HON211 Speech Introductions and Conclusions

Primacy Effect

At beginning, pay attention to what comes first

Recency Effect

At end, pay attention to what comes last

Implicit Personality Theory

Humans tend to assess others with high confidence

Two Criteria for Effective Attention Step

Capture Audience Attention, Introduce Speech Topic (A student showed his trousers to gain audience’s attention to talk about snowboarding (Horrible Example))

Forms of Attention Step

Stories, Questions, Humor, Startling Facts, Quotations, Metaphors

Recommended Criteria

Stories (Can be Personal), Quotations (Must be Unknown), Metaphor (Avoid Overused Metaphors)

Unrecommended Criteria

Questions, Startling Facts, Humor (If Not Funny)

Competence

Exhibiting expertise on a certain issue

Character

Extent to where one may seem like a good person or not

Relevancy Step

Speakers explain to audience why their speech topic is important to them (Example: Provided a stat as to why homelessness should be taken seriously in West Philadelphia)

Advice for Relevancy Step

It’s best when “Fact” Based

Credibility Step

Speakers establish unique credible expertise and experience on the speech topic

Advice for Credibility Step

Briefly inform audience on personal experiences encountered that connects to topic

Speech Conclusions Importance

Connects to Recency Effect, when provided useful content, audience will remember the end of a speech

Conclusion Summary

Review thesis and main points

Conclusion Clincher

Something powerful that drives the central idea

Rule for a Good Clincher

Never end on a summary

Rounding Technique

Speakers start with discourse, then ends making a “full circle” returning to said discourse (Bring something new with clincher)