Ch 6: Attitudes Part 2: Feb. 28, 2012

1) Source of the persuasion (cont.)– What is the ‘sleeper effect’?

2) The Message – Primary vs. recency effect – which has more evidence? Depends on timing of decision Fear-based messages – do they work? Need to induce certain conditions –

Do subliminal messages work? Words/pictures not consciously perceived but supposedly influence attitudes or behaviors Distinction between subliminal perception & subliminal persuasion Examples? Greenwald’s experiments – Subliminal memory or self-esteem messages Manipulation: told of actual message or told of opposite message Results?

Contrast Greenwald’s experiment w/Murphy’s subliminal experiment using Chinese characters: Details - Murphy’s results: Differences from Greenwald’s experiment:

Are there strong individual differences in persuadability? 3) The Audience Are there strong individual differences in persuadability? Forewarning & resistance:

Attitude Inoculation Tactics for resisting influence/persuasion Expose people to weak attacks What is the result? Applications of this and evidence? Reactance effect:

Cognitive Dissonance Assumes we are motivated by consistency Want our attitudes to match our behaviors Festinger’s (1957) research & Cog Diss Theory: Our motivation to maintain consistency can lead to irrational behavior What is the role of tension/stress?

Festinger’s experiment: Boring task for 1 hr., then tell next participant about your experience Paid either $1 or $20 Results? The role of insufficient justification Justifying our decisions

Conditions for cog dissonance to work: