Persuasion is the communication process of converting, modifying, or maintaining the attitudes, beliefs, and behavior of others. Changing attitudes alone may not change behavior. Personal experience, personal impact, and effort required to perform the behavior all affect how consistent attitudes and behavior will be. There are two primary paths to persuasion: peripheral and central. Uninvolved listeners are more easily influenced by peripheral factors such as the credibility of the speaker and how others react to the persuasive message. Involved listeners are more influenced by central, quality arguments and evidence. There are many persuasive strategies a speaker can use. Among these are establishing identification, building credibility, building solid arguments, inducing cognitive dissonance, making emotional appeals, using the contrast effect, and using persuasive organizational patterns. Competent public speakers will find success if they utilize some or all of these strategies to persuade others.
