Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Complete the sentences with one word.

Choose the correct word.

1. You’ve got such a bad cold – you really need to look after ________.

Choose the correct word.

2. The villagers ________ have left the area because they had difficulty growing food.

Choose the correct word.

3. We’re ________ find a petrol station soon. We’ve been driving for three hours.

Choose the correct word.

4. Not until I’ve saved enough money ________ leave home and try to find my own flat.

Choose the correct word.

5. As I was ________, if we can borrow a DVD player, we’ll be able to watch the film.

Choose the correct word.

6. Please let me ________! I’m sure you have more work to do than I have.

Choose the correct word.

7. It looks ________ Myron has finally learned to play the violin.

Choose the correct word.

8. We would rather ________ on holiday in August, but we had to wait until September. In the end, we had a great time.

Choose the correct word.

10. I don’t really like loud music, but Stephen ________.

Choose the correct word.

11. It’s ________ more difficult to find a good job these days.

Choose the correct word.

12. Could you wash these ________ cups, please?

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Read the definitions and complete the words.

Choose the correct word.

1. Every time a boy walked past them, the girls started ________.

Choose the correct word.

2. Working as a dog groomer might not pay that well, but it’s a very _________ job.

Choose the correct word.

3. What’s the name of Stuart’s wife? It on the tip of my ________.

Choose the correct word.

4. My uncle is really intolerant and ________-_______. That’s probably why he hasn’t got many friends and why his wife left him.

Choose the correct word.

5. If it was ________ to me, I’d go on holiday to Sicily twice a year.

Choose the correct word.

6. I got the ________ that he was not interested in what we had to say.

Choose the correct word.

4. I’ve just started a new ________ working as a manager in a fast food restaurant.

Choose the correct word.

7. The two armies agreed on a __________ for Christmas.

Choose the correct word.

8. I arrived about an hour before the meeting, so I ________ some time looking in the shops near the station.

Choose the correct word.

10. My parents got a real ________ when they saw my picture in the newspaper. I hadn’t told them that I was going to join the peaceful demonstration.

Choose the correct word.

1. I’ve lost my job, so for a few months we’ll have to get by / back on my wife’s salary.

Choose the correct word.

2. The door made a mumble / click when it closed.

Choose the correct word.

3. The troops captured / withdrew more than 500 enemy soldiers.

Choose the correct word.

4. Each guard standing outside of the building held a machine cannon / gun and stood very still and straight.

Choose the correct word.

5. I don’t like modern art, but I quite like abstract / still paintings

Choose the correct word.

6. Could you please take some money outside / out of my wallet and go to the shop for some teabags?

Choose the correct word.

7. There’s no harm in telling a grey / white lie every now and again.

Choose the correct word.

8. Our dog always roars / barks furiously at anyone who walks past the gate.

Choose the correct word.

9. Look, here’s some chopped / sliced bread. Let’s make sandwiches.

Choose the correct word.

10. For dessert, I plan to serve ice cream with melted / poached chocolate on top.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Complete the sentences with one word made from the word in brackets.

Match the words to the same sound.

1. qualifications _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

2. chance _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

3. feelings _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

4. mortgage _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

5. revolution _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

6. neighbourhood _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

7. cut short _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

8. impression _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

9. joke _________________

Match the words to the same sound.

10. used _________________

Choose the stressed syllable.

1. ma|ter|ni|ty

Choose the stressed syllable.

2. nu|cle|ar

Choose the stressed syllable.

3. fig|ure

Choose the stressed syllable.

4. trou|ble

Choose the stressed syllable.

5. af|ford

Choose the stressed syllable.

8. de|feat

Choose the stressed syllable.

6. in|come

Choose the stressed syllable.

7. with|draw

Choose the stressed syllable.

9. cap|tiv|i|ty

Choose the stressed syllable.

10. scram|bled

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

1. Question:

In section A, the writer raises the question of whether or not ________.

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

2. Question:

The writer says that the instruction mentioned in section B ________.

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

3. Question:

How did some people react to the instruction mentioned in section B?

