Aradhna Malik (PhD)
Assistant Professor Vinod Gupta School of Management
Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur
International Business Communication National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (Phase II) Ministry of Human Resource Development Government of India Lecture 19: Persuasive Communication (Contd.)
The previous lecture dealt with the basis of modern day persuasion. This lecture
describes the process of persuasion and starts the discussion of its applications in the
business environment.
A Model of the Process of Persuasion:
Lulofs (1991) describes the process of persuasion through a five stage process:
A. Background: Past experiences of all participants
B. Assessment: Of the situation and a decision on the needs and goals of the situation
considering the characteristics of the participants, and cultural assumptions
C. Enactment: Or the actual event in which the messages to persuade are exchanged
D. Outcomes: Or the result of the enactment
E. Future Persuasion: Or the impact the above process has on subsequent persuasion
events with the same people in similar situations
Background
Past experiences
of all the
Participants
Assessment
Felt
need
Initial
goals
Enactment
Cultural assumptions
Content dimensions
Participant
Message
characteristics
exchange
Request characteristics
Outcomes
Goal
Revision
Rational changes
Impression mgmt
Behavioral
changes
Cognitive changes
Strategy
Revision
No action taken
Decision to act
No change
Background for subsequent persuasion
Future Persuasion
Source: Lulofs, R. S. (1991). Persuasion: Contexts, people and messages. Scottsdale, AZ: Gorsuch
Scarsbrick, Publishers. 70. Permission to use the diagram awaited.
Aradhna Malik (PhD) International Business Communication Assistant Professor National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (Phase II) Vinod Gupta School of Management Ministry of Human Resource Development Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur Government of India Let us try to understand what this diagram means. The background for the persuasive
event includes the pre-existing conditions which in turn include the past experiences of all
participants. These past experiences of the participants in the process give rise to certain
needs in the participants, which result in certain goals that the participants think they want
to achieve. These goals are labelled as initial goals as they result in a feeling of “I
want…..”. This means that these goals are a kind of knee-jerk reaction or instantaneous
reaction to the need(s) that is(are) felt by the participants.
These initial goals are then analyzed in light of what the cultural systems of the
participants permit them to ask for, and what the participants themselves feel capable of
asking for. These are then assessed in light of the way the request is framed, and the
contents of the goal that is desired. This analysis of the situation is termed as the
Assessment Phase (Lulofs, 1991).
Following an assessment of the situation, the participants in the situation decide to either
act on their assessment and proceed with the persuasion, or not act on the situation and
leave things as they are.
If the persuader decides to act on the situation, s/he exchanges a message with the
persuadee. The process of persuasion is inclusive of some resistance to accept the topic
of persuasion. When the persuasive message is exchanged between the persuader and
the persuadee the first time, there may be resistance at the level of the goal or the
strategy used to convey the goal of the message, or both. This resistance forces the
persuader to either make changes to the goal or to the process of persuasion, or both.
These changes then feed into the process and ultimately result in changes either to the
way logic is perceived in the situation (rational changes), or management of impression or
public image by one or more participants, and ultimately to the way the participants feel
about the process and the topic of persuasion.
This then feeds into the background for future persuasion.
I like to believe that this background for future persuasion then becomes the background
for similar situations. (The red line does not appear in the original diagram. I put the red
line in to indicate what I believed to be true).
Kelman (1966, in Anderson & Ross, 2002) believes that persuasion is a function of
compliance, identification and internalization.
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Compliance occurs when one person does what another person wants done “…to
achieve a favorable reaction from the other. He may be interested in attaining certain
specific rewards or in avoiding certain specific punishments that the influencing agent
controls” (Kelman, 1966, in Anderson & Ross, 2002).
Aradhna Malik (PhD) International Business Communication Assistant Professor National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (Phase II) Vinod Gupta School of Management Ministry of Human Resource Development Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur Government of India 
Identification: Identification refers to the attempt to put oneself in another person’s
shoes or behave like another person in order to see things from their perspective. This
happens publicly as well as in private. A person who identifies with someone tries to
emulate their behavior in order to be perceived like them and feel what they are
feeling. (Kelman, 1966, in Anderson & Ross, 2002)

Internalization: The persuader starts to see a connection between what is being
suggested and what s/he believes must be done. The decision to act or be convinced
seems to come from within. The persuasion does not feel like persuasion or influence.
