How to Make a Politician More Likeable and Effective: Framing Political Judgments Through the Numeric Values of a Rating Scale

Abstract

Two studies examined whether the numeric values used on rating scales would in fluence judgments about British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Study 1 , conducted on the day before the 1 997 British general election, involved participants rating Blair on the attributes of caring, friendliness, honesty, and intelligence. For all partici pants, the verbal endpoints were "not at all" and "extremely." However, the nu meric values associated with these endpoints were either -5 and +5 or 0 and 10. The results supported the prediction: Trait ratings of Blair were more favorable in the -5 to +5 condition. Study 2, conducted less than one week after Blair's victory in the election, explored whether trait ratings (as elicited from a numeric values ma nipulation) would impact a subsequent judgment about Blair's predicted effective ness as Prime Minister. The results supported the hypothesis: Participants used their earlier responses to derive their second judgment, such that Blair was expected to be more effective when he had previously been rated on a -5 to +5 scale. Implica tions of the findings on social judgments and political attitudes are discussed.Over the years, polls have become a vital component of the political process. During political campaigns, poll results are often used in an attempt to manipulate public opinion. Indeed, recent research has re vealed that polls are effective in influencing voters' preferences and behavior. A favorable poll result can exaggerate a candidate's popu larity and lead undecided voters to join a political bandwagon (Morwitz & Pluzinski, 1996). However, polls and other public opinion

Changing Student Evaluations by Means of the Numeric Values of Rating Scales

“…This effect has been replicated several times. For example, a more recent study by Haddock and Carrick (1999) found that participants rated the British Prime Minister (Tony Blair) as being more caring, friendly, honest and intelligent when they responded on -5 to +5 scales compared with responses on the conceptually equivalent unipolar scale (see also Schwarz and Hippler, 1995).…”