COMM 104 West Virginia Business College Aggression and Argumentation Discussion

Online Assignment #2: Aggression and ArgumentationPurpose: In class, we discussed the differences between constructive and destructive forms of
aggression – particularly argumentativeness and verbal aggressiveness – and how the key to
effective argumentation is refuting a person’s position on an issue (rather than attacking a
person’s self-concept).
For this assignment, you will apply these concepts by analyzing a clip from the most recent
Presidential election. In this clip, Presidential nominees Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton debate
one another concerning how the United States should approach the subject of Immigration.
Watch this video and, using your class notes and course readings from Unit 2 (Trait-Like Factors
that Affect Public Messages), respond to the following:
(1) Identify three points during the video at which either candidate attacked the other’s
position
(2) Identify one point at which each candidate attacked the other’s self-concept during the
video (you should identify two attacks total – one attack for each candidate)
(3) In class, we learned that quickly running out of arguments increases our likelihood of
engaging in verbally aggressive behaviors. Discuss two ways in which you can prepare
yourself ahead of time to engage in argumentation (rather than verbal aggression) about
controversial issues.
You may access the video clip at the following link:

This assignment aligns with Course Learning Outcomes 1 and 3.
A completed hardcopy of this assignment will be due at the beginning of your next class
meeting.