Page 406 - Between One and Many The Art and Science of Public Speaking

Chapter 14 Persuasive Speaking 373

impression, commonly called branding. Unknown politicians initially speak
branding
to create name recognition so that they won’t get lost in the “noise” of campaign
The process of creating a
rhetoric. The same is true for the creators of new innovations, practices, and
lasting impression about
products. An example in the fi rst case is Barack Obama. He was an Illinois a name, company, or
state senator, virtually unknown outside his home state, when he addressed the product.
Democratic National Convention in 2004. An example in the second case is
Apple and the iPod. Seemingly overnight, the iPod evolved from just another
MP3 player to a cultural icon instantly recognized by consumers.
Once people have a concrete impression of an idea, a practice, or a product,
a second persuasive purpose is likely to follow: adoption. A business that has
adoption
created a strong impression of its product, for example, will go bankrupt unless
Consumers’ decision
people actually purchase the product. Similarly, a health communication cam-
to commit to a product,
paign aimed at preventive health practices will fail unless people decide to try practice, or idea.
some of them out. Minimizing risks for cancer can only succeed if people take
the steps necessary by adopting preventive practices such as eating fruits and
vegetables known to reduce risk.
A third and very common purpose of persuasion is reinforcement. There
reinforcement
are two types of reinforcement: positive and negative. Positive reinforcement
Rewards given to
uses rewards to increase the strength of everything from attitudes and beliefs strengthen attitudes,
to good behavior. Negative reinforcement removes the rewards associated with beliefs, values, and
the preceding. Parents routinely use both forms. Maybe you heard the “get good behaviors.
grades, and we’ll buy you X” speech when you were growing up. If not, maybe
you heard the “If your grades don’t improve, we’ll take away X” speech. Re-
inforcement is designed to increase the likelihood of an outcome the speaker
regards as desirable. Thus, politicians promise to reward people who vote for
them, advertisers promise a better life for those who adopt their products, and
some religious fi gures tell those who follow the tenets of their specifi c order that
eternal life or better karma will result.
2
Closely linked to reinforcement is inoculation. Whereas positive reinforce-
inoculation
ment is designed to simply strengthen attitudes and the like, inoculation goes
Techniques used to
further. For example, say a speaker wants to strengthen audience attitudes about make people’s belief
a controversial topic such as illegal immigration. With inoculation, the speaker systems resistant to
would fi rst reinforce the audience’s attitudes, pro or con. The speaker would counterpersuasion.
next warn the audience that they should expect their attitudes to be attacked by
those holding an opposite view. Finally, the speaker might actually mention the
attacking arguments the audience could expect and then provide the audience
with arguments that could be used in refutation of the attack. Just as antibodies
created in the biological process of immunization inoculate people from disease,
the preceding scenario inoculates the audience psychologically.
Anti-drug messages aimed at children are often a form of inoculation. They
are most effective when they give sound reasons not to use drugs, rather than
telling kids to “just say no.” (See the box, “Speaking of . . . Does Drug Education
Really Work?”) Children can then use these “verbal antibodies” to defend their
anti-drug use behavior when confronted with peer pressure.
Perhaps the most diffi cult persuasive purpose to realize involves persuading
people to change or signifi cantly modify their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.
change
As health communication research shows, people are notoriously resistant to
Substitute or modify
change, even when it is in their best interest. Speakers who hope to induce
attitudes, beliefs, and
change, therefore, have a very tough row to hoe. Knowing this, people experi-
behaviors.

enced in the process of influence approach the task of changing or modifying