Response to Kenny McCray's Post.

Do you think that athletes should be held to a higher standard just because they are in the public eye? Should Michael Phelps have apologized for his actions and promised to not do it again?

First of all, I think that there's a difference between an athlete and a “famous” athlete. Being an athlete in high school, it would be more acceptable for them to partake in things people their age do because being a professional athlete is not a sure path they'd take in the future and they are not in the limilight. However, being a professional athlete, those who are already in the public eye like Michael Phelps, ought to hold a higher standard. This is because many people look up to them, especially those who are younger than them. We live in a media-driven society so whoever we see on television, hear on the radio or read about in publications, we tend to aspire to. Rarely do we ever aspire to people who hasn't claimed their fame. I think that it was good that Phelps apologized because this shows true professionalism. If he ever did this again, then it's his own frailty if people look down on him.

When I read Kenny's post, an immediate example came to mind-- Vanessa Hudgens. When nude photos of her circulated the internet, many people, especially parents were worried about who their children were looking up to. Hudgens is the star of the famous Disney film “High School Musical” which many children are avid fans of. Disney movies are mainly family-friendly so when the photos emerged, parents were worried about the not-so-wholesome image of Hudgens. It's the same with Phelps, many young swimmers look up to him so any inappropriate behaviour of his could turn someone off.

In general, I think that famous people-- whether they be an athlete, celebrity, etc. should set good examples. Whatever they want to do in their personal lives should be in their own discretion. They chose fame and being in the public eye so they should be aware of the consequences it would bring them if they did something inappropriate. Lastly, claiming fame is their opportunity to advocate some sort of positivity in the world and use fame in a good way.

Response to Feggi Giovani's Post

"The authors also talked about culture and diversity in chapter 8. Culture is a compex thing for us to learn. Every country has different culture, and even a single country can consist of different. Since I am an international student, I can relate to different culture difference very easily. The culture's differences from Indonesia and United States are a lot. There were so many things that I had to learn and understand when I first came to Seattle. The way people talk, greet, eat, ask questions were different from my culture. One example that stuck to me is interaction in the classroom. In Indonesia, if a teacher does not ask question, we cannot talk in class. But here participation is important. Therefore, it was kind of hard for me to adapt to this new situation. Have you ever been in a situation, where it is different from your culture? And how did you adapt or handle the situation? Please explain"

Being an international student myself, I had to adapt to many things when I first came here in America a little more than 4 years ago. It wasn't only in school but also the way of living in general. I came up with two examples that I have learned from and adapted to over the years.

-Back in Cyprus where I was born and raised, there was no age limit (or at least wasn't enforced) on purchasing alcohol or cigarettes. Teenagers as young as 15 could enter clubs and bars. So when I came here at 17 years old, alcohol and cigarettes suddenly became these "forbidden" things-- It felt weird and scary being near them compared to when I was living in Cyprus. (But now that I'm of age-- it's a different story, of course. Ha-ha!) I adapted to the idea in the sense of "interacting" with those things in an American way. When I turned 21, I was excited because I could finally order a glass of Cosmopolitan in a restaurant. However, it was a novelty that wore off pretty quickly-- it wasn't as exciting as I thought initially. Being a teenager when I first came here, it was natural to feel that to abide the law was lame (especially having been raised in a culture where it wasn't enforced) but as I grew older, I valued it because it taught me about control and that there's an age to be able to do certain things.

-Before coming here, I didn't think of language as being a barrier. Back in Cyprus, I spoke Greek, Tagalog (at home) and English. One time in high school, there was an exchange student from Russia who didn't speak English so well. My friends and I would make snide comments on how he spoke behind his back-- disregarding his struggles. When I came here, English was the only language to explain myself at school, unlike in Cyprus where I could resort to Greek as well. The first time I got stuck and blanked out when asked a simple question, I realized how hard it was for that exchange student to communicate and convey his simple message because of language. Tying culture to one of Woodward and Denton's general principles to cultural sensivity, it says "Address people of other cultures with the same respect you would like to receive". Personally, I found it very interesting that it takes experiencing another culture in order to be sensitive to others. I suddenly possessed awareness of cultural differences which to me is an advantage to have in order to prevent disrespecting and offending people from cultures different to mine.

Persuasion and Consumption: See's Candies.

Strolling down the mall with friends, I decided to do my observation at See's Candies. I'm not a big fan but my friend was craving for their Butterscotch lollipop so in we went.

The windows at that See's store was partially covered. But the part that was uncovered surely had things to “lure” costumers in. See's is known for their holiday promotions and holiday gifts. Around this time, they are focusing on all the Fall holidays. Right now, they're promoting Thanksgiving gifts. One of the signs said “bring a box to the gathering”. If you're a last minute person and didn't have time to make some food or simply don't know what to bring to a Thanksgiving gathering/potluck, purchasing a box of chocolates comes in very handy. After all, we do lead busy lives so that in itself is a push for us as consumers to be persuaded to pick that box of chocolates. Why not.

