Week 5 - Attitudes and Persuasion Flashcards
Persuasion
the process of forming, strengthening, or changing attitudes via communication
Measuring attitudes
Implicit and explicit
Explicit measures
What is your attitude?
Attitude scales
Implicit measures (indirectly measured) Involuntary muscle activity , reaction time etc
Are implicit measured attitudes more genuine than explicitly measured ones ?
gets around social desirability bias BUS stimuli and context really matters, could be activating different attitudes
Attitude Function (2 aspects)
Mastery
Object appraisal/knowledge (Knowing what you want )
Instrumental/utilitarian (getting what you want)
Connectedness
Social identity
Value expressive (showing your attitude via eg clothing)
Attitude Structure (3 principles)
Consistency of Cognitive, affect and behaviour
(always eat burritos so they’re healthy)
More ambivalence = less likely it is to predict behaviour
Negative Bias (we don’t pay attention because we don’t want to change behaviour)
Consistent & accessible = strong Attitude = better predictor of behaviour
Attitude Formation and Change
Direct and Indirect routes
Attitude Object —> Thoughts, feelings, behaviours —> Attitude
Direct link between Attitude Object and Attitude can become stronger than indirect route due to repeated activation of the link
Elaboration
Elaboration : the process of thinking about and scrutinising persuasive arguments, and generating reactions
The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM - Petty & Cacioppo, 1981)
There are two routes to persuasion, and the route that is taken will depend on the amount of elaboration (or thought) about the message
HIGH ELABORATION LEADS TO CENTRAL ROUTE TO PERSUASION
1) Central Route (central)
The process by which a person thinks carefully about a persuasive message and is persuaded by the strength of its argument and logic
LOW ELABORATION LEADS TO THE PERIPHERAL ROUTE TO PERSUASION
2) Peripheral Route (superficial)
The process by which a person doesn’t think carefully about the persuasive message, but is instead persuaded by peripheral factors
eg celebrities, attractiveness, humour etc
Two factors that influence the route to persuasion
Capacity
Factors that can reduce one’s ability to think carefully eg time pressure or distraction
Motivation
Factors that can increase one’s motivation to think carefully eg accuracy motives, more motivated if it effects you more directly
Attitude change via Superficial or systematic processing
Personality
different needs for cognition (need to understand everything)
Mood and emotion
Positive mood–>may signal safety –> process superficially
Negative mood –>may signal danger –> process more systematically
Too much can be a problem(fear appeals, you stop thinking about it)
Attitude change via systematic processing route is more long lasting and more resistant to counter persuasion
Resisting persuasion
smoking study
Initially we tend to accept arguments that support our position
Inoculation requires forewarning, forearming and counter arguing
Smoking just say no campaign didn’t work
Study
12-13 year old kids generated their own counterarguments to smoking persuasion ads
1 year later less of them smoked than the control group
Subliminal persuasion
liquid study
Strahan, et al, 2002
Experiment 1
Participants were either thirsty or not
They were subliminally primed with thirst related words
Tested the amount of liquid that was consumed
Results: the primes had an effect on participants that had been deprived of water
Experiment 2
All participant were thirsty
They were subliminally primed with thirst related words
Test: ratings of sports drink (one of which highlighted thirst quenching features)
Results: the primes had an effect on participants that watched the advert with thirst quenching features
SUBLIMINAL PRIMING ONLY WORKS IN VERY CIRCUMSTANTIALLY SPECIFIC SITUATIONS
You need to be physically ans psychologically deprived for it to work and it must meet motivational goals
