Test 3 Psychological Reactance Theory

Question 1

describe some reactance background

Answer 1

• value of personal freedom
• if feel freedom threatened–> “psychological reactance”
  
  • reactance is a “motivational state”, motivates person to reestablish threatened freedom

Question 2

what are the 4 things that explain why messages fail (not necessarily how they work)

Answer 2

• freedom
• threat
• reactance (anger, negative thoughts)
• reinstatement

Question 3

describe freedom

Answer 3

• belief that one can engage in particular behavior

- or hold particular orientation toward something

Question 4

for freedom to exist, what must occur

Answer 4

one must:

• have knowledge that freedom exist
• have the competence to exercise that freedom

Question 5

describe the threat to freedom

Answer 5

• Recognize attempt to reduce/eliminate one’s freedom
• freedomes can be threated by implication, implied threat can create reactance
• almost any kind of persuasion attempt can be construed as a freedom threat

Question 6

describe reactance to freedom

Answer 6

• “motivational state”
• recently conceptualized as combo of anger/counterarguments
• can vary in magnitude

Question 7

explain the magnitude of reactance (characters of the freedom)

Answer 7

• importance of the threatened freedom (more important=more reactance)
• number of freedoms threatened (more = greater)
• availability of alternatives to the threatened freedom (availability of alternatives=less reactance)

Question 8

explain the magnitude of reactance (characters of the threat)

Answer 8

• magnitude of the threat (greater magnitude = more reactance)
• the degree to which the freedom threat is justified (more justified = less resistance)

Question 9

how do we reduce reactance

Answer 9

• direct freedom restoration (exercise behavior associated w/ restricted freedom)
• indirect freedom restoration (exercise different freedom)
• aggress the source (take away the source, not violent)
• deny the freedom threat

Question 10

explain reactance and persuasion

Answer 10

• reactance most often used to explain the failure of a persuasion attempt
• rarely discussed as a method to increase the effectiveness of a persuasive msg/campaign