when is a favor a threat to freedom: The effects of attribution and importance of freedom on reciprocity1

Psychological Reactance and Persuasive Health Communication: A Test and Extension of the Intertwined Model

“…In the context of social influence, reactance can prompt freedom‐restoring responses that lead individuals to reject a message and, thus, cause persuasive campaigns to be ineffective. Studies in which there is a clear attempt to restrict or eliminate individuals’ freedoms suggest that reactance causes message rejection in the form of increased liking for the activity or choice that was threatened (Brehm, Stires, Sensenig, & Shaban, 1966; Hammock & Brehm, 1966), derogating the source (Kohn & Barnes, 1977), denial of the threat (Worchel, Andreoli, & Archer, 1976), enacting a different freedom to gain a feeling of choice and control (Wicklund, 1974), and a boomerang effect in one’s position on an issue (Worchel & Brehm, 1970).…”

Reactions to help: Reciprocity, responsibility and reactance

“…Various circumstances may lead the recipient of help to feel that his freedom has been threatened or restricted (e.g. Brehm and Cole, 1966;Nemeth, 1970;Goodstadt, 1971;Berkowitz, 1973;Worchel, Andreoli and Archer, 1975). The explicit knowledge of another person's dependency appears to generate such reactance, and make the recipient less willing to give help.…”

Women’s Empowerment Campaigns: Helpful or Harmful to the Workplace?

“…Reactance leads to individuals devaluing the actions being promoted, increasing their effect toward the actions being discouraged, refusing to submit to pressure, or expressing aggression or hostility toward the source of the message (Wicklund, 1974). Over decades of research, reactance effects have been found in conjunction with efforts to pursue normatively positive outcomes such as preventing smoking or drug use (Wolburg, 2006), limiting alcohol intake or television viewing (Dillard & Shen, 2005), a boomerang effect in one's position on an issue (Worchel & Brehm, 1970), denial of the threat (Worchel, Andreoli, & Archer, 1976), and reducing littering and pollution (Mann & Hill, 1984). We now discuss several factors associated with reactance.…”