Elaboration likelihood model (ELM)

1. What is elaboration? How can the degree of elaboration be assessed? Do variations in the amount of elaboration form a continuum or discrete categories? Explain the general difference between central and peripheral routes to persuasion.

2. (a) Identify two broad categories of factors that influence the amount of elaboration undertaken. (b) What is elaboration motivation? Identify two factors influencing elaboration motivation. Explain how involvement (personal relevance of the topic) influences elaboration motivation. What is “need for cognition”? Explain how need for cognition influences elaboration motivation. (c) What is elaboration ability? Identify two factors influencing elaboration ability. What is “distraction”? Explain how distraction influences elaboration ability. Explain how prior knowledge influences elaboration ability.

3. (a) In central-route persuasion, what is the key determinant of persuasive outcomes? Explain. (b) Identify two factors that influence elaboration direction (valence). Explain how the message’s proattitudinal or counterattitudinal position influences elaboration direction. What is argument strength (quality)? Explain how argument quality influences elaboration direction.

4. (a) In peripheral-route persuasion, what influences the outcomes of persuasive efforts? What is a heuristic principle? What activates heuristic principles? Give three examples of heuristic principles. (b) What is the credibility heuristic? Explain how it works. Under what conditions does credibility have relatively greater influence on persuasive outcomes? (c) What is the liking heuristic? Explain how it works. Under what conditions does liking have relatively greater influence on persuasive outcomes? (d) What is the consensus heuristic? Explain how it works. Under what conditions will the consensus heuristic have relatively greater influence on persuasive outcomes?

5. (a) Explain the tradeoff between peripheral cues and elaboration direction as influences on persuasive outcomes. (b) Does increasing elaboration mean increasing persuasion? (That is, does increasing the receiver’s degree of elaboration mean increasing how much the receiver is persuaded?) Explain how distraction influences persuasive outcomes. Identify a circumstance in which distraction might reduce persuasive effectiveness, and one in which it might enhance persuasive effectiveness. (c) Are the consequences of central-route persuasion and peripheral-route persuasion identical? Identify three differences in the consequences of persuasion’s being achieved through one or the other route. How is the persistence of persuasion different? How is resistance to counterpersuasion different? How is the strength of the relationship of attitudes to intentions and behaviors different?