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final_aam_misrepresentingtheoppositionandrhetoricalsuccess.pdf
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28/01/2027
Journal article

(Mis)representing the Opposition and Rhetorical Success : Experimental Evidence on Faithful and Inaccurate Reformulations

BLE-BLL

  • 2026
Published in:
  • 2026. - 2026, vol. 40, no. 1
straw man
misrepresentation
steel man
persuasion
trustworthiness
experimental research
English Previous research in argumentation has closely examined distortions of the opposition, particularly the straw man, and has recently provided some experimental evidence on their effects on persuasive outcomes. However, comparatively little empirical attention has been given to the inverse practice of faithfully reformulating an opponent’s contribution. The effects of accurate and inaccurate representations on speaker ethos and perceived reasonableness also remain underexplored. This paper addresses these gaps through three pre-registered experimental studies comparing accurate reformulation, misrepresentation, and no reformulation of the opposition. Experiment 1 assesses the impact of these practices on perceived trustworthiness using a six-item, 7-point semantic differential scale. Experiment 2 examines judgments of reasonableness using a scale repeatedly employed in pragma-dialectical effectiveness research. Experiment 3 measures persuasiveness at both the attitudinal and behavioral intention levels. Participants read a series of pre-tested argumentative exchanges between two speakers in a charitable-giving context. Results show that, in the cases examined, misrepresenting the opposition negatively impacted both trustworthiness and reasonableness judgments, addressing concerns that adhering to dialectical standards may diminish rhetorical success.
Faculty
Faculté des lettres et des sciences humaines
Department
Département d'anglais
Language
  • English
Classification
Language, linguistics
License
License undefined
Open access status
green
Identifiers
Persistent URL
https://folia.unifr.ch/unifr/documents/334953
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