Psychology, 5/e   Wortman, Loftus & Weaver
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Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the relationship between presidential approval ratings and the president’s power to persuade?

Though it would be hard to quantify it, there undoubtedly is a substantial relationship. Another important factor in the ability to persuade is the “affective tone” of the president. In almost all recent Presidential elections, the candidate whose campaign was more positive eventually won. Candidates who rely on criticism, pessimism and other negative statement are usually unsuccessful. The power to persuade is something that is granted by the public, and apparently Americans are reluctant to follow leaders whose message is negative.

2. Are humans fundamentally selfish and aggressive?

A more accurate description might be that humans are fundamentally self-centered and self-preserving. That may sound negative, but it really isn’t. Consider this: we would never even ask if dogs are “fundamentally selfish.” Mothers and pups aside, I’ve never know a dog that willingly shared food with another dog--at least, until the first dog was full. We willingly acknowledge that dogs are concerned with their own welfare. The same can be said, in general, of chimpanzees. We EXPECT them to be selfish. These are our close relatives, so we should not be surprised that humans often show these same tendencies.

A more optimistic way to phrase this question would be, why are most human willing, at least much of the time, to sacrifice personal gain and self-centered behavior for the good of society? We shouldn’t be surprised to find humans behave selfishly. We should be surprised that many humans DON’T.

3. Please explain empathy in a real-world setting. Is it a quality that we should try to incorporate in everyday life?

Both my son and daughter started at a new school this past year, my son Austin in first grade and my daughter Lindsay in kindergarten. Austin was assigned phonics homework within his first few weeks, but Lindsay didn’t have homework until several months passed. Her first homework consisted of a list of simple words, which she was to sound out and then use in a sentence. When “homework time” started, she absolutely refused to do it, or even look at it. She got angry and defiantly, and ran to her room. I was puzzled and more than a little upset, before I tried to figure out what was going on. Then I put myself in her shoes--in other words, I empathized with her. I wondered if she wasn’t defiant but frightened, so I went to her room (and got her to come out from under her bed) and told her about the first time I had to sound out words. I told her that it seemed really hard at first, but I found out that I could do it by reading one letter at a time and then putting the sounds together. What had appeared very difficult turned out to be pretty simple, especially when my mom or dad would help out.

Her eyes widened, and her defiance gave way to relief. We worked through the first word, and with only a little help from me she figured it out. The second word was even easier for her, and she dived into the rest of the words with excitement. We’ve had nothing but “routine” homework hassles since.

What happened? I tried to think how I would react in her situation. I realized that she had seen her brother breeze through exercises that she didn’t understand--but then neither did any of the other kindergartners--and the prospect of doing her own homework was daunting, to see the least. I remembered feeling the same way when my older sister showed me her homework. By reacting with empathy, I was able to understand what was going on and to respond accordingly. To answer the second question: personally, I believe society would derive real benefit if were incorporated empathy in our personal interaction. (Some psychologists, however, would disagree with me.) Empathy is a quality that allows us to view things from another’s perspective, and to better understand their present situation.

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