{"id":95,"date":"2015-08-13T21:14:12","date_gmt":"2015-08-13T21:14:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.candelalearning.com\/standupspeakoutxmaster\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=95"},"modified":"2015-08-13T21:14:12","modified_gmt":"2015-08-13T21:14:12","slug":"why-conclusions-matter","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/chapter\/why-conclusions-matter\/","title":{"raw":"Why Conclusions Matter","rendered":"Why Conclusions Matter"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-highlight\">\r\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>Understand the basic benefits of a strong conclusion.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Explain the serial position effect and its importance on public speaking.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\nAs public speaking professors and authors, we have seen many students give otherwise good speeches that seem to fall apart at the end. We\u2019ve seen students end their three main points by saying things such as \u201cOK, I\u2019m done\u201d; \u201cThank God that\u2019s over!\u201d; or \u201cThanks. Now what? Do I just sit down?\u201d It\u2019s understandable to feel relief at the end of a speech, but remember that as a speaker, your conclusion is the last chance you have to drive home your ideas. When a speaker opts to end the speech with an ineffective conclusion\u2014or no conclusion at all\u2014the speech loses the energy that\u2019s been created, and the audience is left confused and disappointed. Instead of falling prey to emotional exhaustion, remind yourself to keep your energy up as you approach the end of your speech, and plan ahead so that your conclusion will be an effective one.\r\n\r\nOf course, a good conclusion will not rescue a poorly prepared speech. Thinking again of the chapters in a novel, if one bypasses all the content in the middle, the ending often isn\u2019t very meaningful or helpful. So to take advantage of the advice in this chapter, you need to keep in mind the importance of developing a speech with an effective introduction and an effective body; if you have these elements, you will have the foundation you need to be able to conclude effectively. Just as a good introduction helps bring an audience member into the world of your speech, and a good speech body holds the audience in that world, a good conclusion helps bring that audience member back to the reality outside of your speech.\r\n\r\nIn this section, we\u2019re going to examine the functions fulfilled by the conclusion of a speech. A strong conclusion serves to signal the end of the speech and to help your listeners remember your speech.\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch11_s01_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Signals the End<\/h2>\r\nThe first thing a good conclusion can do is to signal the end of a speech. You may be thinking that showing an audience that you\u2019re about to stop speaking is a \u201cno brainer,\u201d but many speakers really don\u2019t prepare their audience for the end. When a speaker just suddenly stops speaking, the audience is left confused and disappointed. Instead, we want to make sure that audiences are left knowledgeable and satisfied with our speeches. In Section 11.2 \"Steps of a Conclusion\", we\u2019ll explain in great detail about how to ensure that you signal the end of your speech in a manner that is both effective and powerful.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch11_s01_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Aids Audience\u2019s Memory of Your Speech<\/h2>\r\nThe second reason for a good conclusion stems out of some very interesting research reported by the German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus back in 1885 in his book <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Memory: A Contribution to Experimental Psychology<\/em>.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn11_001\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]Ebbinghaus, H. (1885). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Memory: A contribution to experimental psychology<\/em> [Online version]. Retrieved from <a class=\"im_link\" href=\"http:\/\/psychclassics.yorku.ca\/Ebbinghaus\/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/psychclassics.yorku.ca\/Ebbinghaus\/index.htm<\/a>[\/footnote]<\/span> Ebbinghaus proposed that humans remember information in a linear fashion, which he called the <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">serial position effect<\/span><\/span>. He found an individual\u2019s ability to remember information in a list (e.g., a grocery list, a chores list, or a to-do list) depends on the location of an item on the list. Specifically, he found that items toward the top of the list and items toward the bottom of the list tended to have the highest recall rates. The serial position effect basically finds that information at the beginning of a list (<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">primacy<\/span><\/span>) and information at the end of the list (<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">recency<\/span><\/span>) are easier to recall than information in the middle of the list.\r\n\r\nSo what does this have to do with conclusions? A lot! Ray Ehrensberger wanted to test Ebbinghaus\u2019 serial position effect in public speaking. Ehrensberger created an experiment that rearranged the ordering of a speech to determine the recall of information.