Motivated Sequence, applied to Persuasive Speech |
| The Motivated Sequence for the
Persuasive Speech consists of four or five steps: an Attention Step, a Need
Step, a Satisfaction Step, a Visualization Step,
and--for many speeches--an Action Step. |
|
Attention
Step |
| The function of the Attention Step
should be to gain the favorable attention of the audience and to focus that attention on
your topic. In designing your Attention Step, please consult the section on
"Beginning Your Speech" in our text. |
|
Need
Step |
|
The
function of the Need Step is to establish the importance and relevance of your topic to
the audience. Theoretically, if your speech
is important and relevant to us it will help us to improve our lives, to satisfy one or
more “needs.”
|
|
Statement of Need. There should be a
clear "statement of need" which explains why we need to know the information you
will share with us. What "needs" will it help us satisfy? Perhaps the
information you will share with us will save us money; perhaps it will help us improve our
grades; perhaps it will help us more favorably impress others; perhaps it will help us
better understand ourselves, our campus, our state, our world |
|
Illustration. Use one or more forms of
support which will make the "need" more vivid in our minds. You might use an
illustration, one or more examples, an analogy, or a comparison. |
|
Reinforcement. Use statistics,
testimony, or other forms of support to "prove" that the need or problem is
important. |
|
Pointing. Convince your audience
members that your speech is not only about an important problem, but that the problem is
important and relevant to them. |
|
Satisfaction
Step* |
| Look to the chapter on the
motivated sequence (especially the section on patterns of arrangement) and the chapter on
persuasive speaking for guidelines. |
The Satisfaction Step for the Speech to Persuade may be based on a
central claim of value or a central claim of policy.
If your central claim is “We need presidential campaign spending limits”
are basically be arguing that spending limits are desirable, a claim of value. However, if you argue for a specific plan for
implementing presidential campaign spending limits you would be arguing a central claim of
policy. |
| The Satisfaction Step should
consist of a central claim and supporting claims, but the order of those claims should
depend upon your own persuasive goals and your audience analysis. You may choose to begin with your central claim
and then use from three to five supporting claims—for example, you could present your
central claim, “We need presidential campaign spending limits” and then support
that claim with claims stating “Campaign spending limits will reduce the influence of
special interest groups,” “Campaign spending limits reduce the unfair advantage
of candidates with great personal wealth,” etc. |
| On the other hand, you may not
want to introduce your central claim until after you have laid the groundwork with
supporting claims; this would be especially true if the audience were unfamiliar with a
problem or skeptical. Be sure you review the
material on patterns of arrangement and the material on persuasion in our text. |
|
Visualization
Step |
| The function of this step is to
intensify audience desire or willingness to act--to motivate your listeners to believe,
feel, or to act in a certain way. The primary
strategy is to project listeners into the future and illustrate vividly the results of
accepting or denying the proposed belief--or the results of acting or failing to act as
the speaker directs. The step may be
developed in one of three ways: the Positive Projection, Negative Projection, or Contrast
(Negative, then Positive) Projection. |
|
Action
Step |
| The Action Step is optional for a
Speech to Convince, but is essential for a Speech to Actuate. The Action Step should be fairly brief--it is
your last opportunity to emphasize to vividly remind us what we are to do (or, in the case
of a Speech to Convince, what we should
believe or feel). |
|
References |
| List references, using appropriate
style (APA, MLA, or Chicago) |
|
*Notes about Organization Satisfaction Step |
| Note 1: The
five steps listed for the Satisfaction Step may not be needed in every speech to
persuade or to actuate; they also may not appear in this order. For instance, if workability is the key to the
success of your proposal, and the audience is already well-informed about it, you could
shorten the preceding steps and spend most of your
time persuading the audience that the idea can work.
Conversely, an explanation of how the plan will meet the need may be the
central issue; if so, you would want to devote more time to that issue. |
| Note 2: Parallel Development of the Need and
Satisfaction Steps. In most persuasive
speeches you will have more than one main point to stress in developing your rationale. Further, each main point may relate to a different
facet of the solution you are proposing. To
show the relationship between each main point of the Need Step and its relevant solution,
you can develop the need and satisfaction steps in .
That is, you can present the initial main point under the need step and follow it
with the facet of the solution that clearly alleviates the problem identified in that
point. This approach can be followed in the
presentation of the second, third, and even fourth main points of need. While this methods weakens the cumulative or
sequential effect of the motivated sequence, the added clarity often makes up for the
loss. |
|
Technical
Plot |
| When you outline your speech, use
two columns: a wide column on the right side of the page will accommodate your speech
outline; a narrower column on the left side should be used to label the parts of your
speech--the type of introduction you use in your Attention Step, each substep of your Need
Step, the Initial Summary, the statement of each main idea, and--very important--the forms
of support used in explaining and proving each main idea |
