Topic:
Persuasion
= new link as of January 1, 2010
Propaganda
Holocaust denial - a pamphlet from the Jewish Virtual Library describing this propaganda movement [added 5/2/09]
"Resisting Nazi propaganda in Southern California 1933-1945" - an extensive collection of materials from the California State University, Northridge Library [added 5/2/09]Propaganda targeting sexual insecurities during wartime - What is "your girl" doing that you left behind? Interesting archive of propaganda efforts. [6/20/08]
Nazi and East German Propaganda - a huge collection of cartoons, speeches, posters and more from Randall Bytwerk at Calvin College [added 4/15/08]
Alcoholics Anonymous comic strips - [added 10/25/07]
"Propaganda: A weapon of war" - a collection of WWII propaganda from the National Library of Scotland -- it makes a distinction between and presents examples of "black propaganda" (intended to demoralize the enemy) and "white propaganda" (intended to inform and boost morale of the homefront). [added 12/26/06]
"Propaganda tactics and Fahrenheit 9/11" - essay by Kelton Rhoads on his "Working Psychology" site -- He also wrote a follow-up essay entitled "Backdraft 9/11: A backlash against Michael Moore on election day?" [added 6/20/05]
"To protect children from being recruited as Muslims" - cartoon publications (or Chick "tracts") to assist Christians in witnessing about their faith [added 3/20/05]
Propaganda posters from WWI - from the George F. Tyler WWI Collection at the Temple University Libraries [added 6/15/04]
Propaganda posters - a large collection of visual culture and public health posters from the 20th century [added 4/5/04]
Public service announcements - This excellent resource provides a history of many of the public service announcements from the Ad Council over the last 60 years. It includes lots of images and some video. Remember the "Crying Indian" television ad? Watch it here. [added 4/5/04]
"The propaganda model: A restrospective" - Find here an article reviewing the propaganda model regarding the role of mass media in the U.S. At the end of the page are links to related articles. [added 3/23/04]
U.S. Army propaganda through video games - Interesting article reporting that the Army has launched "two titles - "Soldiers", a role-playing game that lets you live boot camp life, and "Operations," a multi-player first-person shooter that, developers say, accurately reflects rules of engagement and squad teamwork." Available free from its game website, the games are meant to be propaganda. [added 11/20/03]
Propaganda analysis - at the Institute for Propaganda Analysis - includes descriptions and examples of common techniques and some examples of propaganda, including some video examples
Propaganda posters - online exhibit includes 33 posters and 1 audio clip
Prohibition campaign ads - examples and explanation of Ohio prohibition campaign ads from Dept. of History, The Ohio State Univ.
Cults
Cults - A large collection of resources about cults can be found in the Ross Institute Internet Archives for the Study of Destructive Cults, Controversial Groups and Movements.
Cults - More cult resources
Cults - More cult resources: "Steven Alan Hassan, cult counselor and mind control expert, is the Nationally Certified Counselor and licensed Mental Health Counselor who has developed the breakthrough approach to help loved ones rescue cult mind control victims."
"What is a cult?" - This is from a new sociology blog that has some interesting entries. [added 4/15/08]
The Cult News Network - This website provides links to current news stories about a variety of cults. [added 10/25/07]
Heaven's Gate cult - a follow-up story on this famous cult [added 8/05/07]
Cult Controversies - resources from the Washington Post describing various controversial cults since the 1950s [added 12/1/06]
F.A.C.T.Net.org - F.A.C.T.Net (Fight Against Coercive Tactics Network) "focuses on protecting freedom of mind from harms caused by all forms of mind control and unethical influence" - lots of information and resources on cults, scientology and attempts at mind control [added 12/06/02]
"Cult Status" - very interesting first-person account of someone who joined a cult-like group [added 12/2/02]
Cult group controversies - extensive resources on "brainwashing" and other aspects of cults - from the Religious Movements Page [added 3/6/02]
Cults and sects - variety of resources - from About.com guide on alternative religions [added 3/6/02]
"A social psychological critique of "brainwashing" claims about recruitment to new religions" - article by James T. Richardson - from J. Hadden and D. Bromley, eds. (1993), The Handbook of Cults and Sects in America. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, Inc., pp. 75-97. [added 3/6/02]
Cults and psychological manipulation -- site from American Family Foundation, "a nonprofit, tax-exempt research center and educational organization founded in 1979. AFF's mission is to study psychological manipulation and cultic groups, to educate the public and professionals, and to assist those who have been adversely affected by a cult-related experience." Includes essays, study guides, critical thinking resources and extensive links.
