Message Elaboration Research Articles

An Examination of Message Elaboration as a Moderator of Psychological Reactance

The current study advances the literature on psychological reactance theory by examining the moderating role of message elaboration on the reactance process. Participants (N = 512) were randomly assigned to a message condition (freedom-threatening vs. non-freedom-threatening language) in a between-subjects quasi-experimental design. Message elaboration was not manipulated but rather varied naturally. Two topics were examined (energy conservation and organ donation). Results demonstrated that freedom-threatening language was positively associated with perceived freedom threat for both topics. No interaction effect of message elaboration and freedom-threatening language on perceived freedom threat was observed for either topic. Findings are discussed in terms of the theoretical and practical contributions of the current study.

Funny Cats and Politics: Do Humorous Context Posts Impede or Foster the Elaboration of News Posts on Social Media?

On Social Network Sites (SNS), citizens are frequently exposed to political news posts embedded in humorous context posts, such as funny videos or pictures. Using data from two experimental studies and a two-wave panel study, we test the effect of exposure to humorous context posts on message elaboration, and the consequences for political participation and knowledge. Results from the experimental studies indicated that incidental exposure to political posts in the context of humorous posts can increase message elaboration and in turn knowledge and participation. In line with these findings, results from the panel analysis revealed that exposure to humorous posts boosted message elaboration only among individuals who rarely used SNS for news. However, for citizens who use SNS for news more frequently, the effect of humor exposure on elaboration turned negative. While the panel data suggest that message elaboration positively affected political participation, there was no positive effect on knowledge.

The “Angelina Effect” and Audience Response to Celebrity vs. Medical Expert Health Messages: an Examination of Source Credibility, Message Elaboration, and Behavioral Intentions

The purpose of this investigation is to examine responses to celebrity vs. medical experts’ health messages. Data were collected online from 357 participants at a large southwestern university. Results indicate that participants found the celebrity to be more credible than the medical expert in offering the health message. Women elaborated on the female celebrity’s health message to a significantly greater degree than men elaborated on the male celebrity health message. Regarding behavioral intentions (e.g., raise awareness, learn more, get screened, and encourage screening) due to the health message, men reported greater behavioral intentions due to the male celebrity message than the male medical expert message. Finally, women reported greater behavioral intentions due to the female medical expert’s message than men reported due to a male medical expert’s message. Discussion and future directions follow.

Quick question or intensive inquiry: The role of message elaboration in the effectiveness of self-persuasive anti-alcohol posters.

Self-persuasion (i.e., generating your own arguments) is often more persuasive than direct persuasion (i.e., being provided with arguments), even when the technique is applied in media messages by framing the message as a question. It is unclear, however, if these messages are more persuasive when viewed for a long period to allow more elaboration about the message, or for a short period to reduce elaboration. In the current experiment, this is addressed by examining whether anti-alcohol posters framed as a statement (direct persuasion) or an open-ended question (self-persuasion) are more effective to reduce alcohol consumption under conditions of short- or long message exposure, compared to a control condition (no poster). Additionally, the potentially moderating roles of self-perceived alcohol identity and self-esteem on both types of persuasion are examined. Participants (N = 149) were exposed to a self-persuasion or direct persuasion anti-alcohol poster, either briefly before or continuously during a bogus beer taste task. The amount of alcohol consumed was the covert dependent variable. Contrary to expectations, both posters failed to affect alcohol consumption, regardless of exposure length. No moderation effects for self-perceived alcohol identity and self-esteem of the participants were found. Possible explanations are discussed.

