A. Impression management deals with how people present an image to others to achieve a particular goal1. Similar to impression-relevant involvement; the motivation for holding an attitude is to “look good” in the eyes of observersII. IM and DissonanceA. The central thesis of this approach:1. Attitude change following dissonance is conceived of as nothing more than an attempt to manipulate one’s impression in the eyes of a high status experimenter and to absolve oneself from the embarrassment of appearing inconsistent2. Subjects in the $1 condition of the Festinger and Carlsmith study feared that the experimenter would look down on them for lying for a paltry sum of moneyB. Thus, attitude change is not persistentC. *****Know the 3 explanations and then the slide of when some explanations are better than others*****III. IM & PersuasionA. Impression management has an influence on persuasion when the message receiver is concerned with how s/he will “look” to the other person or to observers1. People desire to appear consistent, and this desire can be manipulated2. Being consistent is met with social rewards because predictability and trustworthiness generate liking and respecta. Being inconsistent is met with social punishmentA. We greatly value our personal freedom1. Autonomy and self-determination are central to who we area. Ex: we are the land of the free, home of the braveb. I should be able to do what I can doB. When we perceive that a relevant freedom has been threatened, we feel “psychological reactance”1. Reactance is a “motivational state”a. Reactance motivates a person to reestablish the threatened or eliminated freedomi. Ex: lets take back our freedomsii. Ex: The American Revolution2. Reactance is often cited as a cause for the failure of persuasive message campaigns ***(ON TEST)***a. Ex: teacher got a note that his son had a temper problem in class, he had 2 choices and then they were taken away. This resulted in his anger flipping tables.II. Overview of Psychological Reactance TheoryA. Freedom1. Listed on next paragraph. Look down!B. Threat1. Anything that reduces or eliminates our freedomC. Reactance1. Anger2. Negative thoughtsa. Ex: well since I’m mad I have a curfew, I’m going to speed in my carD. ReinstatementIII. FreedomA. The belief that one can:1. Engage in a particular behavior2. Hold a particular orientation toward a person, object, or issuea. Ex: my parents disapprove of my bf, but that just makes me want to be with her moreB. For a freedom to exist one must:1. Have knowledge that the freedom existsa. Awareness that the freedom exists2. Have the competence to exercise that freedoma. Believe that we could, if we choose, exercise the freedomIV. (Freedom) ThreatA. The recognition of an attempt to reduce or eliminate one’s freedom1. Perceived threat = threat2. Ex: “…is prohibited.” “You must not…”3. Freedoms can be threatened by implication – implied freedom threats can create reactanceB. Almost any kind of persuasion attempt can be construed as a freedom-threatening1. Trying to change someone’s attitude is, in essence, an attempt at limiting or removing his/her freedom to have that attitude2. Ex: if you are pro-choice and someone is telling you otherwise, then they are eliminating your freedom to think that wayV. ReactanceA. Reactance was originally conceptualized in general terms as a “motivational state”B. Has more recently been conceptualized as a combination of anger and counterargumentsC. Reactance can vary in magnitude1. It is possible to feel more or less reactancea. Ex: ban on smoking. People who do not smoke have less reactanceVI. The Magnitude of ReactanceA. Characteristics of the Freedom1. Importance of the threatened freedoma. More importance = more reactancei. Ex: Prohibiting your attendance at graduationii. Ex: Romeo and Juliet loved each other even though they were banned2. Number of threateneda. Greater number of freedoms threatened = greater reactancei. Ex: freedom to send text messages while driving vs. freedom to send text messages and talk on the phone3. Availability of to the threatened freedoma. Availability of alternatives = less reactanceb. Ex: smoking banned, but smokeless tobacco is notB. Characteristics of the Threat1. Magnitude of the threata. Greater magnitude = more reactanceb. Freedom reduction vs. freedom eliminationc. Ex: temporary vs. permanent ban of mobile phone use on campus2. The degree to which the freedom threat is justifieda. More justified = less reactanceb. Ex: Prohibiting driving on I-10 until a chemical truck accident is cleaned upVII. Reducing ReactanceA. Direct freedom restoration1. Exercise the behavior associated with the restricted freedomB. Indirect freedom restoration1. Exercise a different freedomC. Aggress the source1. Derogate the source2. Verbally attackD. Deny the freedom threat1. Ex: I did not know there was a smoking banVIII. Reactance and PersuasionA. Reactance is most often used to explain the failure of a persuasion attempt1. Through limiting freedoms, persuasive messages can fail to change attitudes or behaviorsB. Reactance is rarely discussed as a method to increase the effectiveness of a persuasive message or persuasion campaignCOMM 318 1st EditionFinal Exam Study Guide Lectures: 18 - 25Lecture 18 (April 7)Unreasoned Influences on Behavior (Habit, Mindlessness, Mere Exposure)I. “Unreasoned” BehaviorA. does NOT assume intentional deliberation about the best course of action prior to acting B. habit1. habit plays a key role in routine behaviors2. habit provides a better explanation for some behaviors than subjective norms or attitude 3. habit and blood donation• frequency of donating blood in the past predicted actual blood donation at a later time over and above the combination of attitude, subjective norms, and behavioral intention 4. habit and drug use• past drug use had a greater influence on present drug use than attitudes and subjective norms 5. habit has a life of its own independent of reasoned influence6. challenges for persuasion• habitual behaviors are difficult to influence and change 7. opportunities for persuasion• once a habit is in place, persuasive messages may serve to reinforce C. mindlessness1. state of minimal information processing and behaving in automatic fashion2. a version of “human auto-pilot”• rigid and rule-governed behavior with conscious attention focused on only a few cures defining the situation3.