It feels like a genuine motivation. (Kelman, 1966, in Anderson & Ross, 2002)
According to Kelman (1966, in Anderson & Ross, 2002), persuasion involves influencing
other people to agree to do what you are asking them to do, feel the way you want them
to feel about the reason you want them to do what you want them to do, and really
believe that what you want them to do really does need to be done.
Marwell and Schmitt (1967, in Anderson & Ross, 2002) suggest some strategies or tactics
we use to gain compliance from others in our environments:
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Promise: We commit to rewarding others if they comply
Threat: We commit to punish others if they don't comply
Positive expertise: We suggest that we know that good things will happen if they
comply
Negative expertise: We suggest that we know that bad things will happen if they don't
comply
Liking: We act so as to be pleasant, helping them to decide to comply with someone
they like
Pre-giving: We give a reward before suggesting that they comply
Aversive stimulation: We continually punish them, so that their compliance will bring
relief
Debt: We suggest that they owe us compliance because of previous situations
When we try to influence others, we try various techniques. But the question that still
remains to be answered is, why do people comply with the requests that are made to
them.
Petty and Cacioppo (1981, in Canary, Cody & Manusov, 2000) describe compliance
behavior through the Adaptation Level Theory.
According to this theory, when people choose an amount of something (tangible or
intangible) and come to expect that amount as typical or normative, we say that they have
'adapted' to that level. This expectation can manifest itself as an anchor or a contrast.
Aradhna Malik (PhD) International Business Communication Assistant Professor National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (Phase II) Vinod Gupta School of Management Ministry of Human Resource Development Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur Government of India 
Anchor: An expectation can become an anchor for how someone perceives what is
normative or typical. For example, the definition of professionalism or what is
appropriate office wear in a business environment.
Anchors are important in the business environment because expectations are
governed by perceptions. You create a perception. That perception leads to
expectations from the product or service towards fulfilling or matching the
perception of the needs supposed to be satisfied through the acquisition of product
or using the service that you as a company sell.
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Contrast: When some new object, person, or event is judged against the standard
and is displaced away from the adapted level, or anchor. Relative perceptions of
what is better or worse in comparison to the standard. For example, driving to work
in a car is better than driving to work on a two wheeler or taking the public
transport.
Contrast is used in the industry as a tool that invokes guilt. This guilt may be the
guilt of not living up to the public identity one has created for oneself. Contrast may
also be used to manipulate a person’s generosity by comparing his/ her
contribution to others. Persuasion by contrast can be used for manipulation in
sales pitches by pitching more expensive products before the less expensive ones
Cialdini (1994, in Canary, Cody & Manusov, 2000) discusses the Reciprocity Principle to
describe compliance behavior.
According to the reciprocity principle, people are usually more willing to comply with a
request from someone who has previously provided a favor or concession. This may be a
result of
 Obligation felt by the persuadee towards the persuader
 Reciprocal concessions: We feel obligated to comply with a request if the asker
has made a concession to us (Cialdini, 1994, in Canary, Cody & Manusov, 2000).
Reciprocal concessions are used effectively in sales pitches using the Door in the
face tactic.
 Door in the face tactic: “People say no to the first request and the door is shut
in the solicitor's face. After rejection, the solicitor concedes, prompting the
target to concede” (Canary, Cody & Manusov, 2000).
Cialdini (1994, in Canary, Cody and Manusov) also discusses the commitment principle to
describe compliance behaviour.
According to the commitment principle, the more committed a person is to a group
organization or cause, the more likely the person is to comply with requests to aid or
assist that group, organization, or cause.
Aradhna Malik (PhD) International Business Communication Assistant Professor National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (Phase II) Vinod Gupta School of Management Ministry of Human Resource Development Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur Government of India The commitment principle is used in the industry as the Foot in the door Tactic and the
Lowball Tactic.
o Foot-in-the-door Tactic: The solicitor makes a small request to crack the door
open so as to eventually get it open all the way. For example, some companies
offer free trials of their products for a limited period of time to encourage you to
use their products. Once you use their products, they start selling the same
products to you at a premium.
o Lowball Tactic: Someone makes a request that is low or small, and you actively
& freely agree to it. After you are committed to it, you discover that the deal was
not as good as you thought it was. For example, some years ago there were
reports regarding sales of diamonds online by a popular company. This
company is reputed for a different set of businesses. When they advertised the
sale of diamonds with a standard certificate, people were tempted to buy those
diamonds. It was only when the buyers of these diamonds received these
diamonds and got them examined by their local jewellers, that they realized that
they had been cheated.