Communicating value to enhance service visualization

PurposeThis study aims to examine the effects of enhanced visualization of intangible service value through integration of means-end perspectives on advertising effectiveness.Design/methodology/approachBanking advertisements, incorporating message stimuli derived from salient values desired by the financial consumers and designed to assist message elaboration and stimulate personal relevance, were developed to examine the influence of cognitive connectivity on vividness of intangible service benefits and service advertising effectiveness.FindingsThe findings demonstrate that greater cognitive connectivity positively affects perceived tangibility, attitude toward the advertisement and attitude toward the brand. Additionally, the results indicated that perceived personal relevance has higher influence on envisioning service components, compared to one’s ability to connect visual cues to perceived benefits and to immediate end-goals.Research limitations/implicationsThis study incorporated visual stimuli limited only to financial security and social recognition. Future research should aim to examine the effects of different types of values on consumers’ elaboration process and their ability to visualize financial services.Originality/valueThis study extends knowledge of the means-end chain by proposing a means-end cognitive connectivity construct which influences the degree that consumers are able to mentally picture intangible service attributes. This study also provides insight that different values have different degree of influence on one’s ability to visualize service.

Understanding the Effects of Message Framing on Physical Activity Action Planning: the Role of Risk Perception and Elaboration.

This study aimed to determine the effects of action planning, risk perception, and message elaboration on the creation and quality of physical activity action plans. Risk perception was hypothesized as a potential moderator and elaboration as a potential mediator of the message framing-action planning relationship. Inactive adults (N = 180; 44% women; Mage= 29.7, SD = 9.92) were randomized to one of two framed action planning messages and responded to an online questionnaire pre- and post-message. Participants were asked about two types of risk perception towards action planning: emotional and plan creation risk perception. Post-message participants were asked about their elaboration regarding the message and presented with the opportunity to create action plans, which were scored for quality. A moderation model and a moderated mediation model were tested. Emotional risk perception moderated the message framing-action plan creation relationship. Individuals with increased emotional risk perception, as opposed to increased plan creation risk perception, were more likely to create an action plan when given a gain-framed message, as opposed to a loss-framed message. The moderated mediation model was not significant, but message elaboration predicted action plan creation. Individuals with greater message elaboration were more likely to create an action plan, regardless of the message frame. Gain-framed messages may be more effective than loss-framed messages at promoting action plan creation in individuals with greater emotional risk perception. One's elaboration of an action planning message may increase their likelihood of creating a physical activity action plan.

Facts Over Stories for Involved Publics: Framing Effects in CSR Messaging and the Roles of Issue Involvement, Message Elaboration, Affect, and Skepticism

This project investigated how issue involvement and positive affect are related to attitude and behavioral intention in the context of episodically and thematically framed corporate social responsibility (CSR) messages. We examined mediation effects of message elaboration on issue involvement and affect as well as moderation effects of dispositional skepticism on the relationships between affect, and attitude and behavioral intention. Results from two message-embedded surveys show that for the two types of messages used, issue involvement was positively correlated with positive affect and, consequently, with attitude and behavioral intention. However, for episodically framed messages, route-of-information processing mediated the relationship between issue involvement and affect. Dispositional skepticism moderated the relationship between positive affect and attitude toward the organization for these messages but did not affect behavioral intention. Overall, the findings suggest that prioritizing fact-based messaging over story-based messaging for involved publics could improve communication of the impact of CSR programs.

Chapter 4 – Migration research and analysis: Growth, reach and recent contributions

Chapter 4 – Migration research and analysis: Growth, reach and recent contributions

The psychological mechanisms of persuasive impact from narrative communication

This paper develops and tests a comprehensive psychological model of how narrative messages persuade. In this model, perceived realism and perceived similarity are considered as the antecedents of narrative engagement variables. There are three forms of narrative engagement, transportation, identification, and parasocial interaction, which are conceptualized as the primary mediating mechanisms. Message elaboration and psychological reactance are proposed as the secondary mediating mechanisms. A web-based study (N = 374) was conducted to test this complex model. Four video clips on sexual health topics from wellknown television series were used as the stimuli. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analyses showed that perceived realism and perceived similarity were antecedents of narrative engagement. There was conceptual overlap between the narrative engagement variables, but they remained distinct from each other. There was no unique effect on persuasion from parasocial interaction. There was evidence for direct effects on persuasion from transportation and identification, as well as their indirect effects through reducing psychological reactance. However, message elaboration was found to be negatively associated with message perception. Implications for narrative communication in general and future studies were discussed.

