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attractiveness, or the sheer quantity of arguments presented. or a catchy jingle as a basis for decisionmakingwould entail peripheral processing. According to ELM, the two routes represent the ends, oranchor points, ofan elaboration continuum. At one end of the continuum, a person engages in low orno elaboration. At the other end. a person engages in high elaboration.G.lss and Seiter (2003: 37-40) illustrate with the example ofRex and Trudy who are on a date ata restaurant Trudy is very health conscious, so she studies the menn carefully. She looks to see whethercertain dishes are fatty or high in calories. When the waiter arrives to take their order, she enquires whatkind of oil was used to prepare the pasta. She might sound picky, but Trudy is engaging in centralprocessing. She is actively thinking about what the menu says. Rex, however, is smitten with Trudy'sgood looks. He hardly looks at the menu, and when that waiter asks for his order, he says he will havewhat she is having. Rex is engaging in peripheral processing. He is basing his decision on cues that areunrelated to the items on the menu.Wss and Seiter (2003: 37-40) acknowledge the possibility of parallel prouJ)ing, which is, usingboth routes at once. However, they suggest there is usually a trade-off between central and peripheralprocessing, such that a person tends to favour one route over the other. Whether a person emphasisesthe central or the peripheral route hinges on two basic factors. The first of these is the individual'smotiwtion to engage in central processing. Because central processing requires more mental effort, aperson with greater motivation is more likely to rely on central processing.The second factor according to C"'-Ss and Sciter (2003: 37-40), which determines whether aperson will rely on central or peripheral processing, is his or her ability to process information. i\ personmust not only be willing, but also able to engage in central processing. Some people are more adept atgrasping ideas, understanding concepts and making sense of things. Some people also have moreknowledge of or expertise in certain topics or issues than others. ·Thus, receivers are more likely toprocess a persuasive message via the central route if they have the motivation and ability to do so. Ifthey lack the motivation ot the ability, they ",'ill tend to rely on peripheral processing instead.Wss and Seiter (2003: 37-40) stare that aside from ability and motivation, a variety of otherfactors can tilt the balance in favour ofcentral or peripheral processing. These include distractions, suchas background noise, time constraints, a person's mood, or a personality trait called needfor ,vgnitio".Need for cognition has to do with how much a person enjovs thinking about things.Researchers, according to Gass and Seiter (2003: 37-40), have found that persuasion via thecentral route tends to be more long lastiog whereas persuasion via the peripheral route tends to be more48