Persuasion, Manipulation, & Seduction

Much of human communication involves attempts to influence. It is done verbally and non-verbally; consciously and unconsciously; honestly and deceitfully. Some people may be swayed with reason and logic or by emotions and character. There is no doubt that the power to persuade is a coveted tool for anyone regardless of how they wish to use it. However, beyond simple persuasion are other acts of influence that are just as powerful. The three terms, persuasion, manipulation, and seduction are sometimes used interchangeable when describing influential behavior. However, there are subtle and blatant differences between the three concepts. While using anyone of these methods could yield the same result for an influencer, there are clear differences in the way they are done.

Persuasion

Persuasion is the act of influencing others, who are conscious of the intent, through communication. That is they are conscious that attempted influencing is taking place. Also it is under the assumed umbrella of free will meaning that there is no form of duress or outside pressure involved that would force influence. Persuasion is an honest approach to influence in the context that there is an acknowledgment of attempt.

Manipulation

While persuasion is an act that takes place between at least two conscious parties, manipulation happens when the side being influenced is not aware of it. Our brain is setup to learn a vast amount of normalcy in life which can be executed unconsciously. There are certain stereotypes, frames, and schemes encoded in humans that make up their cultural programming (Codoban, 2006). That is a human is programmed over time to execute everyday decisions mindlessly based on the expected behavior of themselves and others. Manipulation takes place when a conscious person triggers an automatic response from an unconscious thinker.

Seduction

The art of seduction, as it is often described, is a kin to persuasion as its intent to influence is known. What sets it apart, however, is the influencer (seducer) is setup to be the object of desire that will complete the missing parts of audience so that they may be complete (Codoban, 2006). Seduction is also a kin to manipulation as is draws upon social programming and natural responses of people. As the term is used mostly in the relationships of a man and a woman (or sexual preference), there are many programmed and natural responses that take place when a seducer successfully makes themselves the object of another’s desire.

Sometimes the lines may be blurred when influencing takes place. There are definite moral stigmas attached to each of these influencing techniques. While persuasion has a broad connotation of simple attempts of influence to any or all audiences, manipulation and seduction have specific undertones of being immoral. While manipulation has the power to be an effective technique for wrong doing, it also happens every day when a parent tricks their child into acting or thinking in the right manner. And while seduction can build sexual relationships based on false intentions, at its core it may just be a desire to be desired by someone. It is important to realize that a lot of our constant communication is spent influencing others or being influenced by others. The choice is yours of how open you are to different influences and how you choose to influence others.

References
Codoban, A. (2006). From persuasion to manipulation and seduction. JSRI. 14(151 to 158). Retrieved July 29, 2009, from http://www.jsri.ro/new/?download=jsri_14_articol_14_aurel_codoban.pdf