COMM 1200 FINAL
Be able to articulate the importance of tailoring your message to your audience, including audience needs, values, beliefs/attitudes
*Your message is more likely to succeed when it is relevant to the audience 1. Maslow's hierarchy of needs: if most audience members are struggling to pay their rent, then it will be difficult to persuade them to donate to a political campaign 2. Values: "core conceptions" of what is desirable for our own life. Values play a central role in guiding our lives, adapting an argument to audience values is one of the most important considerations 3. Beliefs: the facts about your topic that they consider to be true and has a significant effect on their attitude toward your thesis
Know how to maximize audiences listening
1. Anticipate ineffective listening before your speech 2. Consider listener's attention and energy levels 3. Assess your audience's knowledge and abilities 4. Front and back load your main message 5. Use presentation aids strategically 6. Encourage active listening during your speech
Understand the 5 general guidelines for special occasion speaking
1. Appealing to your audience's emotions 2. Matching your delivery to the mood of the occasion 3. Adapting to your audience's expectations 4. Evoking shared values 5. Respecting time constrains
Understand why visual aids are useful
1. Can make your speech more interesting 2. Can simplify a complex topic 3. Can help your audience remember your speech
Articulate the guidelines for preparing visual aids
1. Consider the forum 2. Consider your audience (demographics, prior exposure) 3. Make sure your aids support your points 4. Keep your aids simple and clear 5. Rehearse your presentation aids
Know the 3 different types of leaders
1. Designated leader 2. Implied leader 3. Emergent leader
Know the 4 types of reasoning highlighted in the chapter
1. Example reasoning - resenting specific instances to support a general claim 2. Comparison reasoning - arguing that two instances are similar enough that what is true for one is likely to be true for another 3. Sign reasoning - arguing that a fact is true because indirect indicators are consistent with that fact 4. Causal reasoning: arguing that one event has caused another
Understand logical fallacies and how to identify them
1. Hasty generalization - an error in reasoning that asserts that a piece of evidence that applies to one case applies to all cases 2. Causal reasoning - an error in reasoning that incorrectly states that a second event is caused by the event that immediately preceded it (face paint = success) 3. Ad populum fallacy - (bandwagon) an error in reasoning in which the speaker tries to persuade an audience to accept an argument by claiming that a fact is true because many/most people believe that it is true 4. Ad hominem fallacy - (personal attack) an error in reasoning in which the speaker tries to persuade an audience to dislike someone by targeting his or her character rather than the relevant issues 5. Straw person fallacy - the speaker makes a weak claim that he or she can easily refute, rather than making a strong claim that one cannot easily refute 6. Slippery slope fallacy - the speaker argues against a policy because they assume (without proof) that the first policy will lead to a second, undesirable outcome 7. False dilemma fallacy - speaker claims that there are only two possible choices to address a problem, and that one of those is wrong or infeasible 8. Appeal to tradition fallacy - speaker argues that an idea or a policy if good simply because people have accepted or followed it for a long time
What is the process of answering questions from the audience
1. Listen 2. Understand 3. Communicate/involve audience 4. Respond 5. Thank
Articulate the guidelines for using visual aids
1. Make sure everyone can see and hear your aids 2. Control audience interaction with your aids 3. Maintain eye contact 4. Remember the purpose of your aids
Understand and use the 5 suggestions for expressing ideas effectively
1. Repetition 2. Hypothetical examples 3. Personal anecdotes 4. Vivid language 5. Figurative language
Know the 6 types of special occasion speeches
1. Speech of introduction 2. Speech of presentation 3. Speech of acceptance 4. Speech to memorialize or eulogize 5. Speech to celebrate 6. After-dinner speech
Understand the 3 different types of group presentations
1. Symposium - group members each deliver a different part of the speech 2. Panel discussion - group member engage in discourse with one another while observed by an audience 3. Single group representative
What do you do when you don't know the answer
1. Thank for question 2. Offer your best approximation 3. Tell person you will happily find the answer
Know the different types of visual aids and the pros/cons of each
1. The speaker - 2. Assistants - 3. Objects - 4. Maps - 5. Photographs/drawings - 6. Diagrams - 7. Graphs - 8. Text based visuals - 9. Audio/video -
Understand the 3 elements of credibility and how to best build these
1. Understand the listener's needs and feelings 2. Empathize with the audience's views 3. Respond quickly to other's communication
Understand the 4 ways to make your message clear
1. Understandable language 2. Concrete words 3. Proper use of words 4. Concise language
Be clear about the 6 causes of ineffective listening
1. Unprocessed note taking - copying down without consideration 2. Nonlistening - simply not paying attention 3. Interruptive listening - consistently interruption one another 4. Agenda Driven listening - person focuses on the next point 5. Argumentative listening - listening only to arguments that help you 6. Nervous listening - uncomfortable with silence (thinking about what to say)
Identify the components of ONE of the 3 C's of successful group presentations
Clarity, Control, Commitment Clarity -of purpose -of roles -of message
Define connotative and denotative meaning
Denotative: a word's exact, literal definition Connotative: association that comes to mind when people hear/read the word
Understand the difference between claims of fact, value, and policy
Fact claim: a statement that asserts that something is true or false Value claim: a statement that attaches a judgment - such as deeming something good, bad, or immoral Policy claim: a statement that advocates that organizations, institutions, or members of the audience should take action
Be able to identify the most appropriate persuaive organizational pattern for each type of claim
Fact claim: causal pattern, categorical pattern Value claim: criteria-application pattern, comparison pattern, categorical pattern Policy claim: Monroe's motivated sequence, problem-cause-solution pattern
Understand the strategies for being both a good leader and a good group member
Good leader: -Leading meetings effectively -Managing conflict Good group member: -Task oriented roles (enhancing member's participation) -Maintenance-oriented roles (help sustain and strengthen relationships in the group)
Understand the difference between listening and hearing
Hearing: receiving messages in a passive way Listening: you are an active participant by processing what you've heard and retaining what you've heard (actively processing and retaining)
Understand how and why emotional appeals are important to persuasive speaking
It can evoke emotion through fear appeal or effective word choice
Articulate the difference between written and oral language
Oral language is more adaptive (you can change your speech), it is less formal, and it incorporates repetition (must repeat yourself so the audience follows)
Understand the difference between hostile, neutral, and sympathetic audiences and how to use those audience dispositions when crafting a speech
Sympathetic audience: your goal would be to strengthen the audience's commitment since they already agree with your viewpoint Hostile audience: your goal would be to weaken the audience's viewpoint since they disagree with you (seek small changes in attitude) Neutral audience: determine whether your listener's neutrality stems from apathy, disinterest, or a lack of firm conviction. Then figure out how to overcome these forces of neutrality and get your listeners to support you