Final Thoughts: You’ve Got the Power

If you are familiar with the superhero Spiderman, perhaps you know the mantra that drives him: With great power comes great responsibility. This, we believe, is true for superheroes and arguers alike. Indeed, many of the concepts presented in this book teach you to think more critically and to argue more effectively. In that respect, you have more power than you did before you read these chapters. With that in mind, we believe you have a responsibility. As with most things (e.g., a gun, a hammer, knowledge), the ability to argue persuasively can be used for good or evil. After reading this chapter, we hope you’ll choose to use your arguing skills wisely.

Summary

This chapter examined important features of competent and ethical argument. First, it discussed several traits, some fostering competent argumentation (i.e., argumentativeness, tolerance for disagreement) and some not (i.e., verbal aggressiveness, taking conflict personally). Next, it examined several goals that communicators should keep in mind when arguing. First, arguers should attempt to create favorable images of themselves and others by respecting the positive and negative face of others. Second, arguers should consider their own and others’ moral and ethical principles, which should include creating messages that are truthful, unambiguous, and relevant. Third, arguers should attempt to create and maintain favorable relationships while arguing by valuing others and treating them with compassion, dignity, and equality. Finally, arguers should manage their emotions while being mindful of the emotions of others.

References

Alkin, A. (2010). I see rude people: One woman’s battle to beat some manners into impolite society. New York: McGraw Hill.

Avtgis, T.A. & Rancer, A.S. (2010). Arguments, aggression, and conflict: New directions in theory and research. New York: Routledge.

Badie, D. (2010). Groupthink, Iraq, and the war on terror: Explaining US policy shift toward Iraq. Foreign Policy Analysis, 6(4), 277-296, doi: 10.1111/j. 1743-8594.2010.00113.x.

Benoit, PJ. (1982, November). The naive social actor’s concept of argument. Paper Presented at the annual meeting of the Speech Communication Association, Louisville, KY.

Bok, S. (1999). Lying: Moral choice in public and private life. New York: Vintage Books.

Brockriede, W. (1972). Arguers as lovers. Philosophy and Rhetoric, 5(1), 1-11.

Brown, P. & Levinson, S. (1987). Politeness: Some universals in language usage. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Center for Relationship Abuse Awareness (2017). IVhat is relationship abuse? Palo Alto, CA: Center for Relationship Abuse Awareness. Retrieved August 28, 2017 from: http://stoprelationshipabuse.org/ educated/warning-signs-of-abuse.

Dillard, J.P. (2004). The goals-plans-action model of interpersonal influence. InJ.S. Seiter & R.H. Gass (Eds), Readings in persuasion, social influence, and compliance gaining (pp. 185—206). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Dillard, J.P. (2008). Goals-plans-action theory of message production: Making influence messages. In L.A. Baxter & D.O. Braithwaite (Eds), Engaging theories in interpersonal communication: Multiple perspectives (pp. 65-76). Los Angeles, CA: Sage.

Dillard, J.P., Segrin, C. & Harden, J.M. (1989). Primary and secondary goals in the production of interpersonal influence messages. Communication Monographs, 56(1), 19-38.

Festinger, L. (1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

Foss, S.K. & Griffin, C.L. (1995). Beyond persuasion: A proposal for an invitational rhetoric. Communication Monographs, 62(1), 2—18, doi.org/10.1080/03637759509376345.

Goffman, E. (1955). On face-work: An analysis of ritual elements of social interaction. Psychiatry: Journal for the Study of Interpersonal Processes, 18(3), 213—231, doi.org/10.1080/00332747.1955.11023008.

Grice, P. (1989). Studies in the way of words. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Griffin, E. (1997). A first look at communication theory (3rd Ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

Hampie, D. (2003). Arguing skill. In J.O. Greene & B.R. Burleson (Eds), Handbook of communication and social skills (pp. 439—477). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Hampie, D. & Dallinger, J.M. (1995). A Lewinian perspective on taking conflict personally: Revision, refinement, and validation of the instrument. Communication Quarterly, 43(3), 297—319, doi.org/ 10.1080/01463379509369978.

Hampie, D. & Richards, A.S. (2015). Attachment style, serial argument, and taking conflict personally. Journal of Argument in Context, 4(1), 63—86, doi: 10.1075/jaic.4.1.04ham.

Herbst, S. (2010). Rude democracy: Civility and incivility in American politics. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.

Hill, A. (2018, February 13). Couples who argue together, stay together, research finds. The Guardian. Retrieved February’ 22, 2019 from: www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/feb/13/ couples-who-argue-together-stay-together-research-finds?CMP=twt_gu.

Infante, D. (1981). Trait argumentativeness as a predictor of communicative behavior in situations requiring argument. Central States Speech Journal, 32(4), 2b5—272, doi: 10.1080/10510978109368105.

Infante, D. (1982). The argumentative student in the speech communication classroom: An investigation and implications. Communication Education, 31(2), 141-148, doi.org/10.1080/03634528209384671.

Infante, D. (1987). Aggressiveness. In J.C. McCroskey and J.A. Daly (Eds), Personality and interpersonal communication (pp. 157-192). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Infante, D., Chandler, T.A. & Rudd, J.E. (1989). Test of an argumentative skill deficiency model of inter-spousal violence. Communication Monographs, 56(2), 163—177, doi.org/10.1080/03637758909390257.

