Abstract
From the literature on resistance to persuasion in advertising, much is known about how people can resist advertising by adopting resistance strategies, such as avoidance, counter-arguing, and selective attention (e.g., Fransen et al., 2015b). However, the role of emotion regulation and bodily expression in resisting persuasion is so far underexplored. This is a surprising observation if one considers that at least 40% of advertisements use positive emotions (i.e., happiness) to persuade people to like the ad, brand, and product (Weinberger et al., 1995). In this article we present a framework in which we apply previous knowledge and theories on emotion regulation and embodiment to the process of resistance to persuasion. In doing so, we specifically address the role of facial expression in the course of resistance. The literature and findings from our own research lead us to propose that people can resist persuasion by controlling their facial expression of emotion when exposed to an advertisement. Controlling the expression of emotions elicited by an ad (for example refusing to smile) might be a fruitful way to resist the ad’s persuasive potential. Moreover, we argue that co-viewers can affect embodied resistance to persuasion. Showing the viability of embodied resistance to persuasion is relevant in view of the fact that ads trying to persuade us by addressing our positive emotions are ubiquitous. Embodied resistance might help people to cope with these induced positive emotions in order to resist advertisements and might therefore work as a novel and effective strategy to resist persuasion.
Highlights
INTRODUCTIONWhen we think about persuasion in a consumer context, we often think about advertising
AND OVERVIEWWhen we think about persuasion in a consumer context, we often think about advertising
Following the action tendency view of emotion expression, we address the general question: can we tell from facial expression whether consumers faced with an advertisement have a particular action readiness toward the advertised product? More to the point is the question: do they want it? We subscribe to the hypothesis that facial expression of emotion reflects a state of action readiness (Frijda and Tcherkassof, 1997)
Summary
When we think about persuasion in a consumer context, we often think about advertising. We found that expressive suppression and cognitive reappraisal had similar inhibitory effects on facial expression of happiness, which subsequently led to lower positive attitudes about the ad, brand and intention to buy We assume that those lowered attitudes on the side of the consumer are indicative of a successful resisted persuasion attempt. The insights proposed based on our framework lead us to recommend salespersons acting in faceto-face situations to capitalize on naturally occurring mimicry responses of their audience They should be able to influence purchase decisions of consumers by exhibiting facial expressions that when mimicked by the consumer, would increase their appetitive attitudes. Marketers can benefit from understanding the mechanism behind the new consumer resistance strategy that we propose here
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