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

4. Question:

In both of the studies mentioned in section C, ________.

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

5. Question:

What is said about the leaflets mentioned in section D?

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

6. Question:

What did the experiment described in section D show?

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

7. Question:

The research described in section E involved ________.

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

8. Question:

In section F, the writer says that trying to persuade people to change their minds can ________.

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

9. Question:

The writer advises in section F that you should not ________.

Read the article and Choose the correct answer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

10. Question:

The writer’s purpose in the article as a whole is to ________.

In which section of the article (A–F) are the following mentioned?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

In which section of the article (A–F) are the following mentioned?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

In which section of the article (A–F) are the following mentioned?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

In which section of the article (A–F) are the following mentioned?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

In which section of the article (A–F) are the following mentioned?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SCIENCE OF PERSUASION

A
Persuasion is key to business and to much more besides. In many walks of life and in many situations, persuading people to do what you want them to do is the key to success. Is persuasion a science with rules that can be taught and learnt, or is it simply a matter of instinct and personal experience? Researchers have looked into different aspects of persuasion and come up with some interesting results.

B
One advertising copywriter, for example, came up with an approach to selling a product on a TV shopping channel via phone sales that differed from the norm for such advertising. Instead of being instructed: ‘Operators are waiting, please call now’, viewers were told ‘If operators are busy, please call again’. This might appear to have been a risky tactic – putting potential buyers off by suggesting that they would have to waste their time calling repeatedly until they finally got through to someone to take their order. But the results were extraordinary and an unprecedented number of sales resulted. The advert suggested that instead of there being lots of operators sitting there and hoping people would call, there were so many people who wanted the product that people might have to wait until they could get it. This showed just how desirable the product was. Potential customers decided that if so many other people wanted it, they definitely wanted it, too.

C
What role does choice have in persuading people to buy or get something? One study looked at the choices employees made when offered different retirement programmes. This showed that the more choices people were given, the less likely they were to choose anything at all. Another study in a supermarket revealed a similar effect of choice. A particular supermarket displayed either 6 or 24 different kinds of jam. When there were 24 jams to choose from, 3% of customers went to the display and bought one of the jams. When there were 6 jams on display, 30% of customers did so.

D
To what extent can fear play a part in persuasion? One experiment involved public health leaflets on the dangers of tetanus infection. Some of the leaflets consisted almost entirely of frightening images of infected people, with a bit of information about infection, while some contained no images at all, only information about infection. Some included information on where people should go to get tetanus injections to protect themselves, while others only gave this information and nothing else. The outcome was that the greatest number of people who went for injections were those who had been given the leaflet with both frightening images and instructions on where to go for injections. People who had been given the leaflets dealing only with infection did nothing. The conclusion was that fear paralyses people if no solution is offered, but if people are frightened and offered a solution they are motivated to take action.

E
Research has also looked into the issue of restaurants persuading people who have booked to let them know if they are not going to turn up. This shows that getting people to promise to do something makes them more likely to do it than simply asking them to do it. If the restaurant asks people to call if they can’t make it, 30% of them simply don’t turn up and don’t tell the restaurant. If, however, the restaurant asks them to call if they have to cancel and they reply that they will do so, only 10% fail to notify the restaurant in advance that they will not be coming.

F
Another aspect of persuasion concerns getting someone to change their mind. Everyone knows how hard this can be. It’s hard to prove to someone that a previous decision was wrong, and as people get older they get less and less willing to change their minds. This is because people want things to be consistent; they want their attitudes, statements, values and actions to follow a set pattern. The only way to persuade them to change is to acknowledge this by agreeing that the previous decision they made was a perfectly understandable one. This allows them to focus on your suggestion without feeling that their previous decision was wrong in any way. As a result, they may be persuaded to break out of their established pattern without feeling uncomfortable about doing so.

Listen to five people talking about their journeys to work every day. Match the speakers (1–5) to what they mention in connection with their journey (A–H).

Listen to an interview about being an artist. Choose the correct answer to complete the sentences.

Choose the correct word.

9. ________ I need is four extra hours in the day.