ELABORASI PESAN HOAX DI GRUP FACEBOOK INFO WONG SOLO

Social media brings the new form of communication process, which appeared bad side of hoax messages dissemination. This study aims to find out how the media documents that include the contents of hoax messages, especially elaboration of hoax messages in the Facebook group INFO WONG SOLO with qualitative methods. This study shows, the Facebook group becomes the hoax information dissemination media. Unrecognised hoax informants are more likely to be found than informants with clear accounts. Hoax message informants tend to do political propaganda in the hoax message script. Strong argument types are used to support the informant's interests. So the audience need to recognize the characteristics of hoax messages and filtering of all information received.

Do pictures help tell the story? An experimental test of narrative and emojis in a health text message intervention

The use of mobile devices continues to grow, as does the use of mobile devices for health information and health promotion. Little research, however, has assessed how specific characteristics of a health text message intervention may impact message processing and attention. We conducted a 3X2 experiment with 426 young adults to assess the impact of narrative messages (e.g., stories) and the use of emojis on message processing and message attention. The results were mixed, although exposure to non-narrative messages without emojis resulted in increased message elaboration and perceptions of credibility. Our research highlighted that, depending on the goals and content of the messaging, message creators should consider the message format and features such as the use of emojis.

I Think Therefore I Am (Influenced): Perceptions of Social Influence on Self and Others

This research focuses on people’s perceptions and explanations of majority and minority influence, and on the socio-cognitive processes that underlie them. Two experimental studies (Ns = 89, 139) examined the effects of source status (majority vs. minority) and message quality (strong vs. weak arguments) on perceptions of influence on self and others, explanations for this influence and message elaboration. An estimation of potential (and actual) influence on self and other recipients was examined and an expected bias in perception was evident, others were thought to be influenced more than the self (i.e. a third-person perception). These perceptions depended on the greater message elaboration instigated by a minority (vs. majority) source. The reasons people offer about the potential (or actual) influence were also examined – in particular, people’s thoughts about the influential message and source’s status (i.e. the information that they receive a message by a majority or a minority influence). Results showed that thinking as an explanation of influence is more important for a majority (vs. a minority) message and this does not depend on actual cognitive elaboration but rather on self-serving processes. Overall, the results show that thinking as an underlying process of, or as an account for, influence is differentially connected with majority and minority source. These findings contribute to our understanding of perceptions and explanations of social influence and of their underlying socio-cognitive processes.

On Measures of Message Elaboration in Narrative Communication

This study assesses and compares two forms of measurement instrument for message elaboration in narrative communication research: self-report vs. thought-listing. The validity of the two forms was investigated in a nomological network consisting of need for cognition, message sensation value, identification, transportation, parasocial interaction, risk perception, and behavioral intention. Reliability was also examined. Results showed that the self-report form might be better when the focus was on entertainment-related information, while the thought-listing form might be more advantageous for persuasive information. Implications for narrative communication and future research were discussed.

Metaphors in moving images: the effect of metaphor order on message elaboration, ad comprehension, and product attribute beliefs

Marketing research has just started to explore metaphor in commercials. The present article builds upon metaphor and visual rhetoric theory in order to theorise and examine metaphor order in the realm of moving images. This study demonstrates that animated video ads that employ a linguistically counter-intuitive metaphor order, such as that a source visual object appears before a target product, increase message elaboration, but they also become more difficult to understand. Further, metaphor order interacts with the conceptual metaphor underlying an ad claim. Ad claims that are consistent with a 'container' conceptual metaphor were found to be more persuasive when the source object appears to be metamorphosed into the product whereas ad claims consistent with a 'delivery' metaphor were more persuasive when the product appears to be metamorphosed into the source object. The present article concludes by discussing the implications of these findings and highlights the importance of rendering visual dimensions psychologically meaningful.

