Deck 10: Who Says It: Credibility and Social Attractiveness

Question 1

Which of the following is one of the three core components of credibility?

A) Likeability
B) Similarity
C) Physical attractiveness
D) Good will

Answer 1

D

Question 2

A politician has regularly made public statements that he does not believe climate change is real, and that the government should not pass any laws that more strictly regulate industrial emissions because doing so would threaten the economy. However, it is election season, and the politician is campaigning by attending town hall meetings all around the country. At one of these meetings, a concerned voter asks "Senator, I am very concerned about the environment and if I'm going to vote for you then I need to know what you will do to help save it. What are your plans if elected?" To make this person happy, the Senator doesn't go into details about his other plans and simply replies, "I care about the environment too, and will take every step I can to ensure it is protected." The voter who asked the question isn't convinced, because she thinks the Senator is just telling her what she wants to hear, and he actually doesn't plan to do anything to help. This means she doesn't trust the Senator because of the perception of ____________.

A) A reporting bias
B) An abuse of authority
C) A knowledge bias
D) Low response efficacy

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Similarity is an effective factor of social attractiveness, until it starts to become seen as a _________ due to the level of similarity between the persuader and persuadee.

A) Lack of self-identity
B) Knowledge bias
C) Reporting bias
D) Lack of expertise

Answer 3

D

Question 4

When persuaders are perceived to have violated a knowledge bias, they ______________.

A) lose credibility
B) gain credibility
C) gain likability
D) Lose likability

Question 5

What is charisma and what is its role in persuasion? In your essay, identify, analyze, and give examples of each of its key components. Be detailed and elaborate as much as you can in the space provided.

Question 6

Candidate credibility plays a prominent role in presidential campaigns. The text suggests that a particular type of credibility communication will have different impacts due to varying economic, political, and psychological circumstances. Consider the present-day situation and discuss characteristics you believe are/were influential in the 2020 election. How do these compare with circumstances in 2016 when President Trump was first elected?

Question 7

Social attractiveness consists of three elements: likability, similarity, and physical appeal. When have you been influenced by one or all of these elements? Why do you think social attractiveness influenced you in the example you provided?

Question 8

What's a recent example of a company that had to respond to a scandal, and what factors from their response led you to either trust the company less, or trust them more?