Transcendental Meditation - a critical look from trancenet.org
The Jonestown Massacre
The Jonestown Massacre - Recently discovered letters tell one family's interesting experience in the Jonestown cult.
"Jonestown" - detailed account in chapters from Court TV's Crime Library [added 3/15/05]
Multiple resources on the massacre - This site from NPR provides audio of stories about the event, an interview with a survivor, images of the massacre, review of the events and more. [added 3/19/04]
Multiple resources on the massacre from the Department of Religious Studies at San Diego State University - The Department has created a website entitled, “Alternative Considerations of Jonestown and Peoples Temple," which provides a 25th anniversary review, personal reflections, tape transcripts and more. [added 3/19/04]
The Jonestown Massacre - More resources related to Jonestown [added 3/6/02]
Dual Process Models
Using scientific terms to sell products - Interesting article about how the increased use of scientific terminology, even if the customer doesn't understand it, is helping to sell beauty products. [added 4/26/09]
The more it costs... - A good, brief review of some recent research on how we are affected by the cost of things -- for example, the placebo was more effective when it cost more. [added 8/10/08]
"Wine labels with animals on them: why they work" - interesting priming research [added 5/20/08]
Rounding vs. preciseness of prices - This study found "that people incorrectly judge precise prices (e.g., $325,425) to be lower than round prices of similar magnitudes (e.g., $325,000)." [added 4/15/08]
Countering negative ads - A very good blog summary of a study which concludes "this result may offer some insight into why politicians have so much difficulty refuting those nasty campaign ads: when the public isn't paying much attention, they may be less likely to allow the refutation of an attack to replace the original memory of the attack itself." [added 4/15/08]
Subliminal exposure to national flag moderated views - Brief exposure to Israeli flag led to more moderate views and voting behavior. [added 4/15/08]
Gossip vs. facts - Here's a description of a research study that made the news quite a bit -- participants were frequently persuaded by gossip (comments by others of another player) even if they had all the facts they needed or the gossip was not consistent with the facts. [added 12/9/07]
Chocolate's influence on course evaluations! - You heard me. What happens if you are offered chocolate (by a complete stranger, not the instructor) before you complete an evaluation of your instructor? See what the study found. [added 12/9/07]Mindless eating - an interesting 20/20 episode on research about many of the subjective/perceptual factors that influence how much we eat [7/19/07]
"False beliefs about fattening foods can have healthy consequences" - Here is a popular press story of a recently published article by Loftus and colleagues in which they use a false feedback technique to convince dieters that they don't like strawberry ice cream. [added 1/8/06]
Snuggly white? The use of off-beat names in marketing - Interesting report on recent research: "From Chubby Hubby ice cream to Trailer Park red nail polish, marketers using ambiguous or surprising descriptions for new flavors and colors are likely to win sales by making consumers go through the effort of understanding an off-beat name, according to recent Wharton research." Link takes you to good description of research. You can also read the original article. [added 9/22/05]
Resistance to Change
Resisting persuasion - D.A.R.E. programs have not been very effective in this country. Perhaps this research suggests a better approach to inoculating adolescents against alcohol advertising. [added 4/15/08]
Countering negative ads - A very good blog summary of a study which concludes "this result may offer some insight into why politicians have so much difficulty refuting those nasty campaign ads: when the public isn't paying much attention, they may be less likely to allow the refutation of an attack to replace the original memory of the attack itself." [added 4/15/08]
Resistance to change - "The Denialists' Deck of Cards is a humorous illustration of how libertarian policy groups use denialism. In this context, denialism is the use of rhetorical techniques and predictable tactics to erect barriers to debate and consideration of any type of reform, regardless of the facts. Giveupblog.com has identified five general tactics used by denialists: conspiracy, selectivity, the fake expert, impossible expectations, and metaphor." [added 7/7/07]
Source Characteristics
When does scowling enhance your credibility? - Don't lie, you were just about to ask that very question. Read the interesting answer. [added 7/17/09]
