Deck 14: Persuading

Question 1

Which of the following is considered an ethical strategy of persuasion?

A) claiming that an issue is more urgent than it actually is
B) withholding information or arguments that do not support your point
C) "loading the deck" so as to give the illusion of choice to the listeners
D) presenting arguments with evidence and letting the audience decide whether they agree with you

Answer 1

presenting arguments with evidence and letting the audience decide whether they agree with you

Question 2

Many people misunderstand the term "persuasion," believing that it only applies to __________.

A) reversing an audience's beliefs or behaviors
B) moving the audience from attitude to action
C) inducing a specific action
D) motivating listeners to pursue a higher level of needs

Answer 2

reversing an audience's beliefs or behaviors

Question 3

A hostile audience is best persuaded through use of which persuasive strategy?

A) strengthening commitment
B) conversion
C) weakening commitment
D) inducing specific action

Answer 3

weakening commitment

Question 4

When a speaker aims to reverse audience beliefs, which strategy should he or she use?

A) weakening commitment
B) strengthening commitment
C) conversion
D) manipulation

Question 5

Bill wants his classmates who complain about a lack of activities to join student government and the student activity board. His persuasive strategy is __________.

A) conversion
B) strengthening commitment
C) weakening commitment
D) inducing a specific action

Question 6

People seek to attain pleasure and avoid pain; this is the most basic theory of __________.

A) motivation
B) needs
C) resonance
D) persuasion

Question 7

Which of the following are the two elements of audience analysis that a speaker must consider when preparing for persuasive speaking?

A) identification of the target audience and assessment of audience motivation
B) a raising of audience consciousness and anticipation of perceptual selection
C) evaluation of audience consciousness and anticipation of selective perception
D) assessment of audience commitment and an awareness of self-fulfilling prophecies

Question 8

According to the Elaboration Likelihood Model, listeners who elaborate more will be more persuaded by __________.

A) shortcuts that simplify their thinking about the topic
B) evidence and arguments that support the speaker's thesis
C) the speaker's positive ethos
D) extended narratives that support the speaker's position

Question 9

One way in which listeners resist persuasion is to attend to and remember only the parts of a message that they already agree with and to interpret ambiguous messages in a way that supports what they already believe. When listeners engage in this process, they are resisting persuasion by __________.

A) ignoring the question
B) selective acceptance
C) selective listening
D) belittling the source

Question 10

Phillip gave a persuasive speech about why people should not smoke. His classmate, Morris, refused to accept Phillip's arguments, even though they were well supported, because he thought Phillip was just another liberal do-gooder who wanted to curtail people's freedom. Which act of selective perception did Morris exhibit?

A) compartmentalization
B) denial
C) dismissal
D) belittling the source

Question 11

Sharelle's speech about reducing juvenile delinquency was very convincing. She clearly defined the problem and proved that volunteering at a youth agency can have an impact. One audience member, Harlan, agreed that volunteering was a great solution, but because he figured there would be lots of volunteers, he did not see the need to donate his own time to the cause. Harlan was resisting persuasion by __________.

A) dismissal
B) denial
C) belittling the source
D) selective listening

Question 12

Exposing listeners' inconsistencies is a good way to combat the resistance strategy of __________.

A) dismissal
B) denial
C) belittling the source
D) compartmentalization

Question 13

Chip gave an impassioned speech about legalizing marijuana with a fair amount of evidence and reasoning to back up his argument. Rather than refute Chip's arguments, however, his classmate Charlie simply responded by calling Chip a "whacked-out stoner." Charlie was resisting persuasion by __________.

A) denial
B) dismissal
C) belittling the source
D) labeling

Question 14

Selective influence can be prompted by which two conditions?

A) compartmentalization and belittling
B) boomerang effect and polysemy
C) consciousness raising and refutation
D) ethos and pathos

Question 15

Sometimes listeners are willing to accept the general truth of an argument, but they resist being persuaded by refusing to accept that the argument applies to them specifically. In this case, they are using a resistance technique called __________.

A) compartmentalization
B) delusion
C) dismissal
D) the boomerang effect

Question 16

Consciousness raising is a strategy resource employed to serve the purpose of __________.

A) strengthening commitment
B) weakening commitment
C) inducing a specific action
D) explaining

Question 17

Increasing the sense of urgency is a strategy resource employed to serve the purpose of __________.

