352 16.3 Understanding PrinciPles of PersUasive sPeaking
How to Motivate Listeners
16.3 Describe four ways to motivate listeners to respond to a persuasive
message.
It’s late at night and you’re watching your favorite talk show. The program is
interrupted by a commercial extolling the virtues of a well-known brand of ice
cream. Suddenly, you remember that you have some of the advertised flavor,
Royal Rocky Road. You apparently hadn’t realized how hungry you were for
ice cream until the ad reminded you of the lip-smacking goodness of the cold,
creamy, smooth treat. Before you know it, you are at the freezer, helping yourself
to a couple of scoops of ice cream.
If the makers of that commercial knew how persuasive it had been, they
would be overjoyed. At the heart of the persuasion process is the audience-
centered process of motivating listeners to respond to a message. The ad
changed your behavior because the message was tailor-made for you.
What principles explain why you were motivated to go to the freezer
at midnight for a carton of ice cream? An audience is more likely to be per-
suaded when you help members to solve their problems or meet their needs.
They can also be motivated when you convince them good things will happen
to them if they follow your advice or bad things will occur if they don’t. We
next discuss several ways to motivate listeners; these approaches are summa-
rized in Table 16.1.16.3
Table 16.1 How to Motivate listeners to respond to Your Persuasive Message
Use Cognitive Dissonance Telling listeners about existing problems
or information that is inconsistent with
their currently held beliefs or known
information creates psychological
discomfort.Do you value your family’s security? Then you’re
probably worried to learn that many of us would not
be able to support our families if we were injured and
couldn’t work. You can restore your peace of mind
by buying our disability insurance policy.
Use Listeners’ Needs People are motivated by unmet needs.
The most basic needs are physiological,
followed by safety needs, social needs,
self-esteem needs, and finally, self-
actualization needs.You could be the envy of people you know if
you purchase this sleek new sports car. You will
be perceived as a person of high status in your
community.Use Positive Motivation People will be more likely to change their
thinking or pursue a particular course of
action if they are convinced that good
things will happen to them if they support
what the speaker advocates.You should take a course in public speaking
because it will increase your prospects of getting
a good job. Effective communication skills are the
most sought-after skills in today’s workplace.Use Negative Motivation People seek to avoid pain and
discomfort. They will be motivated to
support what a speaker advocates if they
are convinced that bad things will happen
to them unless they do.If there is a hurricane, tornado, earthquake, or other
natural disaster, the electrical power may be out and
you may not be able to fill your car with gas. Without
the basics of food and water, you could die. You
need to be prepared for a worst-case scenario by
having an emergency stockpile of water, food, and
gas for your car.copyrighted by Pearson education, Upper saddle river, nJ