"Dear Abby" for gay marriages - Now the advice column, as written by the daughter of the original Dear Abby, has staked out a position on this controversial position, and "finds homophobic jokes offensive." What kind of influence do these sources have on the general public? [added 12/9/07]
Secrets of effective leadership - article in Scientific American [added 10/25/07]
"The persuasive appeal of stigma" - "Stigmatized minorities may have an advantage in persuading majority group members during some face-to-face interactions due to the greater self-presentational demands such interactions elicit. In contrast to models which predict greater persuasive impact of members of ingroups, White participants were more convinced by persuasive appeals delivered by a Black interaction partner than by a White interaction partner." [added 10/25/07]
Message Characteristics
"Are funny ads worth the money?" - [added 5/2/09]Fear or disgust...or both? - When do fear appeals work? When does disgust persuade? This article summarizes research that suggests that anti-tobacco ads that tried to scare or disgust viewers increased memory for the message, but ads that tried to do both (scare AND disgust) decreased viewer memory and attention. [added 4/26/09]
It's how you present the numbers -- "Would you rather support research for a disease that affects 30,000 Americans a year or one that affects just .01 percent of the U.S. population?" Research on how you present the numbers. [6/20/08]
"To persuade jurors...confuse them?" - "If you want to persuade jurors, you must be clear, right? Maybe not. New research shows that a sales pitch is more persuasive when it confuses the customer." [added 11/21/07]
"Emotional, not factual, ads win skeptical consumers" - press release of an interesting soon-to-be published article [added 1/8/06]
Making bug ads palatable - article about how Terminix uses humorous ads to avoid creeping out its customers [added 7/1/04]
"Do defaults save lives?" - very interesting article analyzing opt-in and opt-out strategies in Europe to promote organ donation -- a good, short read for students [added 6/15/04]
Audience Characteristics
"Chemical spray shows power as trust booster" - This research study made a big splash recently in the public press. Does inhaling oxytocin make you more trusting of others? [added 1/2/06]
Persuasion in the Media
Advertising
The use of advertising in China - "A new study in the Journal of Consumer Research looks at the role advertising has played in China's transformation. Authors Xin Zhao (University of Hawaii at Manoa) and Russell W. Belk (York University, Toronto) analyzed advertisements in the Chinese media for clues on how sociological and ideological change has taken place in the People's Republic. Advertising is the major propaganda vehicle for consumerism, and an excellent arena to explore China's changing values, explain the authors: 'We examine how advertising appropriates a dominant anti-consumerist political ideology to promote consumption within China's social and political transition.'" [added 11/21/08]
Oh, those manipulative ads - a funny take on advertising from The Onion -- does a nice job of covering many of the buttons ads try to push [added 12/21/07]
"Who's hot and who's not in celebrity advertising" - What? Donald Trump appears to have a "negative influence on purchasing"? Brief summary of report on a study conducted by the NPD Group [added 7/6/06]
Bibliography of advertising and persuasion - Here is an extensive bibliography of "advertising and the art of persuasion" from Scott Armstrong. I haven't reviewed it carefully so I don't know if there are significant holes or not. [added 1/2/06]
Fraudulent weight-loss ads - Sit down. You're not going to believe this. Did you know that many of the weight-loss claims made in ads may not be true? Hey, if you don't believe me, read the report from the Federal Trade Commission. However, it seems that the percentage of false claims is dropping significantly, melting away just like your pounds will if you send me..... [added 8/30/05]
Alcohol advertising and youth - Did you know, that "more than 55% of the $990 million spent on alcohol advertising in magazines between 2001 and 2003 went to ad placements in magazines that were more likely to be read by underage youth than by adults on a per capita basis"? That's according to the report "Youth overexposed: Alcohol advertising in magazines, 2001-2003" from The Pew Charitable Trusts. [added 8/30/05]Advertising campaigns - exhibits illustrating a wide variety of ad campaigns, from the William F. Eisner Museum of Advertising and Design [added 12/1/04]
Advertising World - everything advertising - from the Dept. of Advertising at the Univ. of Texas-Austin, hundreds and hundreds of links to many, many topics related to... yes, advertising! [added 3/21/02]