Laughing or learning with the Chief Executive? The impact of exposure to presidents’ jokes on message elaboration

AbstractUsing the White House Correspondents Dinner (WHCD) and the State of the Union (SOTU) as stimuli, our experiment (

Metaphors in moving images: the effect of metaphor order on message elaboration, ad comprehension, and product attribute beliefs

Marketing research has just started to explore metaphor in commercials. The present article builds upon metaphor and visual rhetoric theory in order to theorise and examine metaphor order in the realm of moving images. This study demonstrates that animated video ads that employ a linguistically counter-intuitive metaphor order, such as that a source visual object appears before a target product, increase message elaboration, but they also become more difficult to understand. Further, metaphor order interacts with the conceptual metaphor underlying an ad claim. Ad claims that are consistent with a 'container' conceptual metaphor were found to be more persuasive when the source object appears to be metamorphosed into the product whereas ad claims consistent with a 'delivery' metaphor were more persuasive when the product appears to be metamorphosed into the source object. The present article concludes by discussing the implications of these findings and highlights the importance of rendering visual dimensions psychologically meaningful.

Message fatigue: Conceptual definition, operationalization, and correlates

ABSTRACTDespite growing concern over the public’s fatigue toward inundated health messages, communication research has largely neglected such ramifications of prolonged, real-life campaign exposure. This paper offers an initial conceptual and empirical treatment of message fatigue, an important, but understudied, side effect of campaigns. Specifically, it proposes conceptual and operational definitions of the construct and examines psychometric characteristics of a proposed message fatigue scale. The findings from two studies concerning safe sex (N = 412) and anti-obesity messages (N = 396) demonstrated solid support for the scale’s unidimensionality. In support of construct validity, the scale exhibited significant associations with message avoidance, annoyance, information seeking, and desensitization. Moreover, in an experimental setting in Study 2, message fatigue negatively predicted attention and message elaboration, while positively predicting counterargument.

Is the Marker the Message? The Role of Some Scalar Adverbs in the Processing of a Public Health Appeal and Its Effectiveness

In this study, we argue that studies in persuasive communication have been undertaken until now without considering enough the main ideas of pragmatics as regards the communication process and the use of language. In particular, we suggest that in this area of research, it could be relevant to ponder the processes involved in the message processing by taking into account the “inferential” and “intentionalist” paradigm of communication. To support our claim, we propose an experimental study designed in the area of health communication which consists in investigating the impact of some linguistic items defined as scalar adverbs on some attitudinal outcomes and the message elaboration. It shows that the introduction of such adverbs in an epidemiological information message increases the self-risk perception, the perceived relevance of the prevention programs, and as regards the message processing, reduces the cognitive elaboration of its content for the benefit of its communicative intention. The persuasiveness of such linguistic items in a preventive message as well as the conditions under which they are likely to act as peripheral cues are addressed in the conclusion of the study.

The Implications of Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) for Social Support Message Processing and Outcomes: When and Why Are the Effects of Support Messages Strengthened During CMC?

Widespread use of computer-mediated communication (CMC) for exchanging social support has raised questions about the support-related implications of CMC. This study drew from the dual-process theory of supportive message outcomes and examined the implications of CMC for support message processing and outcomes. We hypothesized that the reduced social cues in CMC would encourage greater elaboration on support message content and lead support messages to have a greater impact than in face-to-face interaction. The results of the experiment showed that, although the support message was held constant, participants in the CMC condition reported the strongest motivation to receive support, engaged in the greatest level of message elaboration, and experienced the most beneficial changes in worry and uncertainty discrepancy.

An Examination of Adolescent Recall of Anti-Smoking Messages: Attitudes, Message Type, and Message Perceptions

ABSTRACTDelayed message recall may be influenced by currently held accessible attitudes, the nature of the message, and message perceptions (perception of bias and message elaboration). This study examined the potential of message perceptions to mediate the influence of valenced attitude accessibility and message type on unaided recall of anti-smoking Public Service Announcements (PSAs). In a field experiment, ninth grade students (N = 244) watched three PSAs and responded to items on laptop computers. Twelve weeks later, follow-up telephone surveys were conducted to assess unaided recall. Both valenced attitude accessibility and message type were associated with message perceptions. However, only perception of message bias partially mediated the relationship between message type and unaided recall.