Chp. 15: Elaboration Liklihood Model

Chapter 15, Elaboration Liklihood Model, focuses on alternative routes of persuasion. Petty and Cacioppo focus on elaboration, or "the extent to which a person carefully thinks about issue-relevant arguments contained in a persuasive communication" (217). Speakers use the central route to try and figure out if what they are about to say will stick with their receiver, and if they will believe what they are saying. The peripheral route allows receivers of the message to decide quickly, by the means of cues, to decide if they like or dislike what is being said to them. The "click, whirr" response involves reciprocation, consistency, social proof, liking, authority and scarcity. All of these attribute to the taking in of messages and how the receiver and sender react to them. Petty and Cacioppo explain how many of us are lazy towards most issues of life, and our brains act as a mental filter, allowing only issues that are ego-involved to be stored and remembered.
I definitely follow the Elaboration Liklihood Model in most situations. When I am being persuaded, as well as acting as the persuader, I search for persuasive means of communication, to get someone to do something. I can remember a specific time in high school my freshman year and was being persuaded to drink alcohol and did not want to take part in it. A group of older senior boys were trying to get my friends and I to drink, and everyone wanted to, except me. They tried to get us to drink by using persuasive messages, such as, "Everyone does it" and "It will make you feel really good." I was motivated to try it because of how great they made it sound, but I was distracted by the nonverbal cues of some of the boys, and I began not to trust them. This is where I began to develop a strong, negative attitude change. The alcohol no longer seemed appealing, and all I could think about was how much trouble I would get it if my parents found out. The boys used the "wrong" cues in this specific situation, and did not succeed in getting me to drink with them.