Source Reliability in Auditory Health Persuasion: Its Antecedents and Consequences

Abstract

Persuasive health messages can be presented through an auditory channel, thereby enhancing the salience of the source, making it fundamentally different from written or pictorial information. We focused on the determinants of perceived source reliability in auditory health persuasion by investigating it from two distinct angles. First, inferences on the voice (pleasantness) and person (e.g., similarity) significantly predicted perceived source reliability. In a second (experimental) study, three contextual factors (message framing, level of processing, gender matching) affected perceived reliability independently. Furthermore, perceived reliability mediated the effect of message framing on persuasion. The evaluation on source reliability in auditory persuasion seems to be affected by several factors, partly unique to auditory communication. These studies may inspire further research on auditory (health) persuasion.Health information is mostly communicated through text and images and might be presented as a reminder on a package of cigarettes or as a health message on television. However, health information can also be presented through an auditory channel. A classic form of auditory communication is the radio, which is available all over the world. Research shows that 84.8% of the American people older than 12 years listen to the radio on a daily basis (Downey, 2002; e.g., similar high percentages are found in the United Kingdom (RAJAR, 2014)). In addition, the use of online radio is on the rise (Webster, 2011). Moreover, new technological developments facilitate the use of auditory channels. In particular, MP3 is a technological advancement broadly disseminated in modern society and used by millions of people. It is now included in easy portable MP3 players, smartphones, and tablets, which makes the potential value and reach of MP3 as a channel of auditory information enormous.The present studies are on auditory health persuasion in which recipients listen to a voice that provides information concerning healthy behaviors.

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“…"; "I am planning to eat a sufficient level of vegetables and fruits during the following month.". These items were adapted from a previous study (Elbert & Dijkstra, 2015). They could be answered on a scale of 1 (not planning at all) to 7 (planning very strongly).…”

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