Rhetorical Analysis of “The Power to Persuade”

The article “The Power to Persuade” written by Kevin Dutton can be found in the March/April 2010 edition of Scientific American Mind magazine. This magazine appeals to those interested in matters of the brain, from psychology to physical structure. Kevin Dutton is a research fellow at the Faraday Institute at the University of Cambridge with a background in psychology, and is the author of various other articles and two novels related to the topic of psychology. “The Power to Persuade” was written so that Dutton could define the make up of “supersuasion” (24). Dutton attempts this through the SPICE acronym.

His language when starting off the article is very casual, and has a one-on-one quality to it as he describes his inability to persuade others most of the time (24). The use of this casual tone helps to bring the reader in, believing they have something in common with him and that maybe this article will make them masters of persuasion. Dutton gives a short background on his experience with persuasion, stating his desire to understand it better began with the idea that some are better at it than others (24). He then introduces “supersuasion”, which he describes as a “brand-new kind of influence that disables our cognitive security systems in seconds” and gives an example of a supersuader he witnessed in action on a flight (24). 

Simplicity. This is the first word of the acronym SPICE that Dutton describes. Under simplicity he states that persons are better influenced when the information coming at them is simpler, and then introduced a rhetorical strategy called the tricolon. The tricolon is a series of three words, and with these three words one is able to confirm and complete a point according to Dutton (26). He gave examples from history such as “veni, vidi, vici” from Julius Caesar and a portion of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address (26). He also continued to use the tricolon in his own writing while continuing to explain the S of SPICE, noting every time he used it. This gives those reading it a “living” example of how to use a tricolon, which may have made it easier for some readers to understand. In order to further substantiate his idea that simpler is better, Dutton described a study performed in 2008 by two psychologists at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor where students were given two identical recipes written in different texts from one another. The text that looked more complex was rated as more difficult and least likely to be attempted by the students themselves (27). The use of this study was to establish the credibility of the article by backing up the information with scientific evidence. Dutton then uses humor, which he later describes as “the most effective tools in disarming” one’s “interlocutor and becoming a supersuader” (31).

Perceived Self-Interest. The second word of the acronym SPICE that Dutton describes. Before giving the definition, Dutton starts off with another study performed by psychologists that involves one of the core principles of social influence: reciprocity. The study involved loyalty cards from two different car wash centers, where a total of eight visits would get the owner a free car wash. One card had eight circles and the other had ten circles with two already filled in. The study found that 34% of those who had the ten circle card returned all eight times to get a free car wash, while only 19% of those with the eight circle card returned all eight times to get a free car wash. This, Dutton states, is a good example of perceived self-interested because it portrays the situation to be in the best interests of the customer and not the car wash center while in fact it is good business for the latter. Dutton used this study to, once again, further his credibility by backing up the information he provided with scientific evidence.

Incongruity. The third word of the acronym SPICE that Dutton describes. Here he states that humor is a powerful influencer when attempting to persuade others, because it provides incongruity allowing one’s mind to be open to suggestion (28). Dutton describes incongruity as a “double-take” for the brain, a distraction as well as a “reframing” (28). He then inserts another study performed by psychologists, in a restaurant situation. Diners were divided into different groups within a restaurant; one group received no candy with the bill, one group received one candy with the bill, one group received two candies with the bill, and another group received one candy then the waiter turned around and returned with a second candy. Those who received one candy tipped more than those who received none. Those who received two candies tipped more than those who received one, and those who received two candies when the waiter returned a second time tipped the most. Dutton states that diners believed they were receiving special treatment since the waiter’s return to bring a second candy was unexpected; it distracted their mind (29). The description of a study, with results, serves here again to provide scientific evidence to further Dutton’s credibility of the information given. He is approaching with a lot of logic; he does not questions these studies and does not follow up with any questions, just simply uses them to further his argument and imply they are absolutely correct.

Confidence. The fourth word of the acronym SPICE that Dutton describes, stating that influence without confidence “is about as useful as an inflatable dartboard” (29). This visual provided by Dutton appeals to one’s logic; an inflatable dartboard serves no purpose since it will deflate upon impact from a dart, just as intended influence will not influence at all if one lacks confidence, Dutton states. He then brought in another study, involving ratings of wine. In this study two wine bottles were labeled with different prices, one more expensive than the other, yet they contained the same wine. Ratings were higher for the wine that was more expensive, and even “generated increased activation in…the part of the brain that responds to pleasurable experiences” (30). He then also mentioned a second study that was similar to the one mentioned above, but instead of volunteers rating the wine, wine experts did so. Similar results were found. This is where Dutton might lose some readers, because the correlation between wine experts rating the expensive wine as a better wine to confidence does not line up right away. So it may take a couple of read-overs to understand before heading on to the last word in the acronym SPICE.

Empathy. The fifth and last word of the acronym SPICE that Dutton describes. Dutton does not explain empathy; so much as give examples of when empathy has been employed. He mentions a study where “content-filtered” recordings between doctors and their patients were played for a group of students, and the students then had to guess which doctors had been sued for malpractice. The result being that they guessed correctly for each doctor, stating that doctors who were sued sounded “way more self-important” and less empathetic (31). 

Kevin Dutton’s main goal was for the reader to be able to understand why some people can influence just about anyone, and it came down to the SPICE acronym. His employment of a few of the words throughout his article reinforced his point, and allowed the reader to see how it worked in action. Dutton’s use of at least one study or experiment for every definition of the SPICE acronym further established the credibility of his article with scientific evidence. When he described the studies, they were short and simple summaries of the experiment and the results found. Instead of overloading the reader with all sorts of information, Dutton condenses it so that the reader does not wander off. The information boxes throughout the article describing persuasion in animals, humans, and the “core principles” of persuasion also brought more significance to the topic of persuasion in everyday life, while pictures kept the readers interested in the article itself (31).

Works Cited

Dutton, Kevin. "The Power to Persuade: How Masters of "supersuasion" Can Change Your 

Mind." Scientific American Mind 11 Feb. 2010: 24-31. Web.