(Petty, Cacioppo, 1986) Elaboration ­ the extent to which individual thinks about arguments contained in the communication Likelihood ­ the probability that an event will occur The model tells us when people are likely to elaborate, or not elaborate, on message Low elaboration High elaboration 2 distinct ways (routes) people process communication The CENTRAL ROUTE is characterized by cognitive elaboration. Individual carefully evaluates arguments, considers implications of the communicator's ideas, and relate information to their own knowledge and values. The PERIPHERAL ROUTE is very different. People examine message quickly and focus on simple cues. Key factors are physical appeal, speaking style, music, etc. People rely on mental shortcuts. Argument evaluation detailed thinker Heuristics (physical appeal, speaking style, music, etc) cognitive miser The central route involves message elaboration, defined as the extent to which a person carefully thinks about issue-relevant arguments contained in a persuasive communication MOTIVATION & ABILITY Central route Peripheral route Involvement Personally relevant issues are more likely to be processed on the central route; issues with little relevance take the peripheral route (High I ­ Central, Low I - Peripheral) Need for cognition Personality characteristic ­ a need to understand the world and to employ thinking to accomplish this goal Certain individuals have a need for cognitive clarity, regardless of the issue; these people will work through many of the ideas and arguments they hear. People given the same information can process it differently. When personal relevance was high, people evaluated the merits of the presented information. When personal relevance was low, people counted the number of arguments presented and made a simple inference: "more is better" "Comprehensive final exam" experiment Personally relevant issue Personally irrelevant issue vs. Variables: Speaker's expertise Arguments strength High involvement Low involvement Favorable attitude Unfavorable attitude 0 - 0.4 0.4 Expert source Non-expert source High involvement Low involvement Favorable attitude Unfavorable attitude 0 - 0.4 0.4 Strong arguments Weak arguments When you are highly involved you care about the arguments When you are highly involved you are likely NOT to care what source you have Distractions (disrupt elaboration) Knowledge Thoughtful consideration of strong arguments will produce positive shifts in attitude The change is persistent over time It resists counter-persuasion. It predicts future behavior. Thoughtful consideration of weak arguments can lead to negative boomerang effects Mixed or neutral messages won't change attitudes and in fact reinforce original attitudes. Speaker's credibility Celebrity endorsers But...short-lived attitude change Low personal relevance.................................High personal relevance High distraction.........................................................Low distraction Low accountability...............................................High accountability Low repetition............................................................High repetition Low knowledge.........................................................High knowledge Low need for cognition...................................High need for cognition Elaboration continuum Stability of the attitude Resistance to counter-persuasion Attitude-behavior consistency Central route to persuasion Peripheral route to persuasion Long-lived Short-lived Hard to change Easy to change Attitude more consistent with behavior Attitude less consistent with behavior If listeners are motivated and able to elaborate a message, you should rely on factual arguments If listeners are unable or unwilling to elaborate a message, you should rely on packaging rather than content WHAT ARE FUTURE TRENDS??? More peripheral processing Focus on emotions The role of credibility, mental shortcuts, etc... Heuristic-systematic model (HSM) (Chaiken, Liberman, & Eagly, 1989) It adds to ELM that parallel processing is possible Central processing / heuristics Peripheral processing/ Systematic approach http://www.youtube.com/watch ?v=jjXyqcx- mYY&feature=PlayList&p=D94F 4A0FBC23F0F5&index=0&playn ext=1 http://www.youtube.com/watch ?v=ghSJsEVf0pU&feature=relate d Resistance to persuasion can be induced by exposing individuals to a small dose of arguments against particular idea, coupled with appropriate criticism of these arguments Forewarning Individuals generate a large number of counterarguments, strengthening their opposition to the advocated position Two-sided is better... ...but never use it when you are not able to refuse it!