Encouraging Replotting to Promote Persuasion: How Imagining Alternative Plotlines Influences Message Processing and Intentions

Abstract

This set of studies investigated replotting as a mechanism of narrative persuasion. Replotting involves both the cognitive act of imagining alternative plot lines to avoid an undesirable story outcome and an accompanying emotion such as anger, anxiety, or sadness. Both studies utilized a 2 (story outcome: death vs. survivor) × 2 (efficacy appeal: present vs. absent) message experiment design. Study 1 ( N = 1,207) tested a non-narrative efficacy appeal appended to the story and assessed replotting anger. Study 2 ( N = 716) tested an efficacy appeal embedded within the narrative and assessed replotting anger, anxiety, and sadness. Death narratives generated greater replotting sadness across efficacy conditions and greater replotting anger and anxiety when a narrative efficacy appeal was not included in the story. Replotting was negatively related to counterarguing and positively related to message elaboration. Replotting influenced behavioral intention either via counterarguing or message elaboration dependent on the efficacy condition.