Halloween also wasn't that too long ago so in the middle of the store, there was a rack of “on sale” Halloween themed chocolates. Perhaps those who couldn't afford the expensive chocolates can purchase the “leftover” Halloween candies-- why not, you get your chocolate craving for a cheaper price and more excitingly, they're in shape of a cat or a witch. I thought that the placing of “sale items” was good because it was right in the middle of the store as opposed to a corner. As soon as people walked in, they are immediately attracted by the sales-- customers save, the store gets rid of their old stuff, everybody wins.

See's also gives out samples of chocolates if you want to buy just a couple of pieces instead of a box. Before telling the sales associate what you want, you could ask for a sample of the piece that you want to purchase. I think it's smart that they don't give out samples when people don't ask. Because if you think about it, people ask for samples because they are more likely to purchase than those who don't ask. This way, See's gets to save their sample chocolates for those who really want it.

As my friend was paying for her Butterscotch lollipop fix, a stand of more chocolates caught the left corner of my eye. There were Christmas themed chocolates already. I guess they were there for people to begin thinking about Christmas gifts and such-- persuasion in action.

Having been to See's before, I remember another friend getting a box of assorted chocolates. When she was about to pay for it, the cashier lady said that for another such and such amount, she could get a second box. Lured into consumerism, my dear friend got another box because she had this mentality that she saved. But did she need that second box? Nope.

It takes two to consume-- the sellers and buyers. It is not fair to solely point the finger at effective and persuasive advertisement, it's their job to sell products. And it is our job as consumers to evaluate what we're consuming.

Ch. 6- The Psychology of Persuasion

Beliefs, Attitudes and Values

The textbook suggests that values are something that are instilled in us from chilhood. And then it goes on about how "... values are far more stable than attitudes and beliefs". (p.136, Values) I am somehow unclear on this statement and trying to understand the interactions between the three cognitive elements of persuasion. The way I understood it is that values go hand-in-hand with beliefs (let's leave attitudes behind for now). If I were to define values, it would be something like a "a set of system of high importance in order to function effectively and successfully in society". One example that came to mind was education. From childhood, the value that my parents and the society that I grew up in ingrained in me that going to school is important because it gets you far in life. But along the way, I have met numerous people who never finished school but are quite successful and happy with their lives. I can chose to follow not to go to school because my belief has gone both ways. If I continue school, I can be successful. And success could also be achieved even if I don't finish school because of the people I met as examples of that. So do you think what it means is that if you embrace a specific value from the get go, your beliefs serve as paths as to where your attitude towards a certain value will lead?

Stimulus- Response Theory

I thought that this theory was really interesting even though it's a simple theory that most of us are aware of. Whatever we're in favor of, it is what grabs our attention and it is where we manage to find our comfort zone. Whenever we meet a person for the first time and share a minor information about ourselves that they agree with or have a similar experience to share, we immediately "click" with that person because of that similar life episode. In persuasion, to do this is very important so that persuasion would be achieved. Can you think of an incident when a persuasion message was supposed to have a stimulus response effect but didn't? (even if it worked for others but not for you as an individual).

Theory of Induced Discrepant Behaviour

This theory reminds me of "weighing the pros and cons" in simpler terms. In persuasion, in order to make this effective is "Weighting some information as more valid than other information reduces dissonance" (p.148). Suffice to say, the persuader must isolate the pros from the cons so he or she could could convey a message effectively. How would you perform induced discrepant behavior when trying to persuade an audience to support the legalization of same sex marriage? And what strategy that Gass and Seiter have identified (overt denial, bolstering, differentiation) would you use?

Ch. 13- Constructing & Presenting Persuasive Messages

Rhetoric and Persuasion

Rhetoric is a big part of constructing and presenting a message in order to persuade an audience. Various strategies and a clear and strong thesis are on top of the list in order for a persuasive message to be effective. What do you think is the most important element or rhetoric for a message to be persuasive? What exactly does a persuasive message evoke, in your opinion?

Gestalt Values

In visual designs, the Gestalt approach is a disconsidered theory when looking at the elements of a visual image. However, Gestalists' psychological work makes a lot of sense. Woodward and Denton state, "A Gestalt approach to the layout of images and text assumes that certain choices create messages that are unified and perceptually satisfying." From what I understood, according to this approach, we look at an image as a whole but only some of it sticks in our minds. But if elements were used in a certain way, the whole image would speak to us as opposed to just parts or a portion of it. In your opinion, where do you think the effectivity of an image or a message exists?-- On the way we perceive a message (whether it pertains to us as an individual) or solely the way the message is constructed regardless of whether it affects us or not?

Food For Thought...

When I think of visual rhetoric, I immediately think of billboards (and brand adverstising in general-- not so much of getting messages across). However in the textbook, Woodward and Denton touches upon several visual images that ought to convey a message (alcohol abuse, cigarette effects, etc.) I was just wondering what some clothing brands are trying to convey and/or persuade other than promoting the brand itself. Take Abercrombie and Fitch for instance, they have the reputation of having half-naked models as their poster people. Their target audience is not exactly adults, but adolescents. Is this still considered approriate and do you think it follows the ethical values of visual rhetoric? Moreover, what are they trying to persuade?