Propaganda and Persuasion

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Propaganda and Persuasion

Persuasion has the effect, when it is successful, of resulting in a reaction such as "I never saw it that way before." What happens is that the recipient a complex, continuing, interactive process in which a sender and a receiver are linked by symbols, verbal and nonverbal, through which the persuader attempts to influence the persuadee to adopt a change in a given attitude or behavior because the persuadee has had perceptions enlarged or changed. (p. 9) Persuasion as a subset of communication is usually defined as a commu nicative process to influence others. A persuasive message has a point of view or desired behavior for the recipient to adopt in a voluntary fashion. Victoria O'Donnell and June Kable (1982) defined persuasion as purpose of instructing for mutual understanding. Elliot Aronson (1980, p. 60) questioned whether educators are merely imparting knowledge or skill. One subject area that Aronson questioned is arithmetic. He pointed out that most examples in elementary school arithmetic texts deal with buying, selling, rent ing, working for wages, and computing interest. He also cited Zimbardo, Ebbeson, and Maslach (1977), who thought these examples did more than simply reflect the capitalist system in which education occurs. The point is that arithmetic problems with a capitalist ideological base endorse the system, legitimate it, and suggest that it is the natural and normal way. Aronson said that interpretation of an instructional practice depends largely on the values of the person interpreting it. Four authors were asked by university researchers if their management textbooks are propaganda. Although their responses varied, "all four authors [said that they] write their textbooks to support a managerial ideology." The researchers concluded that the managerial ideology "would seem to serve the interest of other groups who are also currently most powerful in management education" (Cameron, Ireland, Lussier, New, & Robbins, 2003, pp. 726-728). (William E. Griffith, in his essay on communist propaganda, referred to propaganda and education interchangeably. He said that educating the masses has been the same as propaganda [cited in Lasswell, Lerner, & Speier, 1980, pp. 239-258].) By evaluating educational practices according to their ends rather than their means, however, one can observe the use of informative communica tion as a means of achieving a propagandistic end in practices such as the ones described above. Propaganda and Persuasion Persuasion Defined