Abstract
This study investigates the impact of the threat level (death-related or body harm related) and gain and loss framed messages in a public service announcement (PSA) threat appeal, as well as the impact of the valence of the media context in which the PSA is embedded in a sample of 266 young Belgian adults. The PSA threat level and the combination of negative message framing, negative context priming and high-threat messages have a significant effect on evoked fear. Evoked fear plays the strongest role in the development of message credibility, more than cognitive factors such as perceived threat and coping efficacy.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Banks, S. M., P. Salovey, S. Greener, A.J. Rothman, A. Moyer, J. Beauvais and E. Epel (1995), “The effects of message framing on mammography utilization,” in: Health Psychology, 14, 178–184.
Bower, G. (1981), “Mood and memory,” in: American Psychologist, 36(2), 129–148.
Brewer, P. R., J. Graf and L. Willnat, (2003), “Priming or framing media infleunces on attitudes toward foreign countries,” in: Gazette: The International Journal for Communication Studies, 65(6), 493–508.Cauberghe, V., P. De Pelsmacker, W. Janssens and N. Dens (2009), “Fear, threat and efficacy in threat appeals: Message involvement as a key mediator to message acceptance,” in: Accident Analysis & Prevention, 41(1), 276–285.
Cox, C. and J. Arndt (2007), “Death thought accessibility,” Online available at: http://www.tmt.missouri.edu/images/death_access_measures.doc.
De Pelsmacker, P., Geuens, M. and Anckaert, P. (2002), “Medium context and advertising effectiveness: the role of context style, context quality and context-ad similarity,” in: Journal of Advertising, 31(2), 49–61.
Dillard, J.P. and J.W. Anderson (2004), “The role of fear in persuasion,” in: Psychology & Marketing, 21(11), 909–926.
Fleur, J. and J.B.E.M. Steenkamp, (2004), “Importance of fear in the case of genetically modified food,” in: Psychology & Marketing, 21(11), 889–908.
Goldberg, M. E. and G.J. Gorn (1987), “Happy and sad tv programs: How they affect reactions to commercials,” in: Journal of Consumer Research, 14(3), 387–403.
Herr, P. M. (1989), “Priming price: Prior knowledge and context effects,” in: Journal of Consumer Research, 16(June), 67–75.
Janis, I., (1967), “Effects of fear arousal on attitude change: recent developments in theory and experimental research,” in: Berkowitz, L. (Ed.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology 3, Academic Press, New York, pp. 166–255.
Kalichman, S. C. and B. Coley (1995), Context framing to enhance hiv-antibody-testing messages targeted to african american women,” Health Psychology, 14(3), 247–254.
Kamins, M., L. Marks and D. Skinner (1991), “Television commercial evaluation in the context of program induced mood: congruency versus consistency effects,” in: Journal of Advertising, 20(2),1–14.
Keller, P.A. and D.R. Lehmann (2008), “Designing effective health communications: A meta-analysis,” in: Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, 27(2), 117–130.
King, K., L. Reid (1990), “Fear arousing anti-drinking and driving PSAs. do physical injury threats influence young adults,” Current Issues and Research in Advertising, 12, 155–175.
LaTour, M.S. and H.J. Rotfeld (1997), “There are threats and (maybe) fear-caused arousal: theory and confusions of fear appeals to fear and fear arousal itself,” in: Journal of Advertising, 26(3), 45–59.
Maheswaran, D. and J. Meyers-Levy (1990), “The influence of message framing and issue involvement,” in: Journal of Marketing Research, 27(3), 361–367.
McLeod, D. and Detenber, B. (1999), “Framing effects of television news coverage of social protest,” in: Journal of Communication, 49, 3–23.
Putrevu, S. and K.R. Lord (1994), “Comparative and Noncomparartive advertising: attidunal effects under cognitive and affective involvement condition,” in: Journal of Advertising, 23(June), 77–90.
Quinn, V., T. Meenaghan and T. Brannick (1992), “Fear appeals: Segmentation is the way to go,” in: International Journal of Advertising, 11(4):355–366.
Perry, S. D., S. A. Jenzowsky, C.M. King, H. Yi, and J. Gartenschlaeger (1997), ‘Using humorous programs as a vehicle for humorous commercials,’ in: Journal of Communication, 47(1), 20–39.
Rogers, R. (1983), “Cognitive and physiological processes in fear appeals and attitude change: a revised theory of protection motivation,” in: Cacioppo, J.T., Petty, R.E. (Eds.), Social Psychophysiology. Guilford, New York, pp. 153–176.
Rogers, R. W. (1975), “A protection motivation theory of fear appeals and attitude change,” in: Journal of Psychology, 91, 93–114.
Roskos-Ewoldsen, D.R., H.J. Yu and N. Rhodes. (2004), Fear appeal messages affect accessibility of attitudes toward the threat and adaptive behaviours, in: Communication Monographs, 71(1), 49–69.
Rothman, A.J. and P. Salovey (1997), “Shaping perceptions to motivate healthy behaviour; the role of message framing,” in: Psychological Bulletin, 121(1), 3–19.
Scheufele, B. (2004), “Framing-effects approach: a theoretical and methodological critique,” in: Communications, 29, 401–428.
South-Ayrshire Council (2007), “If your mate’s drunk driving, he could have you in stitches” (advertisement), online available at: www.southayrshire.gov.uk/safety/drunkdriving.htm.
Strong, J. and K. Dubas (1993), “The optimal level of fear-arousal in advertising: an empirical study,” Journal of Current Issues and Research in Advertising, 15(2), 93–99.
Tanner, J. F., J.B. Hunt, and D.R. Eppright (1991), “The protection motivation model: a normative model of fear appeals,” in: Journal of Marketing, 55(3), 36–45.
Thornton, J., J. Rossiter and L. White (2000), “The persuasive effectiveness of varying levels of fear appeals: an anti-speeding advertising experiment,” in: Proceedings of the ANZMAC 2000 Conference: VisionaryMarketing for the 21st Century: Facing the Challenge, 1279–1283.
Witte, K. (1992), “Putting the fear back into fear appeals: the extended parallel processing model,” in: Communication Monographs, 59(4), 329–349.
Witte, K. (1994), “Fear control and danger control: a test of the extended parallel process model (EPPM)” in: Communication Monographs, 61(2), 113–134.
Witte, K. and M. Allen (2000), “A meta-analysis for fear appeals: implications for effective public health campaigns,” in: Health Education and Behavior, 27(5), 591–615.
Yi, Y. (1990a), “Cognitive and affective priming effects of the context for print advertisements,” in: Journal of Advertising, 19(2), 40–49.
Yi, Y. (1990b), “The effects of contextual priming in print advertisements,” in: Journal of Consumer Research, 17(2), 215–222.
Yi, Y. (1993), “Contextual priming effects in print advertisements: The moderating role of prior knowledge,” in: Journal of Advertising, 22(1), 1–10.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2010 Gabler Verlag | Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden GmbH
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Janssens, W., Pelsmacker, P., Cauberghe, V. (2010). Impact of Threat Appeals on Ad Evoked Fear and Message Credibility: The Role of Prime, Frame and Dead Relatedness. In: Terlutter, R., Diehl, S., Okazaki, S. (eds) Advances in Advertising Research (Vol. 1). Gabler. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-8349-6006-1_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-8349-6006-1_7
Publisher Name: Gabler
Print ISBN: 978-3-8349-2111-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-8349-6006-1
eBook Packages: Business and Economics (German Language)