Identification With Characters, Elaboration, and Counterarguing in Entertainment-Education Interventions Through Audiovisual Fiction

Abstract

The aim of this article is to further knowledge of the explanatory processes of narrative persuasion in the field of health communication, using data obtained in a research study of entertainment-education based on audiovisual fiction. Participating in the study were 208 young persons between the ages of 14 and 20, randomly distributed to three different groups. Each of the groups was exposed to a different episode of the Colombian television series Revelados, desde todas las posiciones. The results showed that greater identification with the main character of the episode transmitting a prevention message was associated with greater cognitive elaboration, which in turn led to more favorable attitudes toward the topics addressed. However, counterarguing was not observed to play a significant mediating role. The findings of this study allow us to conclude that getting people to think and reflect can help persuade them, which suggests that narrative persuasion models and dual models of rhetorical persuasion can be compatible in certain contexts, such as when messages are designed in such a way that characters make explicit arguments that endorse a prosocial message through dialogues.

Persuading with Narratives Against Gender Violence. Effect of Similarity with the Protagonist on Identification and Risk-Perception

“…This study also makes a significant contribution to research into narrative persuasion and the role of emotions and identification with characters as explanatory mechanisms (de Graaf, 2014;de Graaf et al, 2012;Hoeken & Fikkers, 2014;Hoeken et al, 2016;Hoeken & Sinkeldam, 2014;Igartua & Barrios, 2012;Igartua & Vega, 2016).…”

“…In the field of narrative persuasion, it has been shown that identification with characters plays an important mediating role: For a narrative to cause a persuasive impact there must be a high identification with the characters involved (de Graaf et al, 2012;Hoeken & Fikkers, 2014;Igartua & Barrios, 2012;Igartua & Vega, 2016). In this context, identification with characters is a cognitive-affective process that takes place during reception (reading, viewing) of the narrative message, and that is linked to perspective-taking or cognitive empathy (putting oneself in the shoes of the character), emotional empathy (feeling the same emotions as the character), and the temporary loss of self-awareness (the receiver of the narrative imagines being the character, taking on his or her identity, and becoming merged with the character) (Cohen, 2001;Igartua & Barrios, 2012;Moyer-Gusé, 2008).…”

“…Previous research has shown that the characteristics of characters condition reception processes (such as appraisal of the character, emotions and identification) (Hoeken & Sinkeldam, 2014), that identification plays an important role in emotional activation (the greater the identification, the greater the emotional impact) (Hoeken, Kolthoff, & Sanders, 2016), and that, in addition, it is an important mechanism in explaining the impact of narratives on attitudes (together with emotions) (de Graaf et al, 2012;Igartua & Vega, 2016).…”

“…One of the main fields where this line of research is being applied is in health communication from the perspective of entertainment-education (de Graaf, Sanders, & Hoeken, 2016;Igartua & Vega, 2016;Moyer-Gusé, Chung, & Jain, 2011;Robinson & Knobloch-Westerwick, 2017). Many advertising campaigns (whether commercial or socially-oriented) are based on the construction of narrative messages, as in the use of publicity genres called "testimonials," "slice of life" and other story-based advertisements.…”

“Si te engancha, compártela en redes sociales”. Efectos conjuntos de la similitud con el protagonista y el contacto imaginado en la intención de compartir una narración corta a favor de la inmigración

“…Ello no solo ha supuesto un avance teórico en el conocimiento de los procesos de persuasión narrativa, sino que ha dado lugar a la aplicación de dicho conocimiento para diseñar intervenciones cuya meta final es tratar de resolver problemas sociales (Cohen, Tal-Or, & Mazor-Tregerman, 2015;Igartua & Frutos, 2017;Wojcieszak, Azrout, Boomgaarden, Alencar, & Sheets, 2017;Wojcieszak & Kim, 2016) y/o mejorar la salud de las personas (Igartua & Vega, 2016;Moyer-Gusé, Chung, & Jain, 2011;Murphy, Frank, Chatterjee, & Baezconde-Garbanati, 2013). Un segundo avance teórico que cabe resaltar es el desarrollo de modelos teóricos sobre los mecanismos o procesos que explican cómo se produce la influencia de los mensajes narrativos en las personas (Green & Brock, 2000;MoyerGusé, 2008;Slater & Rouner, 2002).…”