Social Psychology of Persuasion

1126 Words3 Pages

Every day in our life's we are persuaded to make choices. Persuasion is a very

powerful force in our daily lives and has a major influence on society as a whole. family

decisions, legal decisions, media and the news are all influenced by persuasion and it

impacts and influences us in a huge way. In this essay, I am going to go into depth how

the social psychology of persuasion is utilized and what factors influence a individual

into be persuaded. Such as the characteristics of the persuader, characteristics of the

message and characteristics of the audience.

Lets first talk about, the characteristics of a persuader. If a persuader has Credibility,

expertise and trustworthiness, "they have knowledge and is able to communicate

accurately".(Feenstra, 2011) This gains the individuals trust, right from the start.

Another characteristic of the persuader is attractiveness and likeability. If you are more

drawn to the persuader and they have a great personality and appearance, you are more

likely to be persuaded, compared to someone who isn't friendly and has a unattractive

appearance. For example; if one of the kids from my neighborhood is selling candy bars,

I am more opt to buy from them, then just any because they are likeable and I have

known them for a long time. There are six different triggers, that influence us to believe

in something and become persuaded. They are reciprocity, commitment, social proof,

liking, scarcity and authority. With reciprocity, " The Communicator uses your natural

tendency toward reciprocity to get us to do what we otherwise might not".(Feenstra,2011)

With commitment, if you make a small commitment to the persuader and you were

content with the decisio...

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... mouth. My boss paid for a commercial, and we only got one

new customer from that very expensive commercial. So to me Word of mouth is

everything.

In closing, Persuasion is a powerful tool, both in trying to persuade others and being

persuaded. You have to know the techniques, belief in your self and have knowledge to

be a successful persuader. You should also know what to look out for, so you don't fall

victim to a product or a commitment that you really don't want to. Always pay attention

to the message, make sure the individual is credible and word of mouth is the most

powerful form of marketing and has the highest degree of influence.

References

Introduction to Social Psychology

Feenstra J.( 2011)

Bridepoint Education Inc.

Bohner, Ruder, & Erb, 2002 Tormala Brinol & Petty 2006

Brown & Reingen, 1987)

Rhodes & Wood, 1992

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