Abstract
In the present study we investigated whether differences in the sense of agency influenced the effectiveness of both direct persuasion and self-persuasion techniques. By manipulating both the delay and contingency of the outcomes of actions, participants were led to experience either a low or high sense of agency. Participants were subsequently presented with arguments as to why a clean local environment is important (direct persuasion), or were asked to generate those arguments themselves (self-persuasion). Subsequently, participants’ cleanliness attitudes and willingness to participate in a campus cleanup were measured. The results show that techniques of direct persuasion influenced attitudes and volunteering behavior under conditions of low rather than high agency, whereas techniques of self-persuasion were most effective under conditions of high rather than low agency. The present findings therefore show how recent experiences of agency, a state based experience of control, can influence the effectiveness of both external and internal persuasion techniques.
Highlights
Our beliefs and feelings about the ability to control or influence our actions, environment, and lives, represent an important aspect of our everyday cognitive experience
Simple effects showed that direct persuasion was marginally effective when participants had recently experienced low compared to high agency (Mlow agency = 7.97, SD = 1.46; Mhigh agency = 7.24, SD = 1.41), F(1, 116) = 3.76, p = .055, η2p =
The present study revealed that the effectiveness of direct persuasion and self- persuasion techniques is influenced by experiences of control, the sense of action control known as agency
Summary
Our beliefs and feelings about the ability to control or influence our actions, environment, and lives, represent an important aspect of our everyday cognitive experience. These cognitions can greatly determine our future behavior. Consider for example how important our feelings of control are for the extent to which we form deliberate intentions and set future goals. In the present study we investigated how recent experiences of action control, or agency, can shape and determine both our ability to effectuate self-driven change, as well as influence our susceptibility to external forces. When the sense of agency is high we experience a sense of control over our actions. PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0128635 June 8, 2015
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