Healthy Skepticism Library item: 4593

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Journal Article

Harris PR, Napper L.
Self-affirmation and the biased processing of threatening health-risk information.
Pers Soc Psychol Bull 2005 Sep; 31:(9):1250-63
http://psp.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/31/9/1250

Abstract:

Self-affirming before reading about the link between alcohol and breast cancer promoted increased message acceptance among young women at higher risk. Differences were maintained on variables measured up to 1 month later. Relative to their nonaffirmed counterparts, higher risk, self-affirmed participants had higher ratings of risk, imagination, intention to reduce alcohol consumption, and negative affect, such as fear, while reading the leaflet. In contrast, there were no differences between the groups on measures of broader message acceptance (belief in the link, evidence strength). Thus, self-affirmation promoted acceptance of the personal relevance of the message, a critical step in the precaution adoption process. Overall, the findings support the view that self-affirmation in an unrelated domain can offset defensive processing of a threatening health message, promoting central route persuasion and producing consequential and durable increases in message acceptance.

Keywords:
Adolescent Alcoholism/complications Alcoholism/prevention & control Analysis of Variance Attitude to Health* Breast Neoplasms/etiology Breast Neoplasms/prevention & control Female Great Britain Health Education* Humans Intention Persuasive Communication* Regression Analysis Risk Self Concept* Single-Blind Method