Transcript Chapter 5

Chapter 3
Persuading Your Audience
Technical Communication, 12th Edition
John M. Lannon
Laura Gurak
© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers.
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Persuasion
 Persuasion is trying to influence someone’s
actions, opinions, or decisions
 Required in the workplace whenever there is an
issue about which people disagree
 To communicate persuasively, you must identify
your major claims
 Claim about what the facts are
 Claim about what the facts mean
 Claim about what should be done
 All claims require support.
© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers.
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Identify Your Specific Goal
 Arguing to influence people’s opinions
 Arguing to seek support
 Presenting a proposal
 Arguing to change people’s behavior
© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers.
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Expect Audience Resistance
 People who have made up their minds
are more resistant to persuasion.
 Remember, for people to admit you’re
right often means that they’re wrong!
 When people yield to persuasion, they
respond in one of three ways:
Compliance
Identification
Internalization
© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers.
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Know How to Connect with
the Audience
Power Connection = Writer  Audience
Relationship Connection = Writer  Audience
Rational Connection = Writer and Audience
© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers.
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How to Persuade Effectively
 Allow for give-and-take
 Ask for a specific response
 Never ask for too much
 Recognize all constraints
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Recognize Communication
Constraints
Recognize all communication constraints
Organizational
Legal
Ethical
Time
Social and psychological
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Support Your Claims
Convincingly
Provide convincing evidence
Factual statements
Statistics
Examples
Expert testimony
Appeal to common goals and values
© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers.
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Consider the Cultural
Context
 Some cultures hesitate to debate, criticize, or disagree.
 Some cultures observe special formalities in
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communicating.
Many cultures consider the source of the message as
important as the content.
Some cultures trust oral communication.
Cultures respond differently to different emotional
pressures.
Cultures differ in their attitudes toward big business,
technology, competition, or women in the workplace.
© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers.
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Standard Shape
for an Argument
Introduction
Attract and invite your audience and
provide a forecast
Body
Offer support and refutation
Conclusion
Summarize your case and make a direct
appeal
© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers.
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Any Questions?
For additional help reviewing this chapter,
please visit the Companion Website for your
text at
http://www.pearsonhighered.com/lannon.
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