PS270 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Physical Attractiveness, The Peripheral
Document Summary
The central route to persuasion occurs when interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favourable thoughts. People are motivated and able to think systematically about an issue. Can lead to more enduring change than peripheral. Verbal persuasion enhanced by distracting people with something that attracts their attention just long enough to inhibit counter-arguing. Need for cognition the motivation to think and analyze the more we think about an issue, the more we take the central route: stimulating thinking makes strong messages more persuasive and weak messages less persuasive. The peripheral route to persuasion occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speakers attractiveness. Focus on cues that trigger acceptance without much thinking. Easily understood familiar statements are more persuasive than novel statements with the same meaning. Often produces superficial and temporary attitude change. Trust the experts or long messages are credible rule-of-thumb heuristics. Cues trigger liking and acceptance but often only temporarily.
