Attitudinal Resources in the Process of Persuasion in the Saudi Minister of Health’s Statements during COVID-19

Abstract

This analytical study aims to investigate the influence of evaluative language on the persuasive process in the Saudi Minister of Health’s statements during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the effect of positive and negative attitudes. The analysis was conducted on a statement dated April 7, 2020, employing Martin and White’s appraisal theory derived from Halliday’s systemic functional linguistics framework. A mixed-methods approach was employed: the quantitative analysis gave the frequencies and percentages of the three subsystems of attitude resources and positive and negative resources in each, and the qualitative analysis explored and commented on the functions and processes of each subtype of attitude. The findings indicate that the Minister relied his persuasion on various attitude resources, with the affect subsystem being the most influential, followed by judgment and then appreciation. Furthermore, the results show that he based his persuasion on negative attitudes, proving that negative is more persuasive than positive.