5 manipulation techniques that affect us and that we use
Manipulation is an act that involves abuse of power because it involves using discursive elements to control the cognition, affect and behaviour of one or more people. It is often confused or mixed with other similar processes: argumentation and persuasion, but they are not the same thing.
In this article we explain what manipulation is and how it differs from persuasion and argumentation. We also present some examples of manipulation techniques that are often used.
Argument, persuasion and manipulation are not the same
Both argumentation and persuasion and manipulation can take the form of oral or written discourse and in very general terms serve to defend an idea or an attitude , so it is very easy to confuse them. What makes them different is the purpose that each one pursues, as well as their particular elements.
Argumentation is an activity that consists of giving logic and coherence to an idea in order to defend it. In other words, it is when we establish a reasoning with a specific purpose: to justify or refute that same or another reasoning.
On the other hand, persuasion occurs when the argument has one more purpose: it is not only used to defend or refute an idea, but is aimed at modifying the interlocutor’s behavior .
Furthermore, manipulation is when the argument is used to modify or direct the behaviour of the interlocutor, but based on two main elements and purposes: power, or rather the abuse of power, which translates into domination.
It can be very subtle (usually goes unnoticed) and can form the basis of symbolic violence, as it results in favouring the interests of one party and harming those of the other.
Therefore, manipulation can be analyzed from three dimensions (Van Dijk, 2006): a social dimension, which is the one exercised by the elites that have access to the public discourse and therefore its influence is on a large scale; a cognitive dimension that consists of controlling the mental models and the social representations; and a discursive dimension, which consists of using linguistic elements to be able to impact both the mental schemes and the behaviours of a person or of a whole group.
Some manipulation techniques
Studies on how some groups or individuals manipulate others have become very frequent in recent decades, especially in the area of media , advertising and political activity.
Thanks to this we have been able to identify some manipulation strategies that we can easily fall into without realizing it, both in our interpersonal relationships and in what we see daily on TV or the Internet.
Although we could exemplify many more, below we will review 5 of the most common manipulation techniques.
1. Playing with feelings and emotions
Controlling the affective dimension is one of the most powerful tools because makes the receivers reaffirm their opinions and positions without necessarily having gone through a logical, reflexive or critical reasoning.
An example could be the activity of the tabloids, which is the one that exaggerates the news giving the information a touch of sensationalism rather than rigour, because the objective is precisely to appeal to the emotional dimension of the readers and their previous experiences, and with this, to increase visits or sales.
2. Simplify the message and include strong statements
It consists of controlling the cognitive elements that allow us to process and understand a message . It is when quick and emphatic conjectures are used that do not give the possibility of deep analysis, which is basically intentionally hindering the understanding of the argument.
For example, when a small part of a text is printed in large, underlined letters at the beginning, which in addition to immediately attracting our attention and activating short-term memory, causes us to have a partial or biased understanding of the information.
3. Resorting to what an authority says or thinks
It is when a position is justified by the presentation of a person or a figure who is socially recognized as a competent authority. This is useful because we often tend to consider more the opinions, indications or activities of someone we admire or someone who is in a position of power.
This can involve anything from the opinion of a priest or a president, to that of an artist or a family member, and its effectiveness depends on the context in which the group or the person operates .
4. Individualize conflicts and make people think they are always the same
It is when a situation, especially if it is a conflict situation, is reduced to what one person or one group of people does, says or thinks, hiding all the other variables, agents or groups that also influence or are affected by that situation, contributing to the generalization of a knowledge, affection, attitude or ideology .
An example is found in cases where an attack is represented in the mass media as an isolated event, or as the act of a “madman” (which invites us to fear all those who resemble him), instead of being represented as the result of complex political and social conflicts.
5. Use and reinforce stereotypes
In very broad terms, stereotypes are behavioural qualities that are attributed in a simplified and almost automatic way to a person or a group of people.
They are useful as a persuasion technique because they allow control of values and judgments without having to deeply justify the arguments and without allowing the receiver to question himself widely, that is, the interest in deep and reflexive information is not favoured.
Bibliographic references:
- GarcÃa, M. (2014). The manipulation in the construction of the international reality. Revista Razón y Palabra, 17 [Online] Retrieved March 5, 2018. Available in https://idus.us.es/xmlui/bitstream/handle/11441/17224/file_1.pdf?sequence=1
- Roiz, M. (1966). Modern techniques of persuasion. Retrieved April 5, 2018. Available at http://imagenes.mailxmail.com/cursos/pdf/2/tecnicas-modernas-persuasion-2442.pdf
- Van Dijk, T. (2006). Discourse and manipulation: theoretical discussion and some applications. Signos Magazine, 39(60): 49-74.