"Emergence of Advertising in America" - more an historical site, but still an interesting and well-done review from the American Memory Project
advertising links - extensive set of links to articles on advertising
more advertising links - another extensive set of links to sites related to advertising
"The erotic history of advertising" - an article describing some uses of erotic text and images to sell products [added 12/30/06]
Cartoon about smoking ads - [added 12/30/06]
Print Ads
"Early advertising of the West, 1867-1918" - [added 5/2/09]
Print ads - Adflip -- "the world's largest archive of classic print ads" [added 12/30/06]
Non-verbal communication in ads - a very nice resource created by Robin Akert that contains a fairly large number of print ads that can be used to explore gender differences, roles and stereotypes [added 12/30/06]
Print ads - "The Ad*Access Project, funded by the Duke Endowment "Library 2000" Fund, presents images and database information for over 7,000 advertisements printed in U.S. and Canadian newspapers and magazines between 1911 and 1955. Ad*Access concentrates on five main subject areas: Radio, Television, Transportation, Beauty and Hygiene, and World War II, providing a coherent view of a number of major campaigns and companies through images preserved in one particular advertising collection available at Duke University." [added 6/17/05]
Advertising soap in America - The Ivory Project, from the National Museum of American History, contains hundreds of interesting print soap ads from 1838-1998, primarily for Ivory soap but also including other brands. Interesting to track the portrayal of women in particular through these ads. [added 7/1/04]
Selling Tobacco: Ads of the 1940s and 1950s - remarkable collection of the print ads used to sell tobacco products before the Surgeon General's warning
The Ad Graveyard - View ads that did not quite make it to the public - unfortunately, it appears there is no index or easy navigation, but some interesting stuff
TV Ads
Controversial UK anti-smoking ads "effective" - The first link describes recent research on the "Get unhooked" ad campaign. Here is one of the video ads. Don't watch if you are a fish. [6/20/08]
TV ads - Here are some more ads you can show in class from the International Advertising Awards. [added 7/6/06]
Presidential Ads from 1952-2008 - Even more impressive is this site providing video of campaign ads stretching back 50 years, and the site will be updated soon to include more recent ads. "Presented by the American Museum of the Moving Image in cooperation with the Political Communication Center, University of Oklahoma." [added 6/15/04]
Analysis of TV Commercials - a media literacy site - click on "Online Video" and watch streaming video of segments that begin with a TV commercial and then follow with analysis of the ad by an invited panel
Infomercials
Examination of infomercials - Very interesting story on the TV show Dateline a few weeks back in which Dateline gets an infomercial produced for a fake product. You see how the company who produced it lines up a real doctor to lie about the product and lines up actresses to give the testimonials. There is a brief (about 4 min) video montage from the show that captures this fairly well. [added 12/30/06]
Online Ads
Collection of online ads - large collection of this recent type of ad [added 7/6/06]
Ad Slogans
Ad slogans - Lots of examples of ad slogans and other resources on how they are created and more [added 1/2/06]
Ad Songs
Song titles from ads - Trying to remember a song from a particular commercial? This site lists the songs that accompanies many of the ads from the last few years. Also gives you links to samples of the songs. [added 1/2/06]
"The psychology of being scammed" - This blog entry refers to a long, detailed, and interesting report on the what, why, and how of successful scams. Did you know, for example, that "Scam victims often have better than average background knowledge in the area of the scam content." [added 7/17/09]
The cover story of the January, 2007 APS Observer, "Framing Science: Advances in theory and technology are fueling a new era in the science of persuasion" is an excellent one. I particularly like the report of some research by Jeremy Bailenson: "Before the last presidential election in 2004, Bailenson and his colleagues sent out digital photographs of George Bush and John Kerry to 200 voters. But a third of the subjects received photographs that had features of their own face digitally morphed onto Bush's face so subtly it could not consciously be detected. Another third of the subjects received photographs that had their face morphed onto Kerry, again below the level of conscious awareness. The last third simply received unaltered photographs of both Bush and Kerry. Then a week before the election, they asked the subjects to vote. The subjects who were previously undecided were significantly more likely to vote for the candidate whose face had been morphed to resemble theirs." [added 7/6/07]