Cialdini (1994, in Canary, Cody & Manusov, 2000) describes some more reasons why
people may comply with requests:
 Liking principle: People are usually more willing to comply with requests from likable,
good-looking people than from people who are unlikable and unattractive.

Social proof/ Social validation:
o Social proof: We act the way others around us behave. We comply with
requests even if we do not want to because others around us are doing so, and
we want to fit in.
o Social validation: We are usually more willing to comply with a request for
behavior if it is consistent with what similar others are thinking or doing.
(Cialdini, 1994, in Canary, Cody, & Manusov, 2000)
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Authority: People are usually more willing to follow the suggestions of someone who is
a legitimate authority. This authority may be demonstrated or manifested in the form
of:
o Legitimate expertise
o Titles: Inherited (His/ Her Royal Highness) and earned (Dr. Er. Prof. etc.)
o Clothes: Well dressed people are perceived to be holding more authority
o Trappings: Personal artefacts are perceived to indicate socio-economic status
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Scarcity Principle: Scarce objects seem more valuable than the ones that are easily
available. So we tend to comply with requests that help us gain access to these
Aradhna Malik (PhD) International Business Communication Assistant Professor National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (Phase II) Vinod Gupta School of Management Ministry of Human Resource Development Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur Government of India scarce objects. Our willingness to comply in return for access to scarce objects
depends upon:
o Our desirability for the specific scarce objects
o The duration of the scarcity and our ability to manage without these objects.
Short duration scarcity is usually planned to induce desirability among
persuadees to influence them to comply with requests.
o Restricted freedom: Sometimes the objects that are used to tempt us to
comply are not scarce but it is very difficult to reach or acquire them. This is
called restricted freedom (to access these scarce objects). This perceived
difficulty adds to our desire to acquire these objects and makes it easier for
the persuader to influence us.
Culture and compliance
Compliance, influence, persuasion, and the factors affecting them are highly context
specific. When people from a specific cultural background ask people from another
cultural background to comply with their requests, they are likely to face some problems.
Kim and Wilson (1994, in Canary, Cody & Manusov, 2000) describe the conversational
constraints in intercultural compliance as:
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Clarity and explicitness of intention when making verbal requests: Especially if the
language in which the request is being made is not the native language of the
persuadee, it is very important to clearly state the message and make the intention
of the message explicit so that the persuade knows why the request is being made
and how a change in the persuadee’s behaviour or position will affect the
persuader.
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Minimization of imposition: Another problem that surfaces in intercultural
compliance is the tone of the request or message and the way it is perceived
across cultures. A low context culture may pride itself on its straightforwardness,
and make a clear, no nonsense request stating all the facts. This may, however, be
interpreted in a high context culture as a demand or an order as communication in
high context cultures is highly subtextual and coded.
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Consideration for the other’s feelings: The choice of words in intercultural
compliance determines the perception of consideration for the feelings of the
persuadee and plays an important part in the outcome of the persuasion process.
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Risking disapproval for the self: Everyone fears rejection. Everyone wants to avoid
denial of requests one makes. This fear becomes more pronounced when the
request for compliance is across cultures as the level of familiarity is reduced
thereby reducing the comfort levels of the interactants around each other.
Aradhna Malik (PhD) International Business Communication Assistant Professor National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (Phase II) Vinod Gupta School of Management Ministry of Human Resource Development Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur Government of India 
Effectiveness in achieving one’s goal: Another challenge in intercultural
compliance is related again to explicitness of expression. What one culture may
view as satisfactory outcome of the persuasion process may be perceived as
unsatisfactory by the interactants from another culture. This can cause problems in
the way the same situation is perceived by different people.
Conclusion:
This lecture discussed the process of persuasion and the reasons why people allow
themselves to be persuaded. The following lecture discusses how all of the above can be
used effectively in the business environment.
Questions:
References: