Offers a critique of the narrative perspective as it relates to the National Debate Tournament (NDT) and suggests that an alternative "expert" model would better satisfy the goals of the activity while simultaneously remedying the primary shortcomings of NDT debate. (MS)

Assesses Persuasive Arguments Theory (PAT) assumptions about argument and argument influence. Reviews and critiques PAT, advancing five hypotheses to test its assumptions. Finds little correspondence between cognitive and discussion arguments in number, content, or persuasiveness. Discusses implications for PAT and for the role of communication in…

Examines the practical questions of how the enthymematic approach can be used in the classroom to help students become conscious of and more skilled in the process and shape of inquiry. Focuses on two processes that are at the heart of enthymematic inquiry: the process of discovery and shaping claims, and the process of discovering relationships…

Discusses the characteristics of rhetorical status, compares it to ethos and source credibility, and discusses social status and rhetorical status. Shows how rhetorical status enters into everyday communication by examining a protracted set of interactions between two sisters and a small-town mayor over disputed water bills. (SR)

Investigates the possibility that judicial policymaking is responsive to the situational exigencies created in part through public discourse. Investigates the elite and public perspectives regarding the eugenics controversy in the 1920s to explore the emergent relationship between the public and technical spheres of argument. (SR)

Analysis of a sociolinguistic interview reveals repeated presentation of ideas, words, expressions, and structures. These recurrent devices and patterns increase the effect of arguments. The immediate purpose is the listener's acceptance of the speaker's views. There is also a concern to gain recognition of the speaker's opinion of self and his…

Describes an exercise that teaches the reverse of promotion--demand reduction. Discusses persuasive strategies to reduce demand for a product. (SR)

Argues that United States is not "in decline," but is becoming the most influential nation in history. Cites U.S. military power, the universal language of English, the exporting of "direct culture," leadership in key industrial fields, highest per-capita income and standard of living in the world, and top-ranked universities…

Examines the relative persuasiveness of statistical evidence versus report evidence while controlling for the effect of vividness. Finds that, when report evidence takes the form of a story, statistical evidence is more persuasive after a two-day delay and, when bolstered by vividness, after a one-week delay. (SR)

Investigates the use of "bridging devices" in Lucretia Coffin Mott's "Discourse on Woman" (1849). Shows how Mott uses the Quaker concept of the "inner light" to balance the tension between her conservative cultural milieu and her radical goals. Argues that Mott's rhetoric is instructive for modern feminists who try to…

Examines argumentative flexibility as a variable influencing responses to three argumentative situations. Compares trait argumentativeness to argumentative flexibility as a predictor of argumentative behavior. Concludes by discussing the validity of the argumentative flexibility construct. (SR)

Analyzes the recognition, development, and use of the power of persuasion in American sales letters from 1905-20, as well as two other business-writing traditions that developed during this period: the "you" viewpoint and the "five C's." (KEH)

Suggests that William Perry's and Jean Piaget's theories explain the persuasive essay topic choices of freshman composition students. Notes that intellectual development stages identified by Perry reflect students' changing world views, and that Piaget found a tendency toward hypothetic-deductive thought among adolescents. Asserts that both…

Argues that rationality follows rhetoric and emerges from discourse. Asserts that teachers must empower the students by starting with honest personal writing and move to honest personal writing about public issues. Presents samples of students' writing which illustrate the problems involved in trying to sound rational when arguing personal points.…

Offers a sample scenario to illustrate ways business communicators' purposes can conflict. Describes various types of purposes in detail, suggesting how teachers might integrate discussion of these types into their coverage of standard assignments. Provides a heuristic that teachers can employ in business communication classes to encourage…