Environmental problems and the press - Beatriz Cortés sent along this PowerPoint presentation she and her colleagues gave at a conference in Spain on social perception and environmental problems. [added 7/6/06]
Promoting tobacco to college-age students - Oh, our poor youth. Smoking, drinking and all the carbs they can eat. [added 8/30/05]The Persuaders - Did you get a chance to see this excellent PBS show recently on how marketers and politicians figure out how to persuade us? If not, you are in luck. The entire episode is available for viewing online at the above link. Definitely worth seeing. As with many PBS shows now, the streaming video is broken up into segments for easy display in the classroom. [added 12/1/04]
The selling of racist views through music - This recent (Nov. 2004) article from Newsweek describes how Panzerfaust Records, a "white power" records label, is successfully pushing its music and lyrics into the hands of teenagers. [added 12/1/04]
Using education to change opinions - interesting essay attempting to explain why the majority of voters support stem cell research [added 12/1/04]
Fear of death and political preferences - A recent article has received a lot of attention in our current (2004) U.S. election climate. Research is finding that when we are exposed to reminders of death or 9/11 we tend to favor "charismatic" leaders such as George Bush. It is also another excellent example of the power of priming. [added 12/1/04]
The history of televised presidential debates - includes curriculum materials such as classroom activities [added 12/1/04]
Eyetracking the viewing of media - Read an article about a technology that tracks the eyes of viewers watching a screen. "In Eyetrack III, we observed 46 people for one hour as their eyes followed mock news websites and real multimedia content. In this article we'll provide an overview of what we observed." [added 12/1/04]
Hispanic Fact Pack (2004) - excellent supplement to Advertising Age with lots of information and examples of advertising, marketing and media for the Hispanic market [added 12/1/04]
The Commercial Closet - "The Commercial Closet Association works to improve public opinion of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community by improving GLBT portrayals in mainstream advertising." This site promotes that goal by providing hundreds of examples of portrayals in the media, particularly advertising. You can watch the TV ads at this site and read commentary provided to analyze the portrayal of gay, lesbians, bisexual and transgender themes in the ads. [added 7/1/04]"Coffin Nails: The Tobacco Controvery in the 19th Century" - This site draws on text, cartoons and ads from Harper's Weekly, 1857-1912, to describe the health concerns already present about tobacco and responses to it. [added 7/16/03]
The Nordlicht Campaign - an interesting article about efforts to apply social psychology to environmental change in Germany [added 2/4/03]
Effectiveness of Abstinence Programs on Sexual Activity
- The effectiveness of abstinence education programs in reducing sexual activity among youth
- Toward a sexually healthy America: Abstinence-only-until-marriage programs that try to keep our youth “scared chaste”
Two recent, competing reports on the effectiveness of abstinence-only programs in sex education - The first link is to the report from the Heritage Foundation which claims that research supports such programs and argues that other "safe-sex" programs are dangerous. The second link is to a report from Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) which provides a very different interpretation of the research and such programs. Interesting example of how different perspectives can lead to different interpretations of evidence. [added 6/7/02]Smoke-free Movies - this site "aims to sharply reduce the U.S. film industry's usefulness to Big Tobacco's domestic and global marketing - a leading cause of disability and premature death" - it explores the science of movie influence through tobacco documents online, research on the topic and other sources - included are its own ads [added 6/7/02]
Joe Chemo - many of you have probably seen Scott Plous' excellent anti-smoking site - includes links to information on tobacco advertising, a tobacco IQ test and more - click here to see an assignment that incorporates this site
Non-verbal Communication
"If you want to persuade a woman, look straight at her" - interesting study using a virtual reality environment [added 7/14/07]
Non-verbal behavior/Non-verbal communication links - recently updated, organized set of links to non-verbal communication sites, articles, online experiments and more -- in English and Spanish!
