A person with low self-esteem will be more persuadable than a person with high self-esteem only when the advocated message is weak.
A person low in self-esteem will be more likely to accept persuasive messages because they believe more in other people. On the other hand, they are less attentive to persuasive messages since low self-esteem and depressed people tend to be more inwardly focused.
People with high self-esteem are less accepting but more attentive and thus better able to comprehend a message. Given that both low and high-self-esteem have some barrier against persuasive messages, the two are equally hard to persuade.
The most persuadable people are those in the middle of the self-esteem scale who are outwardly oriented enough to receive and comprehend the message but not so self-confident that they dismiss a new idea out of hand.
But there’s a qualification: when the message being advocated is weak and without merit or reason, the message will be rejected by both high and moderate-self-esteem. Hence, people with low self-esteem will be more susceptible.
(source: workingpsychology.com)
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