? How does it apply to understanding your
audience?
5. What are ethos, pathos, and logos? How are they used in persuasive speaking?
PERSONAL WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
1. Did You Believe?
Think of a time when you were persuaded by a message. What kind of audience member
would you have classified yourself as at the time: receptive, hostile, or neutral? How do
2. Did You Really NEED That?
Think of some of the last persuasive messages you have seen. How did they address your
needs according to Maslow’s hierarchy? Did you find them to be more persuasive or less
179
3. What Do Others Think?
Using a cell phone, video camera, tape recorder, or just notes, interview students about
what kinds of messages they find to be more persuasive. After interviewing at least ten
4. Emotional Buy or Logical Buy?
Think about the last major purchase you made. Consider the information you had prior to
the purchase (advertisements, media reviews, personal advice, or recommendations).
5. False Advertising?
Watch 30–60 minutes of television, paying special attention to the commercials. Did you
notice any fallacies in the messages? Explain, giving examples, in one to two pages.
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Persuasion and Responsibility
Goal: To evaluate how persuasion interacts with personal responsibility
Time Required: 15–20 minutes
Materials:
1. DVD of Law & Order: SVU, season 11, or a Netflix account
2. DVD player or access to the Internet
Directions:
1. Show Law and Order: SVU, season 11, episode 11 from point 32:45 to point 35:11.
2. Ask the students about the advertisements that the district attorney points out
regarding HIV prevention. Did the students find the advertisements persuasive? Why
or why not?
2. Creating a Syllogism
Goal: To understand how to construct a syllogism
Time Required: 15 minutes
Materials:
2. White board or blackboard
Directions:
2. Ask students to create their own syllogism.
180
3. Ask students to share their syllogisms with a partner. Then ask for volunteers to
3. Persuasion Walk
Goal: To identify multiple instances of persuasion, both obvious and not so obvious.
Time Required: 30 minutes
Materials: None
Directions:
2. Return to class and discuss as a group the examples that were observed.
4. Persuasive Message Creation
Goal: To create and evaluate persuasive messages
Time Required: One class period plus homework time
Materials:
1. Various materials for students to use to create persuasive messages
Directions:
1. Ask students to create a persuasive message about a fictional product. This can take
2. Pair the students up and have them critique each other’s persuasive message.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. How is speaking to persuade similar to informative speaking? How is it different?
3. What is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? How does it apply to understanding your audience?
4. What is the difference between central processing and peripheral processing?
5. What are ethos, pathos, and logos? How are they used in persuasive speaking?
6. List five logical fallacies presented in the textbook and define them.
8. Outline a persuasive speech (the topic is your choice) using Monroe’s motivated sequence.
