Online "Influence" Test

Instructions: The goals of persuasion can be varied. Most commonly they include conversion, modification, and maintenance. Understanding your goal in persuading an audience is very important. It's just as important as understanding what your audience wants and needs. Many different types of appeals can persuade people, but some strategies seem to work more reliably than others. See if you can determine what types of influence work well in the different scenarios presented at this site: http://www.workingpsychology.com/nq_test.html.

Are you an "influence genius"? Did you learn which strategy is most likely to help you avoid paying a ticket in traffic court? How many of these answers surprised you?

In summary: Persuasion is a complex process that works best when you are mindful of the audience. Perhaps you need to overcome resistance. In that case, you want to be familiar with both the inoculation and forewarning strategies. You may need to understand the variables affecting attitude-behavior consistency, including personal experience, personal impact, and the effort required. You may choose to use emotional appeals with your audience, in which case you would want to be familiar with the ethics involved in using that strategy.

Remember that in competent communication persuasion is other-centered. It's important to be mindful of what factors are motivating your audience, as well as what factors are motivating you.