Com 210

Theories of Persuasion - Spring 2002

Tentative Schedule - Subject to Change
Week
Date
Topic
There will be a QUIZ 
EVERY week over the reading
Homework Due
Gass & Seiter
Chapters
Cialdini
Web Site
Jan 30
Intro to course, Assignments & requirements 
Why Study Persuasion?
What Constitutes Persuasion?
DQ = discussion
questions
READ 
 
Ethics I
 Ethics II
Feb 6
The pervasiveness of persuasion
Why Study Persuasion?
DQs 
Chapters 
1 & 2
 1 & 2
CLARCCS
Why Influence?
      Everyday 
      Modern 
     Definitions
Foundations
3
Feb 13
Attitudes and Attitude Theories
Consistency and Commitment
Cognitive Dissonance
DQs 3 & 4
Cialdini Group
3 & 4
Ch 1 
Group 1
Classical Conditioning
Disciplines
      Approach 
      Bad Info
Attitudes
Duality or ELM
Feb 20
Credibility
The Sleeper Effect
DQ 5
Cialdini Group
5
Ch 2
Group 2
Consistency
Attitudes
5
Feb 27
Communicator Characteristics
Staits and Traits
Audience analysis and adaptation
DQ 6
6
 
Attribution
Stages of Change
6
Mar 6
Group Influence, Conformity,
Social Proof
Modeling, Language
Review for Test
Dqs 7 & 8
Cialdini Group
7 & 8
Ch 3
Group 3
Modeling
Social Judgement
Reinforcement
7
Mar 13
Test # 1 
Chapters 1-8 plus Cialdini 1-3
Midterm grade review
 
 
 
 
8
Mar 20
Nonverbal Com and Persuasion
Message structure and Organization
Message types
Primacy vs. recency

Discuss Group Project - Sign ups
Paper # 1 Assigned

Dq 9, 10
Group Persuasion
Project Starts
Cialdini Group
9 & 10
Ch 4
Group 4
Message Characteristics 
Reactance
Innoculation
 9
March 27
SPRING BREAK
 
 
 
 
10
April 3
Compliance-gaining/resistance
Taxonomies of
Sequential requests
foot in the door, 
low ball techniques
Dqs 11 & 12
Cialdini Group
Paper #1 outline
& sources due
11 & 12
Ch 5
Group 5
Mindfulness
     Mindlessness 
     6 Principles 
Sequential Requests
11
April 10
Deception and detection of
Motivational appeals - fear, sex, humor
Dqs 13 & 14
Cialdini Group
Infomerical Outline
13 & 14
Ch 6
Group 6
Cults 1-3
12 
April 17
Esoteric Forms of Persuasion
The Ethics of Persuasion
Dqs 15 & 16
Cialdini Group
15 & 16
Ch 7 & 8
Group 7
Framing 1-8
 
13
April 24
Test # 2 
Chs. 9-16 and Cialdini 5-8
Group Projects
 
 
 
 
    14
May 1
12 Angry Men
Your most successful persuasion event
Putting it all together
 
 
 
 
14
May 8
First 3 group presentations
 
 
 
 
15
May 15
Groups 4, 5, 6 presentation
If you don't come to class you final grade will be lowered one full grade.
 
 
   

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