Infante, D. & Rancer, A.S. (1982). A conceptualization and measure of argumentativeness. Journal of Personality Assessment, 46(1), 72—80, doi.org/10.1207/sl5327752jpa4601_13.

Infante, D., Trebing, J.D., Shepherd, P.E. & Seeds, D.E. (1984). The relationship of argumentativeness to verbal aggression. Southern Speech Communication Journal, 50(1), 67—77, doi.org/10.1080/ 10417948409372622.

Infante, D. & Wigley, C.J. (1986). Verbal aggressiveness. An interpersonal model and measures. Communication Monographs, 55(1), 61—69, doi.org/10.1080/03637758609376126.

Janis, I. (1972). Victims of groupthink. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.

Johannesen, R.L., Valde, K.S. & Whedbee, K.E. (2008). Ethics in human communication (6th Ed.). Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.

Lee, T. (2016, November). The top 20 fake news stories outperformed real news at the end of the 2016 campaign. Vox. Retrieved on December 5, 2016 from: www.vox.com/new-rnoney/ 2016/11/16/13659840/facebook-fake-news-chart.

Makau, J.M. & Marty, D.L. (2001). Cooperative argumentation: A model for deliberative community. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.

Martinson, D.L. (2005, January/February). Building a tolerance for disagreement. Clearing House, 78(3), 118-122, doi.org/10.3200/TCHS.78.3.118-122.

McCroskey, J.C. & Wheeless, L. (1976). An introduction to human communication. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Nyberg, D. (1993). The varnished truth: Truth telling and deceiving in ordinary life. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

Rancer, A.S. & Avtgis, T.A. (2006). Argumentative and aggressive communication: Theory, research, and application. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Richmond, V.P. & McCroskey, J.C. (1979). Management communication style, tolerance for disagreement, and innovativeness as predictors of employee satisfaction: A comparison of single-factor, two-factor, and multiple factor approaches. In D. Nimmo (Ed.), Communication yearbook 3 (pp. 359-373). New Brunswick, NJ: Transactional Books.

Richmond, V.P. & McCroskey, J.C. (1992). Organizational communication for survival. Engelwood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Seiter, J.S. (1999). Does communicating nonverbal disagreement during an opponent’s speech affect the credibility of the debater in the background? Psychological Reports, 84(3), 855—861, doi.org/10.2466/ prO. 1999.84.3.855.

Seiter, J.S., Abraham, J.A. & Nakagama, B.T. (1998). Split-screen versus single-screen formats in televised debates: Does access to an opponent’s nonverbal behaviors affect viewers’ perceptions of a speaker’s credibility? Perceptual and Motor Skills, 86(2), 491—197, doi.org/10.2466/pms.1998.86.2.491.

Seiter, J.S. & Gass, R.H. (2010). Aggressive communication in political contexts. In T.A. Avtgis & A.S. Rancer (Eds), Arguments, aggression, and conflict: Neu/ directions in theory and research (pp. 217-240). New York: Routledge.

Seiter, J.S. & Weger, H. (2005). Audience perceptions of candidates’ appropriateness as a function of nonverbal behaviors displayed during televised political debates. The Journal of Social Psychology, 145(2), 225-235, doi: 10.3200/SOCP.145.2.225-236.

Seiter, J.S., Weger, H., Jensen, A.S. & Kinzer, HJ. (2010). The role of background behavior in televised debates: Does displaying nonverbal agreement and/or disagreement benefit either debater? The Journal of Social Psychology, 150(3), 278-300, doi: 10.1080/00224540903510811.

Sellers, M. (2004). The ideals of public discourse. In C.R. Sistare (Ed.), Civility and its discontents: Essays on civic virtue, toleration, and cultural fragmentation (pp. 15—24). Lawrence, KA: University Press of Kansas.

Shimanoff, S.B. (2009). Facework theories. In S.W. Littlejohn & K.A. Foss (Eds), Encyclopedia of communication theory (Vol. 1, pp. 374-377). Los Angeles, CA: Sage.

Shirley, C. (2015, July 30). In defense of incivility: Beware the press and politicians who bemoan the ‘tone” in politics. PoliZette. Retrieved on December 26, 2017 from: www.lifezette.com/polizette/ in-defense-of-incivility.

Spitzberg, B.H. & Cupach, W.R. (1984). Interpersonal communication competence. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

Swint, K. (2008). Mudslingers: The tu/enty-fve dirtiest political campaigns of all time. New York: Union Square Press.

Teven, J.J., McCroskey, J.C. & Richmond, V.P. (1998). Measurement of tolerance for disagreement. Communication Research Reports, 15(2), 209—217, doi.org/10.1080/08824099809362115.

Thornton, B. (2015, September 22). Three cheers for political incivility. Defining Ideas. Retrieved on

December 26, 2017 from: www.hoover.org/research/three-cheers-political-incivility.

Thornton, R.J. (2003). Lexicon of inconspicuously ambiguous recommendations. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks.

Wallace, K.R. (1955). An ethical basis of communication. The Speech Teacher, 4(1), 1—9, doi.org/ 10.1080/03634525509376710.