COMS 354 Persuasion Theory
Final Exam Study Guide

Spring 2011

The final exam will be given on Tuesday, May 17 at 1:15 p.m. - 3:15 p.m. in our regular room, V254. Up to 100 points are possible (10% of course grade). Please review the exam policies stated in the syllabus. These exams will not be returned to you, but exam and final grades will be posted to the Katie site, and you may come to my office later during Finals Week to review the exam in detail if you wish.

The exam will consist of a few multiple choice and short answer questions, similar to those used in quizzes during the semester, as well as several somewhat longer essay questions to which a response of about one half of a page will be expected. Legible handwriting is essential. I will automatically assume that any answer I cannot read is a wrong answer and score it appropriately.

Study your old quizzes! Many of the concepts over which you were quizzed will also appear in the final exam. These quizzes also provide examples of some of the kinds of short answer questions you might expect.

Although anything from class reading assignments, lectures, or discussions is fair game for the exam, you will want to concentrate your pre-exam preparation on the following (presented in no particular order):

• Know what Rank's model is and be able to identify strategies of intensification and downplaying in a persuasive message.
• Be familiar with Borchers definition of persuasion. Know what he means when he says that, "Persuasion is overdetermined."
• Know the basic concept of the Mass Society paradigm and Walter Lippmann's fears of uncontrolled media.
• Be familiar with the basic critique of the mass media outlined by the Frankfurt School. Understand Habermas' concept of the "Public Sphere," its ideal value, and the difficulties associated with creating such a public sphere both in the 18th century and in the modern media environment.
• Know what type of research is generally associated with the Columbia School and the Limited Effects paradigm. Be familiar with the concept of "uses and gratifications" of the mass media.
• Be familiar with the fundamental concept of the Cultural paradigm (as put forward by Berger & Luckman) that reality is "socially constructed." Understand what symbolic interaction is (Chicago School). Know what a para-social relationship is and how the media seek to create these.
• Be familiar with Raymond Williams' multiple definitions of culture, and understand the meaning of the term "hegemony."
• Understand Stuart Hall's concept of re-presentation. Be familiar with his breakdown of the semiotic triangle into two distinct processes.
• Be familiar with Semiotics as a tool for analyzing associations. You need NOT memorize Berger's list of questions for semiotic analysis, but you should be able to use them effectively if they are supplied to you.
• Understand the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM). Know what Borchers means when he says that, "Persuasion is highly elaborated." Know the difference between direct and indirect processing.
• Know what a Unique Selling Position (USP) is and some of the tactics persuaders use to target a persuasive message to a particular audience.
• Know what demographics and psychographics are.
• Know what a Hierarchy of Effects Model (KAP model) is, and what's wrong with it.
• Be familiar with these terms: pseudo-event, agenda setting, off-the-record, background.
• Understand the meaning of the Greek word logos and be capable of identifying ways in which logic can be twisted in advertisements.
• Be familiar with Walter Fisher's concept of Narrative and know the two qualities he suggests effective narratives must have.
• Know the form of a simple syllogism and be able to construct one. Also be capable of recognizing a false syllogism.
• Know what an enthymeme is and be able to explain how it differs from a syllogism. Also know what a "first premise" is and how these may be logical, cultural or emotional in persuasive messages.
• Understand the meaning of the Greek word pathos and know to what sort of process the phrase "process premises" refers.
• Be familiar with Maslow's "hierarchy of needs" pyramid and how it applies to persuasion.
• Be familiar with Tension-Reduction Theory. Know what Cognitive Dissonance is.
• Understand Kenneth Burke's "Pentad" and be prepared to use it as a tool for analyzing a persuasive message. The list of the five elements will NOT be supplied, you'll need to memorize them.
• Understand Burke's "Terms of Order" and how order and guilt may be used persuasively.
• Understand the meaning of the Greek word æthos, and ways in which credibility is associated with products or ideas.
• Understand Boorstin's concept that public images are "synthetic." Know the characteristics of a good slogan. Be familiar with Jamieson's concept of "Electronic Eloquence."
• Understand the meaning of the Greek words mythos and ethnos. Understand the technical definition of the word myth, and be capable of naming two or three cultural myths that find expression in our society -- particularly those frequently used in advertising.
• Be familiar with Rokeach's concept of Terminal and Instrumental Values. (DON'T memorize the lists!)
• Be familiar with the various features that bias the news, and be prepared to explain how these may, intentionally or unintentionally, persuade us to see the world in certain ways.
• Know how a political campaign differs from a product campaign, and the types of media tactics employed by politicians to persuade voters.
• Know the meaning of the ADAPT mnemonic and be able to supply an example of how advertisers utilize each of these five strategies in persuasive campaigns.
• Be familiar with how and when ethical questions are applied to the creation of persuasive messages.
• Be familiar with the basic questions that must be asked in preparing a persuasive message.
• Know the two basic sequential sales strategies.