Reinforcement or Reactance? Examining the Effect of an Explicit Persuasive Appeal Following an Entertainment-Education Narrative

Abstract

Entertainment‐education interventions frequently include an explicit persuasive appeal, such as an epilogue, at their conclusion. This may help to overcome potential limitations of narrative persuasion by highlighting and clarifying the underlying message. Despite this potential, an explicit persuasive appeal may also undermine the subtle approach that distinguishes narrative persuasion and thereby induce reactance and/or counterarguing. The purpose of this study was to experimentally test these two possible outcomes. In particular, the effect of an explicit persuasive appeal in the context of a dramatic television program about the dangers of drinking and driving was examined. Overall, results revealed that the narrative and explicit persuasive appeal interact to influence drinking‐and‐driving attitudes. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Mortality salience influences attitudes and information-seeking behavior related to organ donation

“…Previous research suggests that this type of information can serve to increase respect for and autonomy of message recipients by reminding them that the message was intended to persuade while also preserving effectiveness of the persuasive message. 43 Limitations and future research One of the limitations of the present study is that it was run online rather than in a controlled laboratory setting, and this could have resulted into some distracted participants. Distraction behavior should have been evenly distributed across the two conditions due to randomization.…”

Television's Cultivation of American Adolescents' Beliefs about Alcohol and the Moderating Role of Trait Reactance

“…For example, low trait reactance individuals may be receptive to more explicit messages, such as Public Service Announcements, aimed at correcting the otherwise detrimental impact of TV (Moyer-Gusé, Jain & Chung, 2012); and they may especially benefit from media literacy training that promotes a more critical evaluation of media images and attempts to re-sensitize desensitized youth (Webb & Martin, 2012). …”

Alcohol Storylines in Television Episodes: The Preventive Effect of Countering Epilogues

“…In contrast, a PSA that is thematically and narratively connected to the content of the story it is designed to counter might be more effective (Stein & Albro, 1997). Consistent with this argument, a prior study found that a PSA with a message about the dangers of drinking and driving led to less favorable attitudes toward drinking and driving if it followed an episode that depicted a drinking-related accident, but it ‘boomeranged’ (led to more positive attitudes) if it followed a thematically unrelated control episode (Moyer-Gusé, Jain, & Chung, 2012). …”

“…As characters play a central role in the flow of a narrative, a counter message’s efficacy might be further enhanced if presented by a character from the episode (Adnsager, Austin, & Pinkleton, 2001; Moyer-Gusé, Jain, & Chung, 2012). Therefore, a preventive epilogue presented by a protagonist from the story should be more effective to counter a narrative depicting only positive consequences of heavy drinking.…”