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn11_002\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]Ehrensberger, R. (1945). An experimental study of the relative effectiveness of certain forms of emphasis in public speaking. <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Speech Monographs, 12<\/em>, 94\u2013111. doi: 10.1080\/03637754509390108[\/footnote]<\/span> Ehrensberger\u2019s study reaffirmed the importance of primacy and recency when listening to speeches. In fact, Ehrensberger found that the information delivered during the conclusion (recency) had the highest level of recall overall.\r\n<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-success\">\r\n<h3>Key Takeaways<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>A strong conclusion is very important because it\u2019s a speaker\u2019s final chance to really explain the importance of her or his message and allows the speaker to both signal the end of the speech and help the audience to remember the main ideas. As such, speakers need to thoroughly examine how they will conclude their speeches with power.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>The serial position effect is the idea that people remember ideas that are stated either first (primacy) or last (recency) in a list the most. It is important to speech conclusions because restating your main ideas helps you to take advantage of the recency effect and helps your audience remember your ideas.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-info\">\r\n<h3>Exercises<\/h3>\r\n<ol>\r\n\t<li>Think about a recent speech you heard either in class or elsewhere. Did the speaker have a strong conclusion? List the elements of the conclusion that were particularly effective and ineffective. Identify two ways you could have made the speaker\u2019s conclusion stronger.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>After listening to a speech or class lecture, close your eyes and say aloud the main points you remember from the presentation. Does your memory follow what you would expect according to the serial position effect?<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\n","rendered":"<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-highlight\">\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Understand the basic benefits of a strong conclusion.<\/li>\n<li>Explain the serial position effect and its importance on public speaking.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>As public speaking professors and authors, we have seen many students give otherwise good speeches that seem to fall apart at the end. We\u2019ve seen students end their three main points by saying things such as \u201cOK, I\u2019m done\u201d; \u201cThank God that\u2019s over!\u201d; or \u201cThanks. Now what? Do I just sit down?\u201d It\u2019s understandable to feel relief at the end of a speech, but remember that as a speaker, your conclusion is the last chance you have to drive home your ideas. When a speaker opts to end the speech with an ineffective conclusion\u2014or no conclusion at all\u2014the speech loses the energy that\u2019s been created, and the audience is left confused and disappointed. Instead of falling prey to emotional exhaustion, remind yourself to keep your energy up as you approach the end of your speech, and plan ahead so that your conclusion will be an effective one.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, a good conclusion will not rescue a poorly prepared speech. Thinking again of the chapters in a novel, if one bypasses all the content in the middle, the ending often isn\u2019t very meaningful or helpful. So to take advantage of the advice in this chapter, you need to keep in mind the importance of developing a speech with an effective introduction and an effective body; if you have these elements, you will have the foundation you need to be able to conclude effectively. Just as a good introduction helps bring an audience member into the world of your speech, and a good speech body holds the audience in that world, a good conclusion helps bring that audience member back to the reality outside of your speech.<\/p>\n<p>In this section, we\u2019re going to examine the functions fulfilled by the conclusion of a speech. A strong conclusion serves to signal the end of the speech and to help your listeners remember your speech.<\/p>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch11_s01_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Signals the End<\/h2>\n<p>The first thing a good conclusion can do is to signal the end of a speech. You may be thinking that showing an audience that you\u2019re about to stop speaking is a \u201cno brainer,\u201d but many speakers really don\u2019t prepare their audience for the end. When a speaker just suddenly stops speaking, the audience is left confused and disappointed. Instead, we want to make sure that audiences are left knowledgeable and satisfied with our speeches. In Section 11.2 &#8220;Steps of a Conclusion&#8221;, we\u2019ll explain in great detail about how to ensure that you signal the end of your speech in a manner that is both effective and powerful.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch11_s01_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Aids Audience\u2019s Memory of Your Speech<\/h2>\n<p>The second reason for a good conclusion stems out of some very interesting research reported by the German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus back in 1885 in his book <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Memory: A Contribution to Experimental Psychology<\/em>.