ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the Persuasion Knowledge Model, present the findings of research based on persuasion knowledge, and suggest ways in which the Persuasion Knowledge Model (PKM) may be applied to other psychological contexts. Persuasion knowledge may be either a chronic, individual difference variable or a situationally induced variable that can be accessed in a variety of persuasion interactions. A consumer must draw upon his or her persuasion knowledge in order to decide whether something is a persuasion attempt. The research indicates that consumers appear to need both ability and motivation to make inferences about another's persuasion and are less likely to use persuasion knowledge in cognitively busy interactions. Another important component of persuasion knowledge is consumers' beliefs or naive theories about the tactics that marketing agents use to persuade. By emphasizing the role of the target, the Persuasion Knowledge Model provides a distinctive and important perspective on persuasion.
