Persuading others using language online

Abstract: This study explores the dynamics of persuasive communication within the context of the r/AmItheAsshole subreddit, a platform that serves as a space for individuals to share real-life conflicts, inviting impartial judgments from the Reddit community, so-called flairs. Grounded in Communication Accommodation Theory and existing research on persuasion, the study explores the impact of language attributes on persuasive outcomes, using hypothesis testing to determine significant differences between the different flairs and two broader binary categories of blame. The research aims to investigate the impact of several language attributes on persuasion and the role of language style alignment between the communicator and the recipient in shaping persuasive outcomes. Only the attribute sentiment exhibited a visual difference between the flairs, which was significant for most flairs but non-significant for the combined categories. This complexity regarding the flair categories suggests that sentiment affects persuasion but warrants further investigation in future studies. Regarding the language style similarity, a visual difference was observed only for the difference in the attribute lexical diversity, and significant results were obtained for all tested combinations. Contrary to Communication Accommodation Theory expectations, the study found that similarity in language style, specifically lexical diversity, negatively influences outcomes, raising questions for future exploration. The study provides nuanced insights into the interplay of language attributes and persuasive success in online contexts and takes an initial step toward investigating Communication Accommodation Theory in persuasion.