Rhetorical Question, Summarization Frequency, and Argument Strength Effects on Recall

Abstract

Summarizing rhetorical questions were used in a sales presentation for a new product. In a high involvement setting, grammatical form, summarization frequency, and argument strength were manipulated. Unlike results of past studies, rhetoricals reduced argument recall. Furthermore, using more rhetoricals paired with strong arguments decreased recall, but using more rhetoricals with weak arguments did not. Message acceptance, thought verbalization, and self-reported distraction data were consistent with our recall findings.