Читать книгу THE MAGIC OF PERSUASION - Dr. Azim Ostowar Ghafuri - Страница 6

INTRODUCTION

Modern economy, tremendous development in technology as well as big changes in social and political life make people increasingly dependent upon each other. Human beings look to each other for recognition, respect and understanding. This dependence of people at work in social and spiritual lives has created extraordinary changes in human relationship. Human beings both as an individual or as a group in different organisations such as political, social, religious organisations try to satisfy their basic economic, social and spiritual wants and needs.

To satisfy their needs they must manipulate their physical and social environments. To manipulate the environments people require a great many facts and information about it. Such information comes mostly from social communications or mass media has persuasive character. And this is the point I represent in my Book: „Application of Persuasion in Social Communication“.

Persuasion and persuading nowadays is becoming a phenomenon and necessity of our everyday life. We are constantly engaged in trying to transmit persuasive information and ideas to other people and also we are continually receiving the persuasive information and ideas from mass media. This reality brings studying the persuasion spheres on the top priority.

We also know today as never before in the history, people are led by their own consent, guided by their own opinion, now they are their own masters. The command of a king is no longer the word of law which should be automatically obeyed. The world has been dramatically changed in different spheres of modern technology, economy, political and social affairs. These changes of course tremendously affect the various spheres of persuasion, their meanings and understanding, their importance and applications.

To avoid misunderstanding, misusing and confusion, it is necessary to see every sphere of persuasion from different sides and perspectives. In this Book first I try to discuss the various aspects of each important sphere of persuasion such as advertising, public relations, propaganda, etc. . . . Their definitions, application as well as their importance, and proper place and roles in the to days very complex societies. Secondly I try to find similarities and differences between various spheres of persuasion, more or less clearly seen if they exist.

This Book consist of ten chapters in three parts. The first part of this Book consists of four chapters (I-II-III-IV), the description, definitions and applications of the main spheres of persuasion are discussed as follow:

The first chapter contains definitions, principals, techniques and requirements of persuasion. Besides the effect of persuasion on people’s behaviour, and also the effect of persuasive information and changes of physical and social environment on attitudes of human beings are discussed.

In the second chapter the most important, the most expensive and the most controversial sphere of persuasion namely advertising is described. In this chapter the debate in advertising, the criticism and defence of advertising, the various definitions of advertising, as well as evolution, organisation and media of advertising are explained.

In chapter III is discussed propaganda, the sphere of persuasion that has an unpleasant connotation and bad reputation. In this chapter the concept of propaganda its various definitions and types and also counter-propaganda and vehicles of propaganda are described.

Chapter IV deals with the phenomenon and the necessity of our time. Public Relations, the subject which because of the growing complexity of civilisation is a must of every business, social, religious and political institutions. This chapter with various aspects of public relations such as its necessity, definitions, evolution as well as public relations organisations, research being led and for public relations. Besides public relations media are mentioned.

The second part of this Book deals with analysis and findings concerning similarities and differences within the sphere of persuasion. This part of Book also consists of four chapters (V-VI-VII and VIII).

In the chapter V the similarities and differences between the two main important spheres of persuasion, public relations and advertising being delineated and discussed. In this chapter the relation and the effects of these spheres on each other, as well as are described the similarities and differences between them.

Chapter VI deals with distinctions between advertising and propaganda. In this chapter the aspects of non-commercial advertising, political advertising, and anti-drug propaganda and commercial propaganda are discussed.

Chapter VII discusses the relations between marketing and advertising. In this chapter the importance of marketing to advertising that takes important part in the marketing process, sales promotion, marketing research and also advertising and marketing plans and objectives are mentioned.

Chapter VIII discusses another two controversial spheres of persuasion, propaganda and education and tries to make distinction in relation between them. In this chapter are explained religion, education and propaganda, national education understood as propaganda, the distinction between education and propaganda also the significance of educational propaganda for international relations.

After chapter VIII comes chapter nine which consists the conclusion of this Book. It brings the important ideas, remarks and the main suggestions of the Book.

Finally the chapter ten is the supplement in this Book. In this supplement the characteristic features of practitioners in different persuasions spheres are described. This supplement explains which desirable characteristics and what kind of education and knowledge are required for persuasion sphere activists for performing their activities successfully.

What is very clearly seen is the process of adoption of patterns or standards from countries that had longer tradition of practising democracy. It pertains first of all to the spheres of activity that have closer ties with market and economy. Persuasion undoubtedly belongs to such spheres with all activities surrounding it, belonging or akin to it.

In the process of taking over new patterns and/or standards some shifts or changes in meaning and understanding have been made. Remarkable is for instance expansion of some notions and at the same time abandoning other ones. In this context it is worthy to mention first of all enormous expansion of the notion (as well as the sphere) of advertising. And at the same time very clearly shown is shrinking the area of using the term propaganda that now more and more is getting obsolete and applied primarily for the purposes of description of the past events and realities.

From this perspective very interesting is the task of analysing relations between other spheres of activity that are in one or other way linked with the above mentioned. Meant are predominantly such spheres as public relations, marketing or education and their surroundings.

In this context there is no need for firstly: more detailed delineating boundaries between the spheres in question and secondly, better understanding the goals and objectives they are aiming at. It is needed because one observes many mistakes and misunderstandings connecting with these spheres. It is vital because the importance of at least some of these spheres grows tremendously.