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn11_001\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Ebbinghaus, H. (1885). Memory: A contribution to experimental psychology [Online version]. Retrieved from http:\/\/psychclassics.yorku.ca\/Ebbinghaus\/index.htm\" id=\"return-footnote-95-1\" href=\"#footnote-95-1\" aria-label=\"Footnote 1\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Ebbinghaus proposed that humans remember information in a linear fashion, which he called the <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">serial position effect<\/span><\/span>. He found an individual\u2019s ability to remember information in a list (e.g., a grocery list, a chores list, or a to-do list) depends on the location of an item on the list. Specifically, he found that items toward the top of the list and items toward the bottom of the list tended to have the highest recall rates. The serial position effect basically finds that information at the beginning of a list (<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">primacy<\/span><\/span>) and information at the end of the list (<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">recency<\/span><\/span>) are easier to recall than information in the middle of the list.<\/p>\n<p>So what does this have to do with conclusions? A lot! Ray Ehrensberger wanted to test Ebbinghaus\u2019 serial position effect in public speaking. Ehrensberger created an experiment that rearranged the ordering of a speech to determine the recall of information.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn11_002\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Ehrensberger, R. (1945). An experimental study of the relative effectiveness of certain forms of emphasis in public speaking. Speech Monographs, 12, 94\u2013111. doi: 10.1080\/03637754509390108\" id=\"return-footnote-95-2\" href=\"#footnote-95-2\" aria-label=\"Footnote 2\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[2]<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Ehrensberger\u2019s study reaffirmed the importance of primacy and recency when listening to speeches. In fact, Ehrensberger found that the information delivered during the conclusion (recency) had the highest level of recall overall.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-success\">\n<h3>Key Takeaways<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>A strong conclusion is very important because it\u2019s a speaker\u2019s final chance to really explain the importance of her or his message and allows the speaker to both signal the end of the speech and help the audience to remember the main ideas. As such, speakers need to thoroughly examine how they will conclude their speeches with power.<\/li>\n<li>The serial position effect is the idea that people remember ideas that are stated either first (primacy) or last (recency) in a list the most. It is important to speech conclusions because restating your main ideas helps you to take advantage of the recency effect and helps your audience remember your ideas.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-info\">\n<h3>Exercises<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li>Think about a recent speech you heard either in class or elsewhere. Did the speaker have a strong conclusion? List the elements of the conclusion that were particularly effective and ineffective. Identify two ways you could have made the speaker\u2019s conclusion stronger.<\/li>\n<li>After listening to a speech or class lecture, close your eyes and say aloud the main points you remember from the presentation. Does your memory follow what you would expect according to the serial position effect?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-95\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Shared previously<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Public Speaking: Practice and Ethics. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Anonymous. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Anonymous. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/2012books.lardbucket.org\/books\/public-speaking-practice-and-ethics\/\">http:\/\/2012books.lardbucket.org\/books\/public-speaking-practice-and-ethics\/<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section><hr class=\"before-footnotes clear\" \/><div class=\"footnotes\"><ol><li id=\"footnote-95-1\">Ebbinghaus, H. (1885). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Memory: A contribution to experimental psychology<\/em> [Online version]. Retrieved from <a class=\"im_link\" href=\"http:\/\/psychclassics.yorku.ca\/Ebbinghaus\/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/psychclassics.yorku.ca\/Ebbinghaus\/index.htm<\/a> <a href=\"#return-footnote-95-1\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 1\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-95-2\">Ehrensberger, R. (1945). An experimental study of the relative effectiveness of certain forms of emphasis in public speaking. <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Speech Monographs, 12<\/em>, 94\u2013111. doi: 10.1080\/03637754509390108 <a href=\"#return-footnote-95-2\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 2\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":9,"menu_order":2,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Public Speaking: Practice and Ethics\",\"author\":\"Anonymous\",\"organization\":\"Anonymous\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/2012books.lardbucket.org\/books\/public-speaking-practice-and-ethics\/\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by-nc-sa\",\"license_terms\":\"\"}]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-95","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":93,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/95","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/95\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":434,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/95\/revisions\/434"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/93"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/95\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=95"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=95"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=95"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}