Persistence of emotion in the process of inoculation: experiencing post-attack threat, fear, anger, happiness, sadness, and surprise

ABSTRACT

This investigation assessed the mechanisms that contribute to post-attack attitudinal persistence. A three-phase experiment was designed to uncover why inoculation works even after it has been challenged by a counterattitudinal attack. The results of this study show that threat, both motivational and apprehensive, not only persists after the attack, but it may be heightened by an increase in post-attack fear and sadness. Greater anger and less happiness were also expressed by inoculated individuals in response to the attack. An increase, rather than decrease, in surprise was a surprising outcome. Taken together, the findings from this study suggest that the effects of inoculation continue to persist beyond the attack as threat and multiple other emotions interact to form and inspire a formidable attitudinal barrier that endures over time.

KEYWORDS:

• Inoculation theory
• resistance
• attitude change
• post-persuasion emotions
• threat

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. The inoculation message may still be effective should the inoculated individual display enhanced counterarguing skills as a result of practice and defense accumulation as Parker et al. (2016) suggested. However, more research is needed to bolster this claim.

2. This manuscript is a part of a larger study.

3. Just under 15% (12.11% neutral and 2.73% negative) of the recruited participants did not hold positive attitudes toward preserving the scope of the 1^st Amendment as written in the Bill of Rights and were subsequently removed from the study.

4. An excerpt from the forewarning component of the inoculation message: … a September 2017 study from the Brookings Institute suggests that college-age Americans are beginning to question – or even publicly denounce – the First Amendment, suggesting that it should be extensively scaled back. This illustrates a growing trend on university campuses across the country … these conversations have had a surprisingly strong effect on perceptions of the First Amendment among young people. Misinformation is persuading college students like you to advocate in favor of sacrificing your First Amendment rights.

5. An excerpt from the weakened counterarguments component of the inoculation message:One person wrote in an opinion piece in a local newspaper, “we must encourage our elected officials to limit the scope of the First Amendment. The interpretation of the First Amendment is decided by judges, not by the people, and is more often applied to groups with whom the judges agree. Furthermore, it does more to harm us than to protect us. Why do we put up with a society that allows individuals – through free speech – to utter any words they want, even disrespectful ones? For these reasons, the First Amendment’s broad scope has done nothing good for this country. It has only deepened wounds. People’s ability to say anything they want and to disturb law-abiding citizens through protest has only caused divisiveness and discord.”

6. An excerpt from the refutational component of the inoculation message:… the writer’s logic is historically inaccurate, as the First Amendment has opened doors to crucial societal progress throughout American history. Freedom of speech provided abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison with the right to publish an anti-slavery newsletter. It allowed women’s suffragist Alice Paul and her followers to protest outside the White House for women’s rights to vote. In the Supreme Court case of Edwards v. South Carolina, the First Amendment protected 187 African Americans who were arrested for marching through South Carolina in opposition to segregation … the court proclaimed that they had done nothing wrong, under the protection of free speech. This was an important step in the movement for civil rights; it’s a powerful reminder of the importance of the First Amendment.

7. An excerpt from the control message:Busting the budget is everyone’s biggest fear when it comes to renovation. And with good reason. Even if you follow the essential advice we’ve been doling out for years – build in a 20% cushion to cover the nasty surprises, get contractor references and check them, banish the words “while you’re at it” from your vocabulary – it’s hard not to end up shelling out more than you want to, even if you want to pen a check for a million bucks.

8. An excerpt from the attack message:Is it possible that the extent of freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are too broad? In this case, they allow hateful words and actions to harm the most vulnerable among us – those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.

9. Note the positive bivariate correlations in this study between anger and the discrete emotions of fear, sadness, and surprise in Table 2.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Bobi Ivanov

Bobi Ivanov is a Professor in the Department of Integrated Strategic Communication, College of Communication and Information, University of Kentucky. He studies social influence (persuasion and resistance) and message design, processing, and retention. His theoretical work focuses on the study of inoculation theory, images, and attitudes and their composition, hierarchical structure, and function as applied in various contexts including commercial, health, intercultural, instructional/educational, interpersonal, political, and risk/crisis management.

Erin B. Hester

Erin B. Hester is a Doctoral Candidate and Instructor in Strategic Communication in the College of Communication and Information at the University of Kentucky. Her research focuses on persuasive message design, message-induced affect, and social change.

Joe C. Martin

Joe C. Martin is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Information Science at the University of Kentucky. He studies instructional communication, instructional technology, and relationships within the classroom context.

Will Silberman

Will Silberman is a Doctoral Candidate in the Graduate Program in Communication, College of Communication and Information, University of Kentucky. His research interests include social media use and abuse, privacy, and social cognition. He also drinks coffee.

Amanda R. Slone

Amanda R. Slone is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Graduate Program in Communication, College of Communication & Information, University of Kentucky. Her research is a blend of organizational and instructional communication, with an emphasis on training and development. Specifically, she studies socialization and assimilation, memorable messages, academic and professional success, social networks, and social influence (resistance to persuasion).

Sean Goatley-Soan

Sean Goatley-Soan is a Doctoral Student in the Graduate Program in Communication, College of Communication and Information, University of Kentucky. His research focuses on social influence, and how language variation (e.g., accent/dialect) influences intergroup, organizational, and intercultural communication.

Sarah Geegan

Sarah Geegan is an Instructor in Public Relations and Strategic Communication and a Doctoral Candidate in the Graduate Program in Communication, College of Communication and Information, University of Kentucky. Her research focuses on persuasion and social influence.

Kimberly A. Parker

Kimberly A. Parker is an Associate Professor in Department of Integrated Strategic Communication, College of Communication and Information, University of Kentucky. She studies strategic communication, social marketing and social influence (persuasion and resistance).

Taban F. Herrington

Taban F. Herrington earned her Master’s Degree from University of Kentucky where she studied risk and crisis communication, and has a special focus of working with functional and access needs populations. Taban has experience working in emergency management and developed communication campaigns for the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program to engage limited English proficient populations in disaster education and preparedness. Taban is the Functional and Access Needs Specialist and Medical Reserve Corps and Crisis Communications Coordinator for the Kentucky Department for Public Health.

Seth Riker

Seth Riker is a Master of Arts Student in the Graduate Program in Communication, College of Communication and Information. He also serves as the Marketing and Communications Manager for the College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment, University of Kentucky. He manages college-wide communications outlets, analyzes reach and effectiveness of college campaigns and outlets, coordinates and implements college-wide recruitment marketing campaigns, and engages in effective sustainable communications strategies.

August Anderson

August Anderson is an Account Supervisor at BizCom Associates. She manages media efforts for multiple client accounts, writes and edits press releases, memos, blogs, status reports on behalf of clients, and conducts new business and current client research.