Other Resources
"50 scientifically proven ways to be persuasive" - a nice list for discussion and possible student projects taken from the Goldstein, Martin, and Cialdini of the same name [added 7/17/09]
A right-ear preference - You heard me. But do you believe me? You are more likely to respond to my request if I whispered it in your right ear, according to this study. Ooh, here's another study: Would a message be more persuasive if it is presented in your right visual field? [added 7/17/09]
"How the brain buys" - Here's an interesting discussion of some of the research on consumers in the marketplace. But remember the caution regarding some of these fMRI studies. [added 5/2/09]
"Conversational blindness" - Conversational blindness: "A phenomenon whereby listeners fail to notice when speakers respond to a different question than the one they are asked-by responding with answers that seem to address the question asked, but which in fact address an entirely different question." This research finds "A successful dodge occurs when a speaker's answer to the wrong question is so compelling that the listener both forgets the right one, and rates the dodger positively. In some cases, speakers end up better off by answering the wrong question well rather than the right question poorly." [added 4/26/09]
Norm of reciprocity - "Trouble with customer service agents?" This blogger suggests using the norm of reciprocity. [added 11/21/08]
Elections 2008 (U.S.) - Here's one of a few sites where you and your students can follow the 2008 U.S. elections. [added 4/15/08]
When is it acceptable to lie? - description of a study that examines cultural and other factors that can affect the answer to this question [added 12/9/07]
"Shopping can lead to more... well... shopping" - report on research from the Stanford Graduate School of Business [added 11/21/07]
Cigarette warning labels - A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention looked at the "tobacco-related knowledge and attitudes among young adults in the United States and compared their perceptions of how U.S. and Canadian cigarette warning labels would affect smoking behavior." [added 7/8/07]
Would a talking urinal persuade you? - "In a novel move to curb drunk driving, New Mexico is using talking urinals to remind drinkers to not get behind the wheel when drunk." [added 7/7/07]
Foot-in-the-door - Where did some of the names of our terms come from? Here is some interesting info about possible original uses of "foot-in-the-door." I cannot vouch for its accuracy. [added 7/7/07]
Paltering - Ever heard of paltering? Me neither. Take a look. [added 7/7/07]
"Knowing the ingredients can change the taste" - an article from The New York Times [added 12/30/06]
Instant messaging at meetings - interesting research on how public and secret instant messaging during meetings influences behavior [added 12/30/06]
The use of fear of terrorism - article in Wall Street Journal Online describing research on how "terrorism and other deadly events affect people's voting decisions" [added 12/30/06]
Energy Hog Buster! - The U.S. Department of Energy launched a campaign "designed to make children and their parents aware of energy efficient behavior." Check out the energy hog web site. [added 1/10/06]
Do disclaimers about health claims help? - "Effects of strength of science disclaimers on the communication impacts of health claims" is a recent research report from the Food and Drug Administration. [added 1/10/06]Changingminds.org - A website from a consulting and publishing company which describes many techniques, principles and theories of persuasion. David Straker is the principal author. [added 9/20/05]
Waiters/Waitresses -- Increase your tips! - "Megatips: Scientifically tested techniques to increase your tips" by Michael Lynn is written more like an advice booklet, but references are provided to support the recommendations. [added 9/20/05]
Political Communication Lab - This lab from the Dept. of Communication at Stanford Univ. looks like a relatively new site, but there already are some interesting resources here, including at least a couple interactive surveys/studies in which you can participate. [added 12/1/04]
"Confessions of a Car Salesman" - Here is an interesting article of "What really goes on in the back rooms of car dealerships across America." Edmunds.com sent a journalist undercover to work as a car salesman. He relays his experiences in this article. [added 4/5/04]
The ATLAS Project - "The ATLAS project is a longitudinal study to develop and test a school-based prevention program to reduce anabolic androgenic steroid (AAS) use among adolescent athletes." [added 8/28/02]
"How to Sell a Pseudoscience" - informative article from the Skeptical Inquirer on the persuasive tactics often used by the sellers of pseudoscience
"Crimes of Persuasion: Schemes, Scams, Fraud" - site describes "how con artists will steal your savings and inheritance through telemarketing fraud, investment schemes and consumer scams" - lots of examples, tactics and links
"Reducing tobacco use" - report (2000) from the Surgeon General
Influence at Work - commercial site containing many essays and links on persuasion
Resources for the Teaching of Social Psychology is a part of the CROW Project, Course Resources on the Web. CROW was initially sponsored by the Associated Colleges of Illinois and generously supported by UPS. This site was created by Jon Mueller, Professor of Psychology at North Central College, Naperville, IL. Send comments to Jon.
