Choosing Between Two Aversive Communications: Some Predictions from Social Judgment Theory.
Abstract
Forty subjects, twenty classified as moderately involved and twenty as highly involved in the issue of a tuition increase, were given the choice of listening to one or both of two counterattitudinal communications. The less extreme message advocated an increase in tuition of $10 per course, while the more extreme advocated a $50 increase. As predicted from the postulates of social judgment theory, the moderately involved subjects preferred the more discrepant message and the highly involved subjects preferred the less discrepant message. The findings have implications for understanding some aspects of selective exposure to information. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1974
- Accession Number
- AD0781904
Entities
People
- Elliott Mcginnies
- Philip H. Sullivan Jr
Organizations
- American University