A) refutation
B) strengthening commitment
C) conversion
D) rebuilding arguments

Question 18

When the speaker attempts to disprove or dispute arguments or appeals made by others, the goal is __________.

A) refutation
B) conversion
C) conviction
D) denial

Question 19

Reluctant testimony is the opposite of __________.

A) biased evidence
B) opinion testimony
C) subjective evidence
D) peer testimony

Question 20

Jeremy knew that his listeners had heard several messages warning them against getting into the stock market at this time. However, he wanted to weaken their commitment by arguing that this is just the time to buy stocks for long-term investments. Jeremy's persuasive strategy was __________.

A) assimilation
B) elaboration
C) conversion
D) refutation

Question 21

Identification is important to persuasion because __________.

A) audiences respond more favorably to a speaker they know and with whom they can identify
B) audiences are more likely to be persuaded when they can identify the speaker's reasoning
C) when audiences can identify the structure of the speech, they tend to agree with the speaker's conclusions
D) audiences respond more favorably when they identify with the speaker based on some common bonds

Question 22

Which of the following describe the two most common patterns for persuasive speeches?

A) problem-solution and motivated sequence
B) cause-effect and residues
C) comparison-contrast and cause-effect
D) conversion-aversion and analogy

Question 23

In a persuasive speech organized according to the motivated sequence, the conclusion is known as the __________.

A) attention step
B) action step
C) need step
D) satisfaction step

Question 24

Which of the following steps of the motivated sequence resemble the problem and the solution in a problem-solution speech?

A) attention and visualization
B) need and satisfaction
C) need and action
D) satisfaction and action

Question 25

Which of the following criticisms apply to Alan H. Monroe's motivated sequence?

A) Different listeners may follow the steps toward persuasion in a different sequence.
B) They are difficult to support with evidence.
C) We do not really know what motivates listeners, so these patterns are speculative.
D) They lack logical development.

Question 26

Persuasive strategies seek a change in the listeners, and informative strategies seek no change.

Question 27

The term "persuasion" refers only to situations in which a speaker reverses an audience's beliefs.

Question 28

Persuasive strategies require a more detailed analysis of the target audience and their motivations than informative speeches do.

Question 29

The speaker should appeal to multiple needs because audiences are generally made up of people with different needs.

Question 30

A listener's elaboration likelihood is determined before the speech; the speaker cannot really affect an audience member's level of elaboration.

Question 31

Listeners resist persuasion quite often because change is too much trouble.

Question 32

Selective listening often leads the audience to assume that the speaker's position is the same as their own opinion, even when it is not.

Question 33

Reinforcement is an effective strategy for increasing identification.

Question 34

An emotional appeal is something that you add on to the content of your speech after it is fully developed.

Question 35

The visualization step of the motivated sequence encourages listeners to visualize the scope and importance of a problem.

Question 36

Weakening commitment is generally all a speaker can accomplish when addressing a __________ audience.

Question 37

When addressing an audience that already agrees with you, the most appropriate persuasive purpose for your speech is __________.

Question 38

Planning your persuasive strategy starts with determining, as precisely as possible, your __________ audience.

Question 39

Listeners will be __________ to let the speech influence them if they perceive that the appeal is linked to their needs.

Question 40

Listeners with low __________ are more likely to be persuaded through "shortcuts" that simplify thinking.

Question 41

Listeners may selectively perceive a persuasive message by __________, which means refusing to accept a message no matter how well it is supported or defended.

Question 42

Listeners sometimes resist persuasion by selective __________, which can be brought about by polysemy or the boomerang effect.

Question 43

Making a statement that is at odds with your own interests is known as __________ testimony.

Question 44

Establishing a common bond between the speaker and the audience is referred to as __________.

Question 45

The motivated sequence organizational pattern for persuasive speeches includes five steps: attention, need, satisfaction, visualization, and __________.

Question 46

Strategic planning for persuasive speeches requires which two audience analysis activities? Describe each and how they are different, and give an example of each from your class.

Question 47

What two conditions allow listeners to resist persuasion? Give examples of ways that those conditions might be overcome.

Question 48

What are the five strategies a speaker can use to promote the purpose of conversion? How do they differ from strategies used for other purposes?

Question 49

What are the six general strategic resources for persuasive speakers? How does each resource promote persuasive purposes?

Question 50

What is the motivated sequence, and what are the steps in this sequence? How does its structure differ from that of a typical problem-solution speech?