SPRING 2006 SECTION 203
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. William N. Denman
Office: SH 254W
Telephone: 696-2806 or Home 522-4585
E-mail: denman@marshall.edu or wdenmanwv@yahoo.com
Class Session: Monday 6:30-9:00 p.m.
Office Hours: Monday afternoon 5:00 – 6:15 p.m.
Other hours can be arranged by appointment.
PREREQUISITES: CMM 103 or 104H or 207 or 305 or permission.
TEXTBOOK: Timothy A. Borchers: Persuasion in the Media Age, Second Edition.
Robert Cialdini: Influence: Science and Practice, Fourth Edition
COMPUTER REQUIREMENTS: Access to e-mail account and ability to prepare papers in Microsoft Word and the ability to use PowerPoint.
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Introduction to the understanding, practice and analysis of persuasion. Behavioral and rhetorical theories will be examined and applied to contemporary persuasive communications.
COURSE PHILOSOPHY AND THEMES: The ability to speak and to use speech to communicate complex ideas is a hallmark of being human. Since the time of the Ancient Greeks we have recognized the importance of providing instruction in the arts of speaking persuasively in order to achieve both personal and community goals. This early instruction and practice was called rhetoric, and focused essentially on the art of finding the most appropriate means of persuasion. Today we realize that almost all of our communication, both written and oral, is persuasive in one way or another. Whether we are watching commercials on television, listening to speeches in a political campaign, focusing on what an employer is telling us about our job, or simply absorbing the great variety of messages bombarding us from advertisers, we are living in a world of persuasion.
This course will allow you to explore the nature of persuasion and to study instances of persuasion in some depth. It will also allow you to create persuasive messages for intended audiences. The ultimate goal of the course is to make you more effective consumers of persuasion and demonstrate how you can create effective persuasive messages.
ATTENDANCE:
This course in heavily dependent upon student participation. That means that you will need to be present, to have read the textbooks, and to be prepared to discuss course material. A significant part of your semester grade will depend upon your participation.
CMM 308 SYLLABUS SPRING 2006
When finished with this course you should be able to:
a. Define persuasion as a type of human communication activity;
b. Describe at least one model of persuasion;
c. Describe the ethical responsibilities of a persuader;
d. Describe at least one qualitative theory of persuasion;
e. Describe at least one quantitative theory of persuasion;
f. Describe at least one mass-media theory of persuasion;
g. Use one of the tools of language analysis in persuasion;
h. Describe the process, content, and cultural premises of persuasion;
i. Describe the nonverbal premises of persuasion;
j. Apply one or more of the persuasive theories studied in an analysis of a real-world persuasive situation.
In order to determine the extent to which you have mastered the content of the course, and to assess your ability to achieve the outcomes listed above, we will use several methods.
During the course you will:
a. Complete a mid-term and a final examination. The tests will cover material in the textbook, material from handouts, and information provided in course lectures.
‘ b. Participate in a number of class exercises and activities designed to
apply concepts discussed in the course.
c. Complete several “response papers”—short papers of one or two pages
discussing a concept or issue raised during the course of the term.
d. Complete a “persuasive campaign” report, both as an oral presentation and as a written report, based upon either of the following:
a) an analysis of a campaign for an issue or issue organization.
b) an analysis of a campaign for a commercial product or service.
GRADING POLICY:
a. The mid-term and final will be worth 100 points, on a percent scale, 90-100=A, 80-89=B, etc.
b. The class exercises and activities will be worth 10 points.
c. The response papers will be worth 20 points each.
d. The “persuasive campaign” report will be worth 200 points, on a percent scale, 180-200=A, 160-179=B, 140-159=C, 120-139=D, 0-119=F
January 9 Syllabus, Introduction to course. Definitions of persuasion
Assignment: Chapters 1 and 4: Persuasion in Contemporary Society and
Media Influences on Persuasion. Media Survey
[Monday January 16 is Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday—No Class]
January 23 Persuasion in today’s world. How do you use media?
Assignment: Chapter 2 Theories of Persuasion
January 30 Theories of Persuasion
Assignment: Chapter 5 Understanding the Audience
February 6 The importance of the audience; attitudes, values and beliefs—hand-out material
from Rokeach; additional material on cognitive dissonance.
Assignment: Chapter 8 Persuasion and Culture
February 13 Persuasion and culture.
Assignment: Assignment: Chapter 6 Persuasion and Visual Images and Chapter
7 Persuasion and Language
February 20 Visual images; the impact of the visual. Language and persuasion .
Assignment: Chapter 9 Persuasiveness of the Source
Hand-out Mid-term exam study guide chapters 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and hand-outs.
February 27 Mid-term exam chapters 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and hand-outs. Persuasiveness of the source,
credibility.
Assignment: Chapter 10 The Reasoning Process and Chapter 11 Motivational Appeals
March 6 The reasoning process, evidence. Motivational appeals, needs; material from Packard.
Assignment: Chapter 14 Advertising
March 13 Advertising.
Assignment: Chapter 15 Interpersonal Persuasion; Cialdini, Influence
March 20 SPRING BREAK – Enjoy your break, but don’t come back too sunburned!
March 27 Interpersonal persuasion. Cialdini and the “click-whirr” response.
Assignment: Cialdini Chapters 4-8
CMM 308 SEMESTER SCHEDULE SPRING 2006, SECTION 203
Week #12
April 3 More from Cialdini.
Assignment: Chapters 3 Persuasion and Ethics in the Media Age; Chapter 16
Creating Persuasive Presentations.
April 17 Campaign Presentations
April 24 Campaign Presentations.
Hand-out: study guide for final exam Chapters 3, 9, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16 and handouts on needs, and the Cialdini text
FINAL EXAM SESSION
May 1 6:30 p.m. Final Exam.