3 Pillars of Persuasive Writing That Motivate Readers

Persuasion is an important part of scientific and medical writing. In these fields (or practices), your goal is to persuade readers to take an action, such as publishing your manuscript, citing your article, or funding your proposal.

But writing persuasively is not a simple science. Writing persuasively involves carefully considering rhetoric.

Rhetoric is the art of effective or persuasive writing (or speaking) that engages, informs, and motivates audiences. This art is rooted in the theories of Aristotle, a philosopher and polymath in the 4th century BCE. According to Aristotle, rhetoric is supported by three pillars of persuasion: ethos, logos, and pathos.

Pillar 1: Ethos

Ethos is how you persuade through the character. In other words, ethos is about establishing your credibility as a researcher or author, which builds trust with your audience. This trust is an important part of persuading readers. Readers will not change their beliefs or behaviors unless they trust you.

How do you establish credibility and build trust through scientific and medical writing? You base your ideas on previous work, whether it’s your own work or the reputable work of others. You cite sources to credit published work, or you present clear data and methods to showcase unpublished work. You also use suitable methods to carry out work that is replicable and produces accurate data. You also use appropriate statistics to analyze that data, and you use those analyses to draw credible conclusions.

Pillar 2: Logos

Logos is how you persuade through the argument. This pillar is the logic behind your content.

How do you build a persuasive argument? You craft a clear, specific, and logical message for your readers. You use patterns that help readers connect the ideas you discuss in your writing. You want to guide your readers through the logic so that they actually reach the conclusion of your argument before you reveal it. With this approach, your reader will be delighted by their cleverness to figure out your conclusion. And they will revel in this delight—further reinforcing your argument.

Pillar 3: Pathos

Pathos is how you persuade through emotions. This pillar taps into your readers’ emotions, beliefs, values, and imagination.

How do you tap into your readers’ emotions? Think about what your audience cares about. Are your readers expert researchers in your field? Tap into their curiosity and excitement about discoveries in the field. Are your readers clinicians continuing their medical education? Tap into their desire to explore challenges and solve problems. Are your readers patients who have just been diagnosed with a condition? Tap into their fears and alleviate their concerns.

The Foundation

Ethos, logos, and pathos are the three pillars of persuasion. But what is the foundation that creates solid ground for these pillars?

The foundation consists of an important theme: know your audience. To support the three pillars of persuasion, you need to understand your audience’s interests, beliefs, emotions, and expectations. This understanding will help you write in a way that showcases your credibility, builds a logical argument, and taps into your readers emotions